BANNER, or Badger Aid for Nonresidents, is designed to assist students from low-income households outside of Wisconsin pay for college through a combination of grants, scholarships, and work-study. It includes a commitment to meeting a student’s financial need for four consecutive years for incoming first-year students.
About BANNER
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What is BANNER?
BANNER is our Badger Aid for Nonresidents enrolled in an on-campus program at UW-Madison. It’s designed to assist Badgers from low-income households outside of Wisconsin pay for college through a combination of grants, scholarships, and work-study. The program commits to meeting a student’s financial need for 4 consecutive years for incoming first-year students.
Who is eligible?
New, nonresident incoming first-year, Federal Pell Grant-eligible students that intend to enroll in an on-campus program are eligible. Transfer students are not included.
How do I know if I'm eligible for the Federal Pell Grant?
The Federal Pell Grant is a federal grant for students who have exceptional financial need and who have not already earned a bachelor’s, graduate, or professional degree. If you are eligible for the Federal Pell Grant, it will appear as part of your financial aid offer.
When you submit your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), the U.S. Department of Education determines an Student Aid Index (SAI). It is that SAI that determines whether or not you receive the grant.
What is financial need?
Financial need is defined as your Cost of Attendance (COA) at UW-Madison minus your Student Aid Index (SAI), the number your FAFSA calculates.
How long can a student participate in BANNER?
Benefits from participating are guaranteed for four (4) consecutive years or eight (8) consecutive semesters (fall/spring) for incoming first-year students.
Receiving BANNER
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Do students need to apply for BANNER?
No. Eligible students are automatically placed into BANNER as they are admitted into UW-Madison and our office receives their Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). No separate application is necessary and the Office of Student Financial Aid will notify eligible students via email and post mail.
If a student meets the criteria, are they guaranteed a spot in BANNER?
Spaces in BANNER are limited and not guaranteed. Students should have their FAFSA submitted by our December 1 priority deadline for the best chance at receiving BANNER.
Is the FAFSA required?
Yes! All students eligible for BANNER are required to submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and are required to do so on an annual basis.
Do students need to complete a FAFSA every year?
Yes. Students should complete their FAFSA® each year and as soon as possible after it becomes available. UW-Madison will not have a priority deadline due to the delayed release of the 2025-26 FAFSA®, but we expect it will return in future years.
The Office of Student Financial Aid will be holding events throughout the spring semester to assist students with completing the new FAFSA®.
If I'm from Minnesota and receive BANNER, when should I apply for reciprocity?
To receive Minnesota reciprocity benefits, you must apply with the Minnesota Office of Higher Education; completing the FAFSA® and/or receiving BANNER does not automatically qualify you for the reciprocal tuition rate.
The Minnesota Reciprocity Application becomes available for an upcoming academic year starting in March (e.g. the application for the 2025-26 academic year will be available in March 2025).
If you are applying to enroll in the fall term, you should wait until March to complete the reciprocity application. If you intend to enroll in the academic year currently in progress, or if you will change your initial semester of enrollment from the fall term to the summer term, you should complete the application for the current academic year. It is important to submit your application for the academic year that you will first enroll at the university, otherwise you may be assessed at the full nonresident tuition rate.
Visit the Office of the Registrar’s website for more information about Minnesota reciprocity benefits.
What if I'm no longer eligible for the Pell Grant during my time at UW-Madison?
Your eligibility for the Pell Grant may change from year to year, but once in BANNER, students remain until they’ve used their full eligibility. BANNER guarantees to meet a student’s full financial need during that time, no matter how the SAI or Pell Grant-eligibility changes. If you believe your family’s income will increase drastically, make an appointment to speak with a financial aid advisor.
What if a BANNER Scholar does not attend full-time?
We strongly encourage students to maintain full-time enrollment; however, BANNER will cover the student’s financial need so long as they enroll in at least 6 or more credits (half-time) each semester.
Students enrolled in less than 6 credits may be eligible to receive the Federal Pell Grant, but no other financial aid.
Because the program only guarantees funding for four (4) consecutive years for incoming first-year students, students can make the most of their financial aid by maintaining full-time enrollment.
BANNER Offers
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What grants/scholarships will a BANNER Scholar receive?
Students are offered both their full federal grant eligibility and UW-Madison meets the rest of their financial need through various institutional grants and scholarships. BANNER students are offered federal work-study to cover a portion of their expenses.
How do outside scholarships affect a BANNER Scholar's financial aid offer?
Because a student cannot receive more than their financial need, work-study and then other grants are decreased to make room for outside scholarships. Overall, the student doesn’t receive less funding, but cannot receive more than their financial need each academic year. Students should inform us if they are receiving a scholarship as soon as possible.
What if my financial aid offer doesn’t cover my full costs to attend?
BANNER is committed to covering a student’s full financial need, which most times will help pay for tuition and fees, housing expenses, food, required course material, miscellaneous costs, travel, etc. However, because it cannot cover a student’s Student Aid Index (SAI), students will need to budget accordingly.
Using Your Federal Work-Study
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What is work-study?
Work-study is federally funded financial aid in the form of part-time employment. Students can work on-campus or with approved off-campus non-profit or small business employers to earn money for additional educational expenses. See the Work-study FAQ on our website for more information.
How do students receive payment from participating in work-study?
The money earned through work-study is not disbursed to students directly nor is it applied towards tuition or housing; to receive this money, students must earn it through working in a work-study position. Students will be paid a portion of their work-study award every two weeks through a paycheck, based on their hourly wage and the number of hours worked. Students can decide how to spend the money earned with each paycheck depending on their needs at the time. The minimum wage on campus is $10.00/hour.
Are BANNER Scholars required to work?
We strongly encourage it. Working while in school can be a great way to not only help pay for living expenses, but also to be involved within the UW and local Madison community, meet new friends, discover new passions, learn about oneself, and gain valuable professional skills.
What types of jobs are available?
Work-study can be earned through any student help part-time position offered by UW-Madison departments. In addition, work-study can also be earned through a position at some local non-profit organizations and small businesses within the state of Wisconsin. Most UW-Madison employers strongly prefer to hire students who have work-study and many community based partners will only hire students with work-study .
How do students find a job?
Visit the UW Student Jobs website to find hundreds of job opportunities available and it continues to be updated every day! Work-Study can be earned from any student help position offered at UW-Madison. You may also earn your Work-Study at some local non-profit organizations and small businesses within the state of Wisconsin. To find more information about these categories, visit the Federal Work-Study page on the Student Jobs website.
When should students start looking for a job?
The earlier the better! While UW-Madison jobs are posted throughout the year, the vast majority are posted throughout August and filled prior to the beginning of the Fall semester. It is recommended to check the Student Jobs website daily leading up to the beginning of school so that students can find the best opportunity for them. Job openings with both UW and non-UW employers continue to be posted daily on the Student Jobs website throughout the year.
What if the job is not work-study eligible; is that ok?
Yes, although we do strongly encourage working either on-campus, at local community non-profits, or small businesses that are work-study eligible. If the student chooses a non-work-study employer, the student would not earn any funds awarded from their work-study, but it would remain in the award to represent the BANNER work expectation.
Can students study on the job?
The name work-study can be misleading. Work-study jobs are no different from any other job in which students are expected to work in exchange for wages. Work-study jobs are real jobs that play an integral role in an organizations daily functions.
