The Student Emergency Fund (SEF) assists Montana State University students by providing limited emergency financial assistance to currently enrolled students. In order for students to be eligible, they must have qualifying expenses that they are unable to meet due to an unexpected emergency, accident, or incident occurring immediately. Examples of qualifying expenses include but are not limited to food, housing, course materials, childcare, transportation, healthcare, and personal or family illness. Tuition and fees are NOT qualifying expenses through this process. Funding is limited and donation-based. An Advisory Committee will review requests based on the criteria below and strive to award as many students as possible while funding is available. 

The fund is designated to off-set a short-term financial need and is not intended to replace financial aid. Funds are awarded as a grant, and unlike a loan, do not need to be repaid. Funds may count as income and may be subject to federal and/or state taxes. *Reasonable Awards average $500 

 

Requirements for Consideration: 

  • an immediate financial hardship resulting from an emergency, accident, or unexpected critical incident 
  • be currently enrolled in classes for the semester and have a degree seeking status. 
  • be able to describe what steps have been taken to mitigate the current emergency 
  • not previously received Student Emergency Funds in current semester 

 

Expenses NOT covered:(this list is not exhaustive) 

  • Tuition, fees, health insurance, and study abroad costs 
  • Non-essential utilities (i.e. cable, streaming services, etc.) household or furniture costs not caused by damage or theft 
  • Regularly anticipated fixed expenses 
  • Parking tickets, fines, and legal fees 
  • Costs for entertainment, recreation, non-emergency travel, or other non-essential expenses 

 

Examples of Approved Uses for Student Emergency Fund: 

  • Car repair  
  • Costs related to accidents 
  • Unexpected travel expenses due to medical/family emergency  
  • Technology repair costs 

 

How to Apply:  

  1. Students will meet with a representative of the Dean of Students during an on-call meeting to discuss the nature of need. Please call 406-994-2826 or email [email protected] to schedule an on-call meeting.  
  2.        2. DOS representative will share application link with them  
  3. Student will fill out SEF application 
  4. Office of Financial Aid will review student application for eligibility 
  5. SEF Advisory Committee will review the OFA responses at least once a week, make a recommendation, and the Dean of Students will determine the outcome 
  6. Dean of Students representative will call student to inform them of the decision 
  7. The committee will also support students to identify resources and services that may provide other assistance. 

 

**Funds are distributed through the Office of Financial Aid and Student Accounts. If you are currently receiving financial aid, please be aware that receiving funding from the Student Emergency Fund MAY affect your financial aid package. We are working with Financial Aid to minimize that impact as much as we can in this situation. Any unpaid balance on the student's university account will be deducted from any monies awarded through the Student Emergency Fund program. A meeting with Financial Aid is strongly encouraged as there may be the option to work through an appeal.  

 

Additional Student Resources: 

 

Giving 

The number of students who can be served by the Student Emergency Fund is subject to the availability of funding. The fund is sustained by contributions from alumni, parents, faculty, staff and friends of Montana State University. A big thank you goes to those who have given in the past and continue to give, as your help has provided support to many MSU students. Please visit the MSUAF website to make a donation.