Summer Session
For financial aid purposes, the Summer Session 2026 is treated as a trailer to the 2025-2026 Academic Year. This means that your aid eligibility is determined by the information on your 2025-2026 FAFSA as well as the amounts of aid you received (if any) during the previous Fall and Spring semesters. For information regarding class availability and registration fees, please visit the Summer Session website.
Some aid may require that you maintain a minimum half-time enrollment status (UG 6 credits, GR/PR 3 credits) throughout the entire Summer Session.
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Eligibility Requirements
Financial aid for the Summer term is limited to the Federal Pell Grant, Pacific Islander Scholarship and Federal Direct Loans or Private Student Loans. In general, you must meet the following criteria:
- Be a classified student for the Summer term
- Complete a FAFSA for the current academic year
- Not have exhausted your aid eligibility for the current academic year
- Be meeting Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements
- Enroll in courses that are required to complete your official program of study (major) that is on file with the Office of the Registrar (see Course Program of Study)
If all of the above are true and you have registered for Summer courses, the Financial Aid Office will automatically determine if you are eligible for the Federal Pell Grant and/or the Pacific Islander Scholarship. If you are eligible, you will be sent a notification email.
If you have not exhausted your Federal Direct Loan eligibility and would like to apply for the Summer term, you must complete and submit a Loan Request Form or email our office from your Hawaii.edu account. For private loans, you must apply directly with your lender.
Once the Summer Session has started, your course schedule will be monitored on a weekly basis and your aid and disbursement dates will be adjusted accordingly. You are not eligible to receive aid for courses that you drop, withdraw, or repeat more than once after previously earning a passing grade. Non-attendance, complete withdrawal and unearned grades (F's) may reduce your aid eligibility. We suggest you check with our office before making any changes to your schedule to determine the impact to your awards.
Important: Please be aware that in some cases, receiving a Pell Grant in the Summer could reduce your Pell Grant in the following Fall or Spring terms. Also, disbursement dates and amounts will vary based on your class schedule and will begin no earlier than May 21, 2026. Loans will not be disbursed until 8-10 days before the start of your 6th credit (3rd for graduate students).
Concurrent Enrollment
If you are planning to register for Summer courses (applicable towards your degree) through another institution within the UH System, please be sure to submit a UH Hilo Prior Authorization for Transfer Credit for Financial Aid Form (PDF ). You must maintain at least one (1) class at UH Hilo to be eligible. Your eligibility for additional financial aid for those courses will be reviewed. Only courses that are CPoS* eligible will be considered when calculating Title IV aid eligibility.