The Safety Net Fund is a hardship fund created to provide undergraduate and graduate students access to financial support to assist with unforeseen or unusual financial hardship. These funds are designed to cover expenses not covered by financial aid or other University resources, unexpected medical costs not covered by a health plan or existing health emergency funds and unforeseen, exigent needs that arise from cash flow issues during out-of-session times. We recognize that family circumstances can have an impact on student needs, however, due to institutional limitations, the Safety Net Fund can solely support the needs of an enrolled student.
Students may submit multiple requests; however, students submitting multiple times should plan to meet to discuss the support needed to meet their long-term financial needs. Additionally, students may be referred to alternate or additional funding resources when appropriate.
Our typical funding does not exceed $500 per request, but we will consider funding requests that exceed this amount if necessary. Applications are required to be considered for Safety Net funding, and the review can take 7-10 days. Application decisions will be sent to students by e-mail. If your request is approved, payment will be processed through Princeton’s Financial Service Center via direct deposit within 4-5 business days or by check within 5-10 business days, depending on what is noted on your finance account. International students will incur a tax withholding of 14% on the payment if they do not have a tax treaty exemption on their record.
Lyft Safety-Net Fund Off-Campus Care Program
This program has been created for the purpose of transporting students to and from all therapy and medical appointments.
A student may submit a request for the Lyft ride through the Safety-Net Fund application on the Campus Life webpage. Once the student receives an approval for this request from VP Calhoun, the student can follow the instructions below:
- The student must download the Lyft app and sign up for an account. The student will need to enter a personal payment method (ie. personal credit card) to cover last-minute cancellations, no-show fees, damages or tips.
- A unique code will be emailed to the student’s Princeton email address from Alison Greenberg in the Office of the Vice President for Campus Life. This unique code can be used up to 4 times for up to $20 per ride. Additional rides may be requested. The rides must start and end within 5 miles of 98 University Place. This code is not to be shared and will only work for one student.
- The student must enter the code into the “payment” section in the app when ordering their first ride. Once the student has claimed the code in the app, the discount will automatically apply to any eligible rides they request.
The program has the following parameters:
- Value per Code: 4 rides free up to $20 per ride
- Time Restrictions: None
- Geofences: Rides must start and end within 5 miles of 98 University Pl
- Ride Type Restrictions: Standard Lyft only
- Code Dates: Valid through 8/10/24
How to Apply:
If you would like to be considered for this emergency funding, please submit the form linked here.