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Contact Financial Aid

Contact Financial Aid

The Financial Aid Office is located in Room 1359 on the main campus. Students can obtain financial aid applications, information on scholarships, student loans, and the Federal Work Study program.

Financial Aid Phone Numbers

Federal Student Aid Information (800) 433-3243
General Information (708) 709-3735
Financial Aid Advisors (708) 709-3523
Loan Information (708) 709-3520
Scholarship Information (708) 709-3562
Office Location
First Floor, Rm. 1359
Business Hours (Virtual and In-person)
Mon., Tue., Thurs., Fri. 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Wed, 10:30 a.m. - 7 p.m.
Resources
Financial Aid Handbook
FAQs Paying for College

Attention Students!
To ensure students receive the most prompt response from the Financial Aid Office, we have established the email address financial-aid@prairiestate.edu. Students are encouraged to use this email address to submit documents as well as ask questions about the status of your file. 

How to Submit Information with Personally Identifiable Information (PII)
Prairie State College must protect all student data that it receives, especially Personally Identifiable Information or PII. This includes, but is not limited to:

  • Social Security Number
  • Home Address
  • Driver's License Number
  • Date of Birth
  • Telephone Number
  • Passport Number

Students or family members that need to submit documentation containing PII should never email this information without encryption. Please follow these steps to encrypt your forms/documents.

WinZip instructions for file/folder encryption and password protection

1. Open a folder to the location of the file(s)/folder(s) that you wish to encrypt.
2. Select the file(s) that you wish to encrypt. Note that in order to select more than one file/folder, you must press the "Ctrl" key on the keyboard while selecting them.
3. Right-click over one of the selected items.
4. Select WinZip. From the submenu that appears, select "Add to Zip File."
5. In the "Add Files" dialog box, specify a 'File name' and 'Destination' (location) for the finished Zip file.
6. Select ".Zip" as the Compression Type
7. Under Encryption, check the "Encrypt files" box.
8. Click the "Add" button.
9. A pop-up window may appear saying "You should be aware of the advantages and disadvantages of the various encryption methods before using the feature. Please press the F1 key for more information, particularly if this is the first time you are using encryption."Select the "OK" button to continue.
10. In the "enter Password" field, enter an appropriate password. Passwords must be at least eight characters and must contain at least one of each the following: a lowercase character (a-z), an uppercase character (A-Z), a number character (0-9), and a symbol character (!, @, #, $, %, ^, &, *, etc.).
11. In the "Re-enter Password" field, enter the same password from Step #10, and remember the password for future reference.
12. Click the "OK" button.
13. A pop-up window may appear saying "Add Complete. Your files have been added. The files will be compressed and encrypted when saved." Click the "OK" button to continue.
14. The encrypted WinZip file should be in the location identified in Step #5 above.
15. The password must not be included in the same message and should either be included in a separate email or verbally provided to the intended user.

The preferred methods to submit documentation containing PII to the Financial Aid Office are:
•    Password protecting the document prior to emailing
•    Faxing (708) 709-3716
•    Delivering it in person to the Financial Aid Office, main campus, Room 1359