If you’ve decided to take the plunge and enroll at the University of Maryland, there is a lot to think about. Deciding what classes you want to take, where you’re going to live, and how you’re going to pay for it all are big decisions.
The purpose of this guide is to help you come up with a plan on how you are going to pay for your education at the University of Maryland. You have several financial options at your disposal to make college more affordable. After going over this guide, you’ll have no trouble deciding on what grants, loans, and scholarships are right for you.
University of Maryland Scholarships
The most sought after form of financial aid is scholarships. Scholarships are a form of gift aid, meaning that they don’t ever have to be paid back. Scholarship administrators award scholarships based on a variety of criteria, including financial need, academic excellence, extracurricular activities, and community service.
At the University of Maryland, there are a variety of different sources of scholarships for you to sort through. For info on what scholarships are available to you, continue below:
- Hans R. Wilhelmsen Memorial Scholarship Fund for Dental and Medical Education:
This scholarship awards $1,200 a year. It was created to help students who choose to pursue a medical degree at the University of Maryland, after having successfully completed a dental degree program, or vice versa.
- Jon Christian Merkel Scholarship Fund:
This scholarship awards $2,000 a year and was created to benefit students who show academic excellence and have a financial need.
- Lois Young-Thomas Memorial Scholarship and Leadership Guild Endowment:
This scholarship awards $7,500 a year and was created to help full-time students enrolled in a progressional or graduate program at the University of Maryland, Baltimore. Awardees must be Maryland residents, with preference given to first-year students.
- PNC (Mercantile) Scholarship Endowment:
This scholarship awards $1,500 a year and was created to provide scholarships for students enrolled in professional programs at the University of Maryland, Baltimore.
- Presidential Scholarship Fund for the University of Maryland:
This scholarship awards $2,400 a year and was created to help students enrolled at the University of Maryland, Baltimore.
- The Southern Management Corporation Scholarship Fund:
This scholarship awards $2,250 a year and was created to help students who previously graduated from one of the following community colleges:
Preference is given to students living in a Southern Management Corporation community. Students enrolled at the Carey School of Law are not eligible.
State Scholarships
The Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC) distributes a variety of state scholarships that you can apply for. Before being considered for any of these, you are required to file a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
MHEC Scholarships include:
- Senatorial Scholarship
- Delegate Scholarship
- Janet L. Hoffman Loan Assistance Repayment Program (LARP)
- State Loan Repayment Program (SLRP) and Maryland Loan Assistance Repayment Program for Physicians (MLARP)
- Maryland Dent-Care Loan Assistance Repayment Plan (MDC-LARP)
- Hal and Jo Cohen Graduate Nursing Faculty Scholarship
- Tuition Reduction for Non-Resident Nursing Students
- Veterans of Afghanistan and Iraq Conflicts (VAIC) Scholarship Program
- Workforce Shortage Student Assistance Grant Program
For even more MHEC scholarships and grants, see the Maryland state scholarship website.
Alternative Scholarships Sources
There are several more scholarships available than what’s outlined above. Private scholarships aren’t usually as well advertised, and to find them, you need to do some searching. The University of Maryland recommends the following scholarship search engines to find additional scholarships:
University of Maryland Grants
Grants are another form of gift aid that you shouldn’t overlook. The Federal and Maryland state governments both provide several options to help make college more affordable. As with most other forms of financial aid, you’ll have to file a FAFSA before being considered for most grants.
Federal College Grants
- Federal Pell Grant:
The Federal Pell Grant awards up to $6,195 for the 2019-20 school year to students with a demonstrated financial need, which is based on Expected Family Contribution (EFC). To be eligible for a Pell Grant, you must be enrolled in an undergraduate degree program leading to your first bachelor’s degree.
- Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG)
The Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant awards between $100 and $4,000 per year to students with the lowest expected family contributions. As funds for this grant are limited and awarded on a first-come, first-serve basis, not all students eligible will receive it.
Maryland State Grants
The state of Maryland provides many additional grants for you to pursue. See below for links to need-based and career-based grants you can apply for:
Need-Based Grants
- Howard P. Rawlings Program of Educational Excellence Awards:
- 2+2 Transfer Scholarship
- Part-Time Grant
- Graduate and Professional Scholarship Program
- Maryland Community College Promise Scholarship
- Near Completer Grant
Career-Based Grants
- Richard W. Collins III Leadership with Honor Scholarship
- Teaching Fellows for Maryland Scholarship
- Charles W. Riley Firefighter and Ambulance and Rescue Squad Member Scholarship Program
- Cybersecurity Public Service Scholarship Program
- Tuition Reduction for Non-Resident Nursing Students
- Workforce Shortage Student Assistance Grant Program
- Annual Service Obligations
Federal Work-Study at University of Maryland
If you’d like to work while attending the University of Maryland, consider finding a job through the Federal Work-Study Program. This program was created as an alternative to student loans for students with a demonstrated financial need.
To participate in the work-study program at the University of Maryland, you must file a FAFSA and indicate on it that you are interested in work-study. Work-study positions are not guaranteed. You must apply, interview, and, if selected, accept the position before participating.
Student Loans for University of Maryland Students
If you’ve gone through all the gift aid options available to you and still have a balance left to cover, student loans are there to pick up the slack. There are several different types of student loans, the most common being Federal Direct Loans, Title VII Federal Student Loans, and Private Student Loans.
Federal Direct Student Loans
Federal Direct Student Loans are offered straight from the Federal government and typically have the lowest interest rates.
- Direct Stafford Loans:
Direct Stafford Loans are available to eligible students upon filing the FAFSA. To be eligible, you must be enrolled in at least six credits in a degree-seeking program. There are Subsidized Stafford Loans, which don’t accrue interest while you’re in school, and unsubsidized, which begin accruing interest the day you receive funds.
- Graduate PLUS Loans:
Graduate PLUS Loans are available to eligible graduate students upon filing the FAFSA once all Direct Stafford Loan funds have been used up. To be eligible, you must be enrolled in at least six credits, and pass a simplified credit check. If you are unable to pass the credit check, you can still secure a Grad PLUS loan with a qualifying cosigner.
- Parent PLUS Loans:
Parent PLUS Loans are available to the parent(s) of eligible dependent undergraduates upon filing the FAFSA once all Direct Stafford Loan funds have been used up. To be eligible, you must be enrolled in at least six credits, and the borrower, or their cosigner, must pass a credit check.
Title VII Federal Student Loans
Federal Student loans also come in the form of Title VII Federal Student Loans. These include the following:
- Health Professions Loans:
Health Professions Loans are available to full-time students pursuing a degree in dentistry or pharmacy, who have a demonstrated financial need upon filing the FAFSA.
- Nursing Loans:
Nursing Loans are available to both full and half-time students pursuing either a baccalaureate or graduate degree in nursing upon filing the FAFSA.
Private Student Loans
After you’ve exhausted all other forms of aid, your last option to consider is taking out a private student loan. Before taking out a private student loan, you must first file the FAFSA, so all other funding options are ruled out.
The University of Maryland recommends that you meet with your financial aid counselor to go over your eligibility for private loans. If they determine you have no other option, they’ll refer you to an Alternative Loan Counselor to help secure a private student loan.
