Receiving Your Financial Aid

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Receiving Your Financial Aid

Once you complete the financial aid application process, you will receive a Financial Aid Award Letter. If you have not yet received your award letter, your financial aid has not been finalized and will not be disbursed.

How and When You'll Receive Your Aid

Financial aid is applied directly to your student account each term to cover tuition and fees. Grants, scholarships, and approved loans are disbursed the business day before classes begin.

If your aid exceeds your balance, you'll receive a refund through BM Technologies (BankMobile).

If your charges aren't fully covered by financial aid, you're responsible for paying the remaining amount.

Receiving a Financial Aid Refund

Financial aid that exceeds tuition and fee charges will be sent out to students through BM Technologies (BankMobile). 

After receiving your award letter, you will need to activate your BankMobile account. By selecting your refund preference, you are choosing how you would like to receive the funds.

If you previously activated a BankMobile account with another college, you will need to activate a new account with LWTech specifically. 

Processing Times Based on Refund Preference

  • Deposit to an Existing Account (personal bank account): Typically takes 1-2 business days for your bank to post the funds after the college releases them. 
  • Deposit to BankMobile Vibe Checking Account: Funds are deposited the same business day BankMobile receives them from the college.
  • Paper Check Delivered by USPS: Delivery typically takes 5 to 7 business days.
  • If no selection is made: BankMobile will automatically issue a check to be delivered. This process takes at least 21 days.

Tips for Getting Started with BankMobile

  • Make sure your home or mailing address is current in LionsLink. Refunds cannot be delivered to any other type of address. Learn how to update your personal information here. 
  • A Personal code needed to select your refund preference will be mailed to the address on file in your LionsLink account.
    • Request the financial aid office to email you a personal code to activate your account.
    • Please note: BankMobile will not allow you to request a personal code directly on their website.
  • If you have a BankMobile account with a different institution, you will need to use a new email when activating your BankMobile account with LWTech. 
  • Once you have activated your account, please call the BankMobile student support number (1-877-327-9515) if you are in need of further troubleshooting or assistance with your account and refunds.

Additional Important Information

  1. Check your email. The Financial Aid Office will email you any updates regarding your Financial Aid to the preferred email listed in LionsLink.
  2. Log in to LionsLink and check the following:
    1. 'Holds' to see if there is a hold that may prevent financial aid disbursement
    2. 'To-Do List' to see if there are any pending items that must be completed before aid can be disbursed
    3. Check your 'Satisfactory Academic Progress' (SAP) status. Students who are SAP suspended are not eligible for financial aid.
    4. View Financial Aid to check that your awards are listed for the current quarter
  3. Set up your BankMobile account and choose how you would like to receive your refund.

Common reasons financial aid hasn’t been disbursed

  • Incomplete 'To-Do List' items in LionsLink.
  • Pending communications from the Financial Aid Office. Check your preferred email listed in LionsLink.
  • 'Holds' in LionsLink on your account that prevents disbursement.
  • Frequently adding or dropping classes
  • Recently dropped course(s)
  • Courses are not required for your program
  • Recently submitted FAFSA or WASFA, and aid hasn't been awarded yet.
  • For Direct Loans, you must be enrolled in at least six (6) credits required for your program.
  • Disbursement does not occur until after the published quarterly Census Date. Some types of aid require the Financial Aid Office to wait until after the Census Date, e.g., the WSOS Scholarship.
  • Your BankMobile account has not been activated, or no payment method has been selected.

The amount and type of aid you receive depend on several factors, including:

  • Student Aid Index (SAI): Calculated based on your family's income, assets, household size, and number of family members in college. A lower SAI indicates greater financial need.

  • Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP): To remain eligible, students must maintain a minimum quarterly and cumulative GPA of 2.0, meet completion rate requirements, and stay within the maximum timeframe for their program.

  • Enrollment Status: Aid is prorated based on the number of credits you are enrolled in. Students taking 12 or more credits are considered full-time and receive 100% of their eligible aid. To qualify for federal student loans, enrollment in at least 6 credits is required.

  • Previous Education: Students who have already earned a bachelor’s degree are no longer eligible for the Federal Pell Grant or the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG). However, they may still qualify for Federal Direct Loans.

  • Use of Previous Aid: Eligibility may also be affected by lifetime limits, such as the Pell Grant lifetime eligibility and aggregate loan limits.

  • Courses are part of Declared Program of Study: Additionally, to receive financial aid, the courses you are enrolled in must be part of your declared program of study as listed in the college catalog. 


If you have questions about the amount or type of awards you received, please contact the Financial Aid Office.

Students must attend classes to be eligible for financial aid. Students who do not attend a class, or withdraw early from classes, may owe a repayment to the aid program that was awarded. Students that owe a financial aid repayment may not be eligible to receive additional financial aid from any college, and may be subject to collection activity from federal, state, or institutional sources.

If you're facing this situation, contact the Financial Aid Office as soon as possible to discuss your options.

Students who drop from classes before or on the 10th business day of the quarter, but after aid has been disbursed, may owe a repayment to financial aid.  The Financial Aid office cannot increase any grant aid awards for students adding classes after the tenth business day of the quarter.

If you're facing this situation, contact the Financial Aid Office as soon as possible to discuss your options.

View our third-party servicer contract for refund management.