Graduate Students

Graduate students can submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to be reviewed for federal student aid. Scholarship funding is determined by the student's graduate program upon admission. We recommend that graduate students review their departement's website for any priority filing deadlines.

International students can review information from Temple University's International Student and Scholar Services. International students are not eligible for federal student aid through the US Department of Education. 

Submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). 

 Temple University's school code is 003371. You must be accepted into a degree seeking program for SFS to process your FAFSA.  

Transitioning from Undergraduate to Graduate Mid-Year

If you complete your undergraduate degree in Fall and begin a graduate program in Spring of the same academic year, then you must update you FAFSA at the end of the Fall semester. The FAFSA must reflect the "graduate" status for the your degree program, grade level, and dependency status for an aid offer to be issued with graduate loan funding.

Graduate Programs That Begin in Summer

If you are a new graduate student who is matriculating in Summer I or II 2023, be sure to update the 2022-2023 FAFSA after May 1 to reflect you are now a graduate student. SFS must receive a copy of the corrected FAFSA before the end of the summer session to issue an aid offer.

Receiving Graduate Student Aid

Monitor TUPortal for any financial aid requirements and your financial aid offer.

You may need to submit additional documentation to SFS. You can review financial aid requirements on the Cost and Aid tab of TUPortal. You should also be notified of any outstanding requirements via email alerts

Your financial aid offer will be an estimate until all financial aid requirements are complete. Some requirements prevent students from receiving a financial aid offer, or the financial aid offer may change once any documentation required has been processed. 

Accept your financial aid offer.

You can accept your financial aid offer on Self-Service Banner on TUPortal. You can access this from the home page of TUPortal, or from the SFS Channel of the Costs & Aid tab ("Financial aid package").

When accepting the offer, remember that unless you are a Spring or Summer admit, your aid is split evenly between Fall and Spring.

Apply for any additional loan funding (optional).

If you need additional funds to cover your education-related expenses, you can apply for either the Graduate PLUS loan or a private loan.

  • Graduate students who require additional funding have the option to apply for a federal Graduate Plus loan. The application for the federal Graduate Plus loan will require a credit check. The application is located on studentaid.gov.
     
  • Graduate students can research and apply for additional loan funding from private lenders
Complete loan requirements.

First-time borrowers at Temple University will need to complete a Master Promissory Note and Entrance Counseling requirements through studentaid.gov for their federal student loans. 

Graduate students who are borrowing a federal Graduate PLUS loan will also need to complete a Master Promissory Note for that loan. If a you applied for the PLUS loan with an endorser, or had to appeal you credit check decision for approval, you will also need to complete PLUS credit counseling. 

If you are borrowing a private loan, you should monitor information from you lender to ensure you complete any necessary requirements with you lender. Late or incomplete requirements can affect your eligibility.

Apply for scholarships.

Students accepted to Temple University can utilize the scholarship search tool available through iGrad to search for scholarship opportunities. iGrad is linked to the Costs & Aid tab of TUPortal.

Check with your college or academic program for any scholarship funding. Students should continue to monitor their Temple email, as students are typically alerted through via email when internal scholarship opportunities arise.

If you were awarded scholarship funding, familiarize yourself with any of the scholarship's requirements. Is there a minimum cumulative GPA requirement? Does the scholarship require full-time enrollment each semester? How many semesters can you receive the scholarship? Refer to any scholarship award letter or the awarding department.

Graduate Student Funding Information

Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan

The annual Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan amount for graduate students is $20,500 (divided evenly between fall and spring semesters). Student Financial Services will approve the maximum annual amount of Federal Unsubsidized Direct Loan funding and all students have the ability to accept, adjust or decline your financial aid award offer online in Self-Service Banner (SSB) section of the TUportal.  

New Federal Unsubsidized loan borrowers must complete an Entrance Interview and Master Promissory Note (MPN) at studentaid.gov

You can make changes to your accepted loan amounts by completing and submitting the Graduate Loan Change Form to SFS.

Federal Direct Graduate PLUS Loan

Students interested in the Federal Direct Graduate PLUS Loan should apply online at studentaid.gov. Be sure to review the information on the financial aid offer, as SFS cannot certify a loan amount that is greater than the your cost of attendance. First-time borrowers must complete a Master Promissory Note studentaid.gov.

Important: Please be advised that all loans are processed for the full year. Any amount requested is split between the Fall and Spring semesters. Summer is a separate aid period and requires a separate loan application.

You can make changes to your accepted loan amounts by completing and submitting the Graduate Loan Change Form to SFS.

Federal Work Study

Graduate students interested in federal work-study must be enrolled in at least one credit during each semester and have demonstrated financial need as determined by the annual FAFSA.

If you are interested in federal work study, please contact the Student Financial Services office for more information.

Private Student Loans

Private alternative loans are managed through private lenders, issued in the student’s name, and may require a credit-worthy co-signer. Eligibility, rates, terms, and conditions vary. Approval and interest rates are based on the borrower’s and co-signer’s credit ratings. Alternative loans are agreements between the borrower, co-signer, and the lender. 

Important: Please be advised that all loans are processed for the fully year. Any amount requested is split between the Fall and Spring semesters. Summer is a separate aid period and requires a separate loan application.

Other Resources

Graduate students must contact the Student Financial Services office to report all additional resources each academic year.

Additional resources may include, but are not limited to: Temple University graduate student tuition remissionTemple University graduate student tuition scholarshipsTemple University employee tuition remission, outside agency scholarships, non-Temple employee tuition remission, Temple University graduate school awards/assistantships/fellowships and Temple University departmental scholarships.

These additional resources will be used as resources by the SFS office when determining student’s Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan and Work-Study eligibility. These resources may appear as “estimates” on the financial aid award letter until funds are received by the SFS office. Please confirm all other resources received with the graduate school or the other funding source. 

Important: Financial aid is audited throughout the year and this may result in adjustments to financial aid awards if additional resources are received.