Verified answer

It means the money leftover from your financial aid (Scholarships, Grants, and Loans) after paying tuition, housing, meal plans, and fees, is now available to you to do what you want with it

Students often confuse a notification of "initial approval," with that of actual "disbursement." In most cases if you applied for financial aid last spring, like you should have, funds would have been waiting on you at the beginning of the semester. If you waited until just before classes started to apply, then your wait for "actual disbursement' could be quite lengthy, as it can take up to several months for an application to be approved and funds disbursed. Actual disbursement happens pretty much immediately, usually a matter of no more than a business day or two - but can't happen until the school receives the funds.