25_FA_Grad_Guide(FNL)

Financial Aid Guide

2025-2026

Graduate Students

Cost Calculating Your Costs and Financial Aid Eligibility

Understanding Your Financial Aid Summary

Your financial aid eligibility is evaluated based on an estimated cost of attendance (COA) for your program of study. Established each year by USC, the COA reflects average costs for one year of attendance and includes:

Posted to your Financial Aid Summary and Tasks (FAST) portal, your financial aid summary is where you will find your estimated cost of attendance, as well as information about the maximum amount of financial aid for which you are eligible. Note that your financial aid — including scholarships, fellowships and assistantships — may not exceed your total cost of attendance.

• Tuition and mandatory fees, based on your enrollment plans, and estimated Direct Loan fees you may pay.

• Estimated costs for housing, food and other living expenses.

• Estimated costs for standard educational expenses such as books and supplies.

It is important to note that housing and food estimates are based on the assumption that students may not maintain the same standard of living they did while employed. This may mean cutting expenses by living with roommates, preparing more meals at home, and making other lifestyle adjustments.

Also keep in mind that your actual costs may differ. Estimated budgets for students in some programs may be higher or lower due to longer or shorter enrollment periods, special laboratory or studio supply fees, or other additional costs incurred by all students in the program.

Estimated costs of attendance for master’s and doctoral students, and program-specific costs, are available at financialaid.usc.edu/graduates/COA.

The estimated remaining cost after financial aid is applied represents the amount you may need to pay with a combination of personal resources and other financing options, such as loans.

Please note that scholarships received after your financial aid summary is posted will be coordinated with your other aid. Any loan disbursements may be reduced to avoid exceeding your cost of attendance.

USC Scholarships are administered consistent with the University’s Notice of Non-Discrimination. Recipients are chosen without regard to race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, or any other prohibited characteristic.

How to Request a Change to Your COA To increase your loan eligibility, you may submit a request for a budget increase/appeal to adjust your estimated cost of attendance. Typical appeals include tuition charges above the estimated unit count and/or additional housing, medical, or other expenses that are not reflected in the COA but are required for you to complete your program. Requests for budget increases require additional documentation and are subject to a maximum allowance according to university policy. For more information, visit financialaid.usc.edu/ grad-special-circumstances.

Remember: Your financial aid summary is not a bill, and your actual costs may be higher or lower than estimated, depending on your enrollment and personal living expenses.

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Receive Your Funds Fund Type

Next Steps

USC Scholarships and Fellowships

These awards will be included in your financial aid summary and disbursed to your USCe.pay account in the form of tuition remission or a stipend to assist with basic living expenses, according to the requirements outlined by your department.

Please contact your department directly if you have questions about these awards.

Have the outside agency mail your scholarship check to:

Outside Agency Scholarships

USC Financial Aid Office University of Southern California 700 Childs Way, JHH 325 Los Angeles, CA 90089-0914 Attn: Aid Coordination Unit If you received a scholarship not listed in your financial aid summary, please submit a copy of the notification letter from the agency, showing the name and the amount of the award. The letter may be sent to the address above, left in the dropbox outside JHH 325, or uploaded to your FAST portal.

Federal Work-Study

Federal Work-Study provides part-time job opportunities for on-campus graduate students with financial need, allowing them to earn money to help pay education expenses. The program encourages community service work and work related to the student’s course of study.

If you wish to take advantage of any Federal Work-Study (FWS) funds you may have been awarded, you must be employed in an eligible FWS job. See our website for more information.

To view on-campus job listings, visit Handshake on the Career Center website at careers. usc.edu.

Employer Tuition Reimbursement

To coordinate tuition assistance benefits provided by your employer, contact Agency Billing at agbill@usc.edu. For more information, refer to Student Financial Services at sfs.usc.edu.

Veteran Educational Benefits

U.S. military veterans are encouraged to apply for all types of financial aid for which they may be eligible. For help coordinating your GI benefits, contact the USC Veterans Resource Center by emailing vets@usc.edu. For more information, visit vrc.usc.edu.

