Iowa State University

Iowa State University

Office of Student Financial Aid

Cost of Attendance and Budgeting

The Office of Student Financial Aid provides a number of resources to help students and their families plan for the costs of a college education. Utilize the tools listed below to develop a plan and budget for the current and/or up-coming academic year.


Cost of Attendance
The cost of attendance provides an estimate of expenses associated with a student’s enrollment for one year at Iowa State University. Each student applying for and/or receiving financial aid is assigned a financial aid budget based on their estimated cost of attendance. The financial aid budget determines the maximum financial aid a student is eligible to receive.


Financial Resource worksheet
To help determine the amount of education loans a student/family may need to borrow to assist in meeting the cost of attendance, utilize the Financial Resource Worksheet.
Bill & Refund Estimator
Students can estimate their student bill and their financial aid refund by utilizing the Estimated Student Budget Tool. This tool will provide students with an estimate of their university bill and if and how much of a financial aid refund a student can expect to receive.
Other Resources
Students can also estimate their university expenses by reviewing the following sources