<p>My friend has applied to graduate school, but if unclear on financial aid for it. She wants to know if you get refund checks in grad school like in undergrad. While getting her undergrad she used her refund checks in order to pay for her apartment. They supply you with estimated cost of living in fin aid packets. She lives in a small town went to more of a commuter University that did not have dorms. All of the grad schools she applied to do not have grad school housing, and she does not have much saved. She is wondering do they add in living expenses for grad school programs. This website is helpful for things like that so I told her I would post and ask people who would know more about it.</p>
<p>As a grad student, she can borrow up to the full cost of attendance (including housing) as a gradplus loan. She needs to check the policy with the school regarding disbursement. If she has done her paperwork on time, she will probably get the disbursement early in the school year. this does not mean that she will not need start up money; first month’s rent, security deposits, pocket money or simply money to carry her until the funds are disbursed.</p>
<p>What kind of financial aid does your friend think she will receive that there will be a “refund” coming to her? </p>
<p>Grad school financial aid is merit based, based on the strength of your application and the schools desire to have you. It comes in the form of scholarships, grants, assistantships, fellowships, loans, and sometimes work study.</p>
<p>For some very specific programs, students can receive an assistantship that includes tuition remission and a small living stipend. But this is NOT the majority of grad school funding.</p>
<p>There are no grad school federally funded grants like the Pell is for undergrad.</p>
<p>She is willing to take out all loans if she has to. She is not totally out of whack about this. She wants to know basically if they factor in housing when rewarding loans to her. Like I mentioned she has a little saving enough to last two months. She just got her acceptance letters about a month ago to the two schools she really wanted to go to.</p>
<p>Not all graduate school aid is merit-based. Graduate students are eligible for up to $20,500 per year in federal Direct loans; they can also qualify for Graduate PLUS loans for the rest of the cost of attendance, but they have to be deemed creditworthy. Most universities have figured living expenses into the cost of attendance, so your friend could potentially borrow up to the entire cost of attendance in Direct and PLUS loans.</p>
<p>So yes, the university does factor in housing. However, as was already pointed out, she won’t get the money immediately. Typically you have to have your paperwork processed AND usually the university waits until the add/drop period is over before they issue you a refund, so if the add/drop period is 2 weeks at the beginning of the academic year, it could be 3-4 weeks after the beginning of the year before your friend gets her refund - and that’s if the school’s administration runs like butter. If it’s horrible, like my university’s, it could be 5-6 weeks or more. I didn’t get my loan refund check until nearly the end of October my first year in graduate school. So she’s going to need some money for start-up costs: first month’s rent, security deposit, and living expenses until the money comes through.</p>