Financing Your MD Education

The admissions process at Tufts School of Medicine is need-blind, as an applicant’s financial circumstances are not considered in the selection process. Financial Aid forms become available in December of each year. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is usually accessible on October 1 of the year preceding the academic year. However, per the Department of Education, the FAFSA for the 2025-2026 academic year will be available starting December 1, 2024. If you have interviewed with us prior to January, we will email you information about the application process including all forms. Starting in January and beyond, forms will be available below.

Interviewed applicants do not need to be admitted to the School of Medicine in order to submit financial aid applications. The Office of Financial Aid strongly encourages all interviewed applicants to submit complete financial aid materials as soon as possible. Students may be admitted at any time and are required to respond quickly. If your financial aid application is complete, a notice will be issued in a timely manner to assist you with your decision.

Financial Aid Awards for Accepted Applicants

The Admissions Office notifies the Office of Financial Aid when an applicant has been admitted to the School of Medicine. If the applicant has submitted a complete financial aid application, the Office of Financial Aid will be able to provide a financial aid award letter as soon as possible.

Admitted applicants that have submitted all required financial aid documents by the priority deadline will receive an award notice prior to the end of April.

Applicants admitted during and after the month of April will be packaged as soon as possible after their admission. The Office of Financial Aid staff will award a newly admitted applicant quickly, but they must have the applicant’s complete financial aid application on file to do so. All applicants are held to the priority deadline regardless of when they interviewed at the School of Medicine. For more financial aid information, visit the Financial Aid homepage.

Types of Aid Available

Type of Aid	Annual Limit	Interest Rate	Net Fees	Eligibility
Medical School Scholarships	1/4 Tuition to 3/4 Tuition			Determined by Office of Financial Aid, need-based, considers family resources
Maine Track and DFMF Scholarships	20 scholarships; $25,000 each; may be renewed in subsequent years			Determined by MMC Scholarship committee. All incoming students considered.
Tufts SOM Restricted and/or endowed scholarships	Varies			All financial aid recipients who submitted parental information and have a complete FA file are automatically considered.
Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan*	1st Year - $42,722 2nd Year - $44,944 3rd Year - $47,167 4th Year - $44,944	8.08% (accrues from the date of disbursement; fixed rate for the life of the loan but each year new rates will be established for loans disbursed within that year based on the variable index rate)	1.057%	Meet federal requirements*
Federal Direct Graduate PLUS Loan*	COA - other aid	9.08% (accrues from the date of disbursement; fixed rate for the life of the loan but each year new rates will be established for loans disbursed within that year based on the variable index rate)	4.228%	Meet federal requirements*, and meet credit requirements
Wolfson Loan	Up to $20,000	0% during grace and/or eligible deferment periods, fixed at Prime +1% when in repayment. Capped at 7%.		Determined by Office of Financial Aid, need-based, considers family resources.
Primary Care Loan**	Varies annually based on funds available	0% during grace and/or eligible deferment periods, 5% in repayment		Students should contact Office of Financial Aid if planning to work in primary care and interested in borrowing funds. Borrowers must commit to a career in Primary Care for 10 years or until the loan is paid in full, whichever occurs first. Students must be U.S citizens or eligible noncitizens, demonstrate financial need, and parental information may be required.**
Loans for Disadvantaged Students**	Varies annually based on funds available	0% during grace and/or eligible deferment periods, 5% in repayment		All financial aid recipients who submitted parental information and have a complete FA file are automatically considered. Awards offered to students with most significant financial need. Fund availability varies annually.**
Federal Work-study	Typical base award of $500			Need-based, meet federal requirements.* Student may request an increase if necessary.

*Students must complete FAFSA, submit all required documents to the Office of Financial Aid and be: U.S. citizens or eligible non-citizens, enrolled in degree-seeking program at least half-time, meeting standards of satisfactory academic progress, in compliance with Selective Service requirements (if male), and have no prior drug convictions during a period of enrollment for which the student was receiving Title IV aid. In addition, borrowers must complete an online entrance interview AND complete a Master Promissory Note for each program prior to receiving funds from Federal Direct Sub/Unsub, Grad PLUS, and/or a Federal Perkins loans. Net fees are effective as of 10/01/2020.

** LDS and/or PCL borrowers must meet Title VII requirements, complete an HPSL online entrance interview and complete a Master Promissory Note for each program. In addition, the borrower will be required to review and accept disclosures and complete a self-certification form annually before funds disburse to their student account.

