Financial Aid

Before you begin the financial aid process, please take some time to review the following helpful documents:

• 2023-2024 Financial Aid Information Sheet for Prospective Students
• Financing Your Legal Education 2023-2024 
• Paying for Law School brochure (by AccessLex Institute)

When will I learn what financial aid I’ll get from L&C?

The Office of Financial Aid will begin releasing financial aid offers in early March. Admitted students who met the FAFSA priority deadline of February 15 will receive their offers first. Aid applications submitted after the priority deadline will be reviewed in the order they are received, and financial aid offers for these applicants will be released on a rolling basis as they are prepared.

Completing your aid application by the priority deadline is the best way to ensure that you receive a Lewis & Clark financial aid offer before you must decide where to enroll in law school.

Your financial aid package will include federal student loans as well as any scholarships or grants that were awarded to you upon admission. You will be notified by email when your offer letter is available to view online. Please read the email, your financial aid offer letter, and the Financial Aid Guide carefully to learn how to secure your aid and receive student loans.

If you filed your 2023-24 FAFSA on time, made no changes to your information, and still have not received a financial aid package by mid-April, please contact the Financial Aid Office at 503-768-7090.

How can I apply for scholarships?

All admitted students are automatically considered for L&C scholarships. If you were awarded a scholarship, you were notified in your letter of admission. Please contact the Admissions Office if you have additional questions about L&C scholarships.

You can also research external scholarships (those funded outside of L&C Law School). A partial list is posted on our webpage to get you started.

How do I accept loans that were included in my financial aid offer?

Log into WebAdvisor and select the link for Financial Aid Self-Service. From there, navigate to My Awards to view your financial aid package. Once you have decided how much to borrow, accept or decline your loans by following the prompts on the screen. (Scholarships and grants will be accepted automatically.)

All first-time borrowers at Lewis & Clark are required to complete additional loan processing steps on StudentAid.gov by July 1.

• Entrance Counseling
• Unsubsidized Loan Master Promissory Note (MPN or Loan Agreement)
• For students requesting the Graduate PLUS Loan:
  • Graduate PLUS Loan Application (your credit will be checked)
  • Graduate PLUS Loan Master Promissory Note (MPN or Loan Agreement)

The checklist on your Financial Aid Self-Service home page will track your progress in completing the counseling and MPN requirements. The Grad PLUS Loan Application will appear in your checklist as well; however, please be aware that this requirement will not be marked as complete until your PLUS Loan has actually been originated, and that may not happen until late in the summer.

Do not process federal student loans until you have decided which law school you will attend in 2023-24.

Do I have to accept all of the loans that I was offered?

No, you do not have to accept all of the loan types or amounts that are listed on your financial aid offer letter. In Self-Service you may accept the entire loan amount, change the loan amount, or decline the entire loan amount. Borrow all of your Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan funds first before borrowing any of the Federal Direct Graduate PLUS Loan.

Can I get an extension to accept my financial aid offer?

The Financial Aid Office will not cancel your aid offer unless you notify the Admissions Office that you will not be attending Lewis & Clark or you do not pay your tuition deposit to the Admissions Office by the deadline they have given you. Therefore, it is not necessary to request an extension to accept your financial aid offer. Please note, however, that student loans should be fully processed at least one month prior to the beginning of the academic year to ensure timely disbursement.

My Student Aid Report (SAR) says I’ve been selected for verification. What does that mean?

Verification is a process that confirms the accuracy of the information provided on your aid application. If the FAFSA processor has selected your application for verification, you will be notified in the comments at the end of your SAR (Student Aid Report). The Lewis & Clark Financial Aid Office will let you know what additional documents are required to complete verification.

Please do not submit federal tax returns or other tax documents unless the Financial Aid Office requests that you do so.

When is the first tuition payment due? Is there a payment plan available?

The first Lewis & Clark tuition payment is due in mid-August. Please visit the Student and Departmental Account Services (SDAS) website for this year’s due dates.

Electronic billing (E-Bill) is the official method for distributing student account statements. You will receive notice through your Lewis & Clark email account when your fall semester statement is ready to be viewed online. Expect to receive this notice in early July. Keep in mind that the E-Bill is a snapshot of your student account at a certain point in time, so it may not reflect your most recent account activity. To access a real-time itemization of your account activity, you can log into the Student Account Center, which is accessible through WebAdvisor > Student Finance Self Service. For more information, visit the SDAS website.

In an effort to help students meet their educational expenses, Lewis & Clark has partnered with Nelnet to administer our monthly payment plan option. This plan allows the costs for fall and/or spring semester to be divided into 5 interest-free installments. Fall semester plans begin July 5 and end November 5; spring semester plans begin December 5 and end April 5. There is no monthly payment plan available for summer expenses. The enrollment fee is $40 per semester. To establish a monthly payment plan with Nelnet, please log into the Student Account Center.

For more information about billing and payment, contact Student and Departmental Account Services at 503-768-7829 or accountservices@lclark.edu.

When and how will I receive my financial aid refund?

If your disbursed financial aid funds exceed the charges on your student account, a refund will be generated. Refunds are released on or after the first day of classes in each semester, so fall semester refunds will not be available at Orientation.

Refunds are issued by electronic payment (direct deposit) or paper check. You can set your refund preference in the Student Account Center, which is accessible through WebAdvisor > Student Finance Self Service. For fastest delivery of refunds, it is recommended that you choose electronic payments.

Additional information about refunds can be found on the Student and Departmental Account Services website.