Financial Aid Options for Maine Maritime Academy Students

The Maine Maritime Academy, a College of Engineering, Management, Science, and Transportation, provides financial aid opportunities for its students to help make its education affordable to qualified applicants.

The first step in preparing to take out student loans or pursue financial aid is to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The application is available online, as well as through an Android and iOS app. 

Before filling out your FAFSA, determine whether you are considered dependent or independent from your parents. You can use multiple questions to determine your status, such as when you were born, if you are married, if you are a veteran of the U.S. armed forces, and if you have any dependents of your own.

If you are considered independent, you will need to have the following information: 

• Your Social Security number
• Your Alien Registration number (if you are not a U.S. citizen)
• Records of money earned, including your federal income tax returns and W-2s
• Records of investments and banks statements
• Records of untaxed income
• The ability to create an electronic signature

If you are considered dependent, you will also need your parents’ information.

Part of the financial aid application process is knowing the cost of attendance, both direct and indirect, for your school of choice. 

Maine Maritime includes a worksheet to help determine the cost of attendance: $39,568 a year for in-state students and $54,548 for out-of-state students in unlimited license majors for the 2020-2021 school year. For all other majors, in-state students pay $28,678, out-of-state students pay $43,658, and New England Regional students pay $34,398.

Students can explore their eligibility for financial aid and plan for college using the school’s Net Price Calculator.

Financial Aid

The Maine Maritime Academy has many sources of financial aid for its students, from merit scholarships to need-based grants. The following federal sources of financial aid are also available: 

• Federal Pell Grants: These are need-based and range from $657 to $6,195 a year, as determined by the students’ Expected Family Contribution (EFC), but do not have to be repaid.
• Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (SEOG): These range from $100 to $1,000 and do not have to be repaid – students must also be Federal Pell Grant eligible.

The school offers veterans benefits, tuition waivers, state grants from Maine, reciprocal grants with Vermont, school payment plans, private loans, the Native American Tuition Waiver, and private scholarships and grants.

Student Loans

The Maine Maritime Academy offers student loans on a case-by-case basis; otherwise, students are encouraged to apply for federal student loans. These include:

• Direct Subsidized Loans: These are available to undergraduate students demonstrating financial need. Students are not responsible for interest payments during certain periods, such as when in school at least part time.
• Direct Unsubsidized Loans: These are available to undergraduate, graduate, and professional students but are not based on financial need. Students are responsible for paying interest for the entire duration of the loan.
• Direct PLUS Loans: These are for graduate or professional students and parents of dependent undergraduate students to pay for expenses not covered by other financial aid. They are not based on financial need.
• Direct Consolidation Loans: Eligible federal student loans can be combined into one loan with a single loan servicer.

Private loans are also available through banks and other organizations and are similar to federal unsubsidized loans. However, they have different benefits, interest rates, and repayment options. 

Tribal Students

For Maine students who are included on the current Maine tribal census – of the Passamaquoddy Tribe, the Penobscot Nation, the Houlton Band of Maliseet, and Aroostook Band of Micmac – or have at least one parent or grandparent included and can provide official documentation, the Native American Tuition Waiver Program covers in-state tuition charges.

State Tax Credit

The Maine Maritime Academy supports Opportunity Maine, reimbursing student loan payments through the Opportunity Maine Tax Credit for students who graduated after Jan. 1, 2008, and have been living, working, and paying taxes in Maine since graduation. Businesses can make loan payments for their employees and receive a tax credit, as well. 

Scholarship Opportunities

The Maine Maritime Academy provides scholarship opportunities for its students. Scholarship amounts vary based on fund ability and the number of applications received.

First-Year Students – Merit Scholarships

• The Presidential Achievement Scholarship is on a need-blind, first-come, first-served basis and offers $3,000 for in-state students and $6,500 for out-of-state students.

• The Dean’s Scholarship is on a need-blind, first-come, first-served basis and offers $2,500 for in-state students and $5,000 for out-of-state students.

• The Distinguished Scholar Award is offered on a need-blind, first-come, first-served basis, with preference given to female students and those from underrepresented populations. It awards $2,000 for in-state students and $3,500 for out-of-state students.

• The Harold Alfond Scholarship for Engineering awards up to $10,000 annually for first-year engineering students, with preference to Maine residents and first-generation college students, those with a 3.3 or higher high school GPA, and can be renewed for eight to 10 consecutive semesters.

• The Trustee Scholarship for Diversity offers $3,500 to $10,000 annually to first-year students, with preference given to underrepresented populations (such as women, African Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans, and Pacific Islanders), those with at least a 3.3 high school GPA, and can be renewed for eight to 10 consecutive semesters.

• Captain William Bullard ’59 Scholarship awards $2,500 to $5,000 annually to first-year and new transfer students, with preference to those demonstrating financial need and at least a 3.3. high school GPA. It can be renewed for eight to 10 consecutive semesters and requires a minimum GPA of at least 3.0. 

First-Year Students – Endowed Scholarships

All students must demonstrate financial need and have a cumulative GPA of 2.5 or higher.

• The Ned Andrews Chapter Scholarship (Bath Iron Works) gives preference to employees and their children of the Bath Iron Works Corporation.

• The Bennett/Hodgkins Scholarship Fund gives preference to graduates of Medomak High School.

• The Cianchette Regimental Scholarship Fund gives preference to first-year female students, and then any other upper-class females choosing a major that leads to USCG unlimited license, with those demonstrating financial aid being given preference.

• The Hutchins Endowed