How does the payment plan work and what expenses do I need to include in my budget?
The American Installment Plan (AIP) is American University's convenient monthly payment plan for full-time students who wish to pay all or a budgeted amount of their college costs in 10 or 12 equal monthly payments. Budgeted expenses include, but are not limited to: tuition, room and board, mandatory fees, and study abroad fees or health insurance (if applicable). You should tally your total expected expenses and subtract your expected aid (e.g. deposits, financial aid awards, etc.) to find the estimated net cost of attending AU. This number will be the total AIP budget to be paid. If you choose the 10-month payment plan, your first payment is due June 1st. If you opt for the 12-month plan, the first payment will be due May 1st. After AU has processed the application, application fee, and the first installment payment, a set of payment coupons for the rest of the installment plan will be mailed to you. Payments must be received by the first of each month, for the duration of the plan.
You will need to be sure that you are enrolled as a full-time student, determine if you are living on campus in a double or triple room, using a meal plan (freshmen and sophomores are required to be on a meal plan), need a parking permit, and if you plan to either keep or waive the health insurance. (If you are studying abroad, you will need to know the program fee as well.) Aside from the study abroad program, the expenses that you will need to include in your budget are listed on the AIP application.
What is the application deadline for AIP?
The recommended deadline for submitting the installment plan application is August 1st.
Are there other important dates I need to know before submitting my AIP application?
August 1st – recommended deadline for AIP application and all back payments
October 1st – 100% of fall semester balance should be paid in full
March 1st – final payment due for the 10-month payment plan
April 1st – final payment due for the 12-month payment plan
1st of each month - AIP payment due
How do I make changes to my budget?
Please note that you must sign-up or make changes to your meal plan and housing through Housing and Dining Programs. Students have the first 15 days of each semester to make meal plan changes. Entries you make on the AIP application have no effect on your account balance. Billing statements are available on-line 24 hours a day on the AU portal (https://myau.american.edu) Eagle Finance link. Also, Student Accounts will mail periodic statements showing actual meal plan and housing charges. Participants should review the statement and contact the Housing and Dining Program Office in Anderson Hall (202) 885-3370 or via e-mail at housinganddiningprograms@american.edu to report any discrepancies between their preferred plan and the assigned plan.
Each student is assigned an individual representative to manage their student account. If for any reason you need to revise your budget to reflect changes made to room and board charges, financial aid, etc., please send us an e-mail and we will provide a recalculation of your budget and remaining installment payments.
How is financial aid calculated into my budget and are there any financial aid awards I cannot include and why?
All forms of aid (deposits, grants, scholarships, and loans) can be deducted from your total AIP budget with the exception of Federal Work Study. Even though this is part of your financial aid package it is designed to pay directly to the student and does not go toward expenses budgeted within the American Installment Plan. If there are any changes to your financial aid awards, please notify Student Accounts so we can adjust your budget to ensure accurate monthly payments.
I used the AIP last year, do I need to reapply this year?
The American Installment Plan is an annual plan that must be applied for each academic year. Automatic enrollment does not carry over year to year. Updated applications are available on-line at: http://www.american.edu/finance/studentaccounts/AIP.cfm