Need-based scholarships are available for medical students attending Tufts University School of Medicine. All students who have applied for institutional assistance by submitting parental information will be assessed automatically. Scholarships are awarded to those with the most significant financial need, and awards range in value. Most scholarships are equivalent to 25% to 75% of MD tuition. However, some students may receive multiple scholarships totaling up to 100% of MD tuition. Tufts will not offer institutional scholarship(s) that exceed the value of 100% MD tuition.
Externally funded scholarships are considered when determining the total scholarship eligibility for institutional funding. Students are encouraged to disclose outside scholarship awards as early as possible to avoid having their institutional scholarship reduced later in the year.
The Office of Financial Aid will review eligibility of those receiving institutional scholarships who are also receiving outside scholarship awards. If it is determined that the total combined amount of all scholarship resources (institutional and externally funded) exceeds 125% of MD tuition, institutional scholarships will be reduced regardless of time of year. Tufts University School of Medicine will not provide institutional scholarship funds for any student that exceed a combined total equivalent to 125% MD tuition value regardless of the source of funding.
All scholarship awards are need-based and are never guaranteed for renewal in future years. Students are required to reapply for aid annually and those displaying similar levels of need are likely to receive similar aid packages in future years.
The Office of Financial Aid awards institutional and federal student loans in accordance with eligibility requirements and availability of funding.
Students are responsible for completing all requirements to ensure the disbursement of loan proceeds to their student accounts.
Tufts University participates in the Federal Direct Loan program. Students must complete the Direct Loan Master Promissory Note for each loan being borrowed (Unsub Direct Loan and/or the GradPLUS Direct Loan). Each MPN is valid for a 10 year period.
Federal Direct loan borrowers must also ensure that they complete mandatory online Entrance Counseling. Students should be sure to select the Graduate Student option and indicate Tufts University School of Medicine.
Students who are graduating, taking a Leave of Absence, withdrawing, or who will drop to less-than half-time enrollment must also complete online Exit Counseling. Students should be sure to select the Graduate Student option and indicate Tufts University School of Medicine.
Medical students may take advantage of loan repayment programs through a variety of sources. Tufts University has also created a new Loan Repayment Assistance Program, available to graduates of any Tufts program who are pursuing careers in public service.

How to Apply for Aid

Steps listed indicate things you must do. Steps listed in italics describe the events that will take place once you have completed each step.
1. Submit your completed financial aid application to the Office of Financial Aid by the stated deadline or priority consideration date.
  The Office of Financial Aid staff will review your eligibility and send you a Financial Aid Eligibility Notice (FAN) detailing the types of aid you are eligible to receive.
2. Sign and return one copy of the FAN to the Office of Financial Aid within 2 weeks of receipt of the FAN.
3. Complete Master Promissory Notes for all loans you wish to accept if borrowing from one or both fund. (Please note: If reducing loans to be borrowed, always reduce the GradPLUS Direct Loan first as it’s less advantageous than the Unsub Direct Loan. The Direct GradPLUS Loan has higher fees and interest rate when compared to the Direct Unsub Loan.)
  - Direct Unsubsidized Loan Master Promissory Note (MPN)
    Upon receipt of your FAN and your completion of the MPN, the Office of Financial Aid will originate your loan prior to the start of the semester.
  - Graduate PLUS Loan Master Promissory Note (MPN)
    Upon receipt of your FAN and your completion of the MPN, the Office of Financial Aid will originate your loan prior to the start of the semester.
4. Complete the mandatory Graduate/Professional Direct Loan Entrance Counseling at the same time you complete the MPN(s) if you haven’t done so previously.
  - Funds typically begin to disburse during the first week of the semester start.
  - If a credit exists on the SIS account after funds disburse, a refund would typically be issued by the Bursar’s Office within 5-10 days
2024-25 Application Materials
Required of all Federal aid applicants:
- 2024-2025 FAFSA Application
Additional requirements for applicants seeking TUSM Institutional Aid eligibility:
- Tufts School of Medicine 2024-2025 MD Institutional Aid Application
- Tufts School of Medicine 2024-2025 Parental Information Form
MD or MD Combined Degree Students
- MD/MPH
- MD/PhD
All Applicants
Financial aid is awarded on an academic year basis. Our application priority date for the 2025-26 academic year is February 21, 2025, or two weeks after a student interviews at Tufts. Applications received after the priority date will be considered for institutional funding should funds remain and will not impact federal aid eligibility.
New Applicants
Please do not wait until you are admitted to apply for financial assistance. Having a complete financial aid application on file when you are admitted ensures that we will be able to review your application quickly and notify you of your eligibility shortly after your admission.
Continuing Applicants
The Office of Financial Aid will be in touch with you each December to notify you when application materials for the next academic year are available. Application forms are sent out via email attachment, and are also available on this webpage via the link in the left sidebar.
How Do I Apply for Aid?
Complete the applications listed above in the "Forms and Applications" section as appropriate for your program and submit the supplemental documents listed in the application instructions.
Who May Apply?
Applicants who meet the following requirements may be eligible to receive federal financial aid if they are: 1) accepted or enrolled at Tufts School of Medicine on at least a half-time basis, 2) meeting standards of academic standard progress, 3) a citizen of the United States or an eligible non-citizen, and 4) NOT in default with prior student loans.
Renewal of Eligibility
Students are required to apply for financial aid each academic year and eligibility is determined for all financial aid programs available. Components of a student's aid package may vary from year to year due to changes in financial circumstances, late applications, changes in program regulations, and/or funds available.
International Students
No federal or institutional funds are available to international students. However, private loans may be secured with an eligible co-signer. The Office of Financial Aid would be happy to assist international students with questions pertaining to private loans.
If selected for federal verification by the Dept of Education, you will be required to complete and submit one of these forms. Do not complete this form unless you have been notified that it is required.
IMPORTANT: If you are notified to complete the V4 or V5 document, you must either:
1. Sign this in person, in the presence of a Financial Aid staff member and show an unexpired government ID OR
2. Sign in the presence of a notary and provide a copy of the unexpired government ID. If done with a notary, you must provide the original to us with a wet signature. You can either mail or drop off the original to our office but copies are not accepted by the Dept of Education. As things can be lost by the USPS, we recommend you get 2 copies of this document notarized (both with wet signatures); one to submit to our office, one to keep for your records.
We have a list of notaries on the Boston and ME campus that we can share upon request. If students do not live local, you can typically find a notary in your bank, AAA (if you’re a member), your library, city and/or town hall, drug store/pharmacy, insurance company or by simply looking online for a local individual.
2024-2025
Federal Verification Worksheet V4