As many as 88% of the students at WIU get some sort of financial aid, and the total amount of assistance/loans provided is more than $34,030,021 in a year. At WIU, the total percentage of applicants who receive the Federal Grant stands at 53%. In comparison, 83% of the students are awarded the Student Grant, 53% get the Institution Grant, and 53% of the applicants receive the Pell Grant. Moreover, the average aid amount for Federal Grant awardees stands at $5,184, while the same comes to $4,663 for State Grant receivers and $5,715 for Institution Grant awardees. And, for the Pell Grant awardees, the average aid amount is $4,786. The annual family income of a candidate is one of the key factors in determining their total eligibility for financial aid. Alternatively, the candidates can also avail of monetary benefits like student loans, apart from financial grants and scholarship schemes to pay for their studies. In contrast to grants and scholarships, student loans are taken by the candidates at a certain rate of interest. While grants and scholarship schemes do not require repayment, student loans should be repaid by the applicants within a given period. At Western Illinois University, the percentage of candidates who opt to avail of student loans is around 69%.