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Direct Loans

Complete the “Direct Unsubsidized Loan Request” form online by logging in to your Financial Aid Summary and Tasks (FAST) portal at financialaid.usc.edu/fast. You will find the form in the “Document Library.” Once the Financial Aid Office processes your loan and notifies the Department of Education, we will email you confirmation.

2. Sign your Master Promissory Note (MPN) online at studentaid.gov. To log in, follow the instructions provided on the homepage.

3. First-time borrowers of Direct Unsubsidized Loans at USC are required to complete loan counseling through iGrad, a leader in student financial literacy, at usc.igrad.com/ lesson/entrance-counseling. Log in with your USC NetID to access the course.

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Receive Your Funds (cont.)

Fund Type

Next Steps 1.

Direct Graduate PLUS Loan

After exhausting your annual or aggregate Direct Unsubsidized Loan eligibility, you may request the Direct Graduate PLUS Loan by visiting studentaid.gov and following the instructions provided. Once you have completed the process, the Department of Education will notify USC.

2. Once your loan has been approved, sign your Master Promissory Note (MPN) for the PLUS loan online at studentaid.gov.

3. First-time borrowers of Direct Graduate PLUS Loans at USC are required to complete online PLUS loan counseling through iGrad. Borrowers approved with endorsers or appeals will need to complete Enhanced PLUS Counseling in addition to Entrance Counseling.

4. USC processes a separate Graduate PLUS Loan for each enrolled term. If you wish to borrow loans for multiple terms, please submit a separate application for each term.

Private Financing

Students should exhuast all Federal Title IV assistance available, including the Direct Loan and the Direct Graduate PLUS Loan, before considering a private student loan program. The repayment terms of federal loan programs may be more favorable than the terms of private loan programs. USC does not recommend, promote, nor endorse private lenders. If you choose to pursue private financing, you may use the ELMSelect tool available on our website. For more information, visit financialaid.usc.edu/loans and click on “Private Financing.”

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Payment and Financial Aid Managing Your USC Billing Balance and Expenses Savings If you would like to pay all or part of the student account balance from your savings, you can pay the Cashier’s Office online, by mail or in person.

USC Payment Plan and USC Tuition Prepayment Plan The USC Payment Plan allows you to pay your balance in interest-free monthly installments over the course of the semester.

The USC Tuition Prepayment Plan allows you to prepay fulltime tuition and mandatory fees for future years at the current rates. Prepaid amounts are not subject to future tuition and fee increases. Graduate student eligibility may be limited.

For more information visit sfs.usc.edu.

Federal Loans Your eligibility for loans is based on your full cost of attendance.

However, you should not borrow the full amount for which you are eligible if you are still meeting some of your costs through income from work. Additionally, please note that the use of federal aid is restricted to valid educational costs only, and you may be required to sign a statement verifying your use of loan funds. For more information, visit studentaid.gov.

Federal student aid programs, including the Federal Direct Loan program, are subject to change based on forthcoming guidance and implementation of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), H.R. 1, 119th Congress, signed into law on July 4, 2025.

Please also refer to the final pages of this brochure for important information and best practices for applying for and utilizing loans.

Other Funding Sources Other sources of funding, such as scholarships, assistantships and Federal Work-Study, can help cover your tuition or living expenses and do not have to be repaid after you graduate.

To check out various scholarship opportunities that may be available to you, visit usc.scholarshipuniverse.com.

Applying for Financial Aid Summer Terms If your program requires enrollment in summer terms, they will be included in your financial aid summary. Financial aid for optional summer terms can be requested by submitting the “Summer Loan Request ” form (available via your FAST portal) in March.

Reapplying for 2026-2027 Continuing students must reapply for financial aid each year. Application deadlines and instructions will be available at financialaid.usc.edu. It is your responsibility to obtain application instructions online and apply on time.

Financial Literacy To learn more about managing your finances, please visit iGrad, a free online platform that empowers students and their families to make sound financial decisions, now and in the future. Sign up for an account at usc.igrad.com using your USC Net ID.

Planning Your Expenses We encourage you to visit the Planning Worksheet, available through your FAST portal at financialaid.usc.edu/fast. This interactive tool allows you to: • View a list of your current semester charges and available resources.

• Choose which resources are the best fit.

• Try different payment options until you find the plan that works best for you.

