Many students ask: "If I am interested in exploring what my financial aid options are, what do I need to do?" 

1ST Let your Assistant Director of Admissions (ADA) know that you are interested in applying for aid, so that he/she can set up an appointment for you to talk to the school Admissions Coordinator and/or Student Financial Services Department.

2ND We may be able to estimate your financial aid if you do the following: If you plan on starting school between July 2008 and June 2009, bring in a copy of your 2007 US Income Tax Return (if you cannot locate your copy, let us know immediately and we can tell you how to get a copy).

You will also be asked about your untaxed income and assets. 

3RD You will also need a copy of your parents' 2007 tax return, and information about their untaxed income and assets, if you:

• Are not married
• Do not have legal dependents
• Are under 24 years old
• Are not a veteran of the US armed services, and
• Are not an orphan or ward of the court.

If you need your parents' information, we recommend that they visit the school with you, or that they are available by phone during the time that you are scheduled to be with the Admissions Coordinator or the Student Financial Services Department.

The Illinois Institute of Art — Chicago provides "financial planning" for its students. This means that we can provide a payment plan that will allow you to budget for your entire program. Our goal in Student Financial Services is to make your monthly payments as affordable to you as possible. After you complete the application forms, your Student Financial Planner will review them using a federally required calculation to determine your eligibility for financial aid. The Planner will then work with you and your family to devise a Student Financial Plan to help you cover your educational expenses, based on your financial aid eligibility and your family circumstances. This is an outline of our process:

• We estimate the total cost of your education. Your total costs are broken down into direct and indirect costs.
  
  Examples of "direct" costs include tuition, fees, and some supplies. Click here for details on tuition and fees. NOTE -- We have chosen to show you, up front, an estimate of the entire tuition and fee charges for your program of study because we believe it is in your best interest to have this information prior to starting any classes. We hope that this information helps you make an informed decision. The school actually charges tuition, fees and school sponsored housing for each quarter separately and a student is never obligated to pay for charges beyond the quarter they have started.
  
  "Indirect" costs include food, transportation, personal expenses, and some supplies. Standard budget figures (available for review in the Student Financial Services Department) are used to estimate indirect costs, based on where you will live when you attend The Illinois Institute of Art - Chicago. These budget standards may be adjusted to meet unusual personal circumstances.
  
  Housing expenses can be considered direct or indirect costs, depending on your living arrangements. The Housing Services Office can provide you with information on school-sponsored as well as independent apartments.
  
  
• We add up all available resources that can be used to pay educational costs. This can include scholarships, veteran's benefits, federal and state aid for which you are eligible, private loans, etc.
• We subtract all of the available resources from the total estimated cost of your education. The difference is the amount that can be covered through the Student Financial Planning process.