Welcome J.D. Class of 2028!
Use this website to prepare for your 1L year at Vanderbilt. It contains everything you need to know about orientation, student accounts, housing, financing, and more.
Financial Timeline
- All Vanderbilt University students must acknowledge the terms and conditions of an online Student Account Agreement form when logging into the YES (Your Enrollment System) portal.
- Apply for loans (by June 15 or as soon as possible thereafter)
- August 1: electronic term bills posted to YES; notification sent to your Vanderbilt email address.
- August 1: VU Health Insurance waiver deadline
- August 31: term bill payment due
Student Accounts, Billing, and Payment
The Office of Student Accounts is the centralized billing and collection point for student accounts. The Office provides important information about financial policies and procedures related to upcoming payment obligations including secure online account access to view bills, make payments, and review e-bill information through the Billing Portal on YES (Your Enrollment Services). Charges and credits are placed directly on a student's bill by various departments of the University; tuition and fees appear as charges, and scholarships and loans appear as credits. Your student account will also show other payments you make as credits, and purchases made with your Commodore Card as charges.
Billing is electronic. On August 1 (and on the first of each month thereafter), an invoice showing charges and credits will be posted to your YES billing portal where you can view bills, make payments, and review up to 12 months of payment information.
The August 1 bill must be paid by August 31. Scholarships, loans, seat deposits, and individual payments are credited to your student account. If your credits exceed charges for tuition and fees, you will receive a refund for the excess amount after classes begin. To pay any portion of the first semester bill not covered by scholarships or loans, please refer to this page for information on various payment options. No transcript, official or unofficial, will be issued for a student who has an outstanding student account balance. Transcripts will be released when the account has been paid. Diplomas will also be withheld until all bills are paid.
Complete loan applications by June 15
To apply for educational loans, complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), listing Vanderbilt as the recipient. Once your FAFSA is received and processed, the Vanderbilt University Office of Student Financial Aid will notify you of your loan eligibility.
Please refer to your Vanderbilt Yes page, Financial Aid Checklist for information regarding loans you have been offered and loan documents/applications you are required to submit at http://www.studentaid.gov/. We recommend that you complete your loan applications by June 15 so that the amounts you borrow will appear as anticipated credits on your first semester bill.
Required loan documents are located at https://www.studentaid.gov/, In School tab, and include:
- Loan Entrance Counseling
- Master Promissory Note (Loan agreement for Unsubsidized Loan)
- Master Promissory Note (Loan agreement for Grad PLUS Loan)
- Apply for a PLUS Loan for Graduate School (Loan period: 8/2025 – 5/2026)
Once you have set up your VUnetID, you can view your financial aid award on your YES page. Alert the Office of Student Financial Aid of any loan amount changes by email to loans@vanderbilt.edu.
Direct deposit of refund check balances
Student loans and other payments are made to your student account, and after charges have been paid, remaining funds are refunded to you, either by paper check through the mail or direct deposit to your checking account. For direct deposit, log into YES, click the Direct Deposit icon, and enter your account and routing number.
Due to bank pre-noting requirements, your banking information needs to be entered at least one week (7 days) prior to any expected refund distribution, so enter your information today to avoid any potential delays. Law students’ refunds will begin processing orientation week, and individual refunds will be issued by the end of the week.
If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to contact Student Accounts locally at 615-322-6693, toll free at 1-800-288-1144 or by email at student.accounts@vanderbilt.edu.