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Important Loan Information Type of Loan

Interest Rate 7.94%

1.057%

(for loans first disbursed between July 1, 2025, and June 30, 2026)

(fee effective October 1, 2020, until October 1, 2026)

8.94%

4.228%

(for loans first disbursed between July 1, 2025, and June 30, 2026)

(fee effective October 1, 2020, until October 1, 2026)

Variable

Variable

Direct Unsubsidized This is the first loan you should apply for to cover your cost of attendance.

Origination Fee*

Direct Graduate PLUS Loan This credit-based Direct Loan may be borrowed in addition to the Direct Unsubsidized Loan to cover your remaining cost of attendance for the term.

Private Financing

*The origination fee for Direct Loans will be deducted from the loans by the U.S. Department of Education prior to disbursement.

Loan Limits for Direct Loans

Annual

Aggregate

Graduate/Professional Students

20,500

138,500

Master of Public Health, Master of Health Administration Students

33,000

224,000

Pharmacy Students (PharmD)

33,000

224,000

First-Year Medical Students (MD)

44,944

224,000

Second- and Third-Year Medical Students (MD)

47,167

224,000

Fourth-Year Medical Students (MD)

42,722

224,000

First-, Second-, and Third-Year Dental Students (DDS)

47,167

224,000

Fourth-Year Dental Students (DDS)

40,500

224,000

The amounts listed above represent the loan limits for both Subsidized and Unsubsidized Direct Loans. The amounts students may borrow annually are based on their program of study and academic level. See the “Loans” section of our website for more information.

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Loan Advisory Your student loan is real money. You have to pay it back, so borrow wisely.

When you accept a loan, you accept legal and financial responsibilities that last until the loan is repaid. Loans must be repaid with interest, which begins to accrue when you receive your initial loan disbursement.

You will establish good credit by repaying your student loan.

Try to make some interest payments on your loans while still in school or during your grace period. Defaulting on your loan can have serious, long-term consequences.

Loan repayment begins once you graduate, drop below half-time enrollment or withdraw. There is a six-month grace period before you are required to start making regular payments on Direct Unsubsidized Loans.

Be sure to notify the U.S. Department of Education or your lender/servicer if your address or name changes, if you withdraw from USC, or if you drop below half-time enrollment.

To reduce your total debt, borrow only what you need. You are not required to borrow all the loans you are eligible for.

Once a student has reached aggregate maximum limits for Federal Direct Loans, USC may refuse to originate federal loans or may reduce eligibility for federal loans on a caseby-case basis.

Loan History To review your financial aid history and to better understand your federal student loan indebtedness, log in to studentaid. gov. You will need your name, date of birth, Social Security number and FSA ID to access your confidential record.

Loans disbursed while attending USC can be viewed in the “Loan History” tab on your FAST portal.

If you have borrowed from one or more non-federal private financing programs, more information about those loans can be obtained from your lender or on your credit report at annualcreditreport.com.

Loan Forgiveness Programs Federal loan forgiveness programs for graduates employed in education and public service are offered through the U.S. Department of Education. For more information and eligibility requirements, please visit studentaid.gov.

Loan Debt, Deferment and Repayment Resources Several options are available for repayment of your student loans, allowing you to choose the one that best meets your financial needs. You will be able to change repayment plans at least once a year. More information regarding repayment plans can be found on the Federal Student Aid website at studentaid.gov.

You may also visit iGrad at usc.igrad.com for information and resources about loan repayment.

To compare the plans you could be eligible for and to view estimates for how much you would pay monthly or over the life of the loan, please visit the “Loan Repayment” pages at studentaid.gov.

A deferment is the temporary postponement of payments on your student loan. Your servicer can advise you on your eligibility for a deferment. Deferments may be granted while you are enrolled at least half-time; during the six-month grace period after you graduate or drop below half-time enrollment; during periods of economic hardship or unemployment; or while you are actively serving in the military during times of war, national emergency or military operations. Note: Private loans are not typically eligible for deferments.

When you request a deferment, your servicer may require verification of your enrollment at USC. Appropriate documentation may be obtained at arr.usc.edu/verification.

@uscfinaid

@USCFinancialAid

USCFinancialAidTV

(213) 740-4444

financialaid.usc.edu/contactfao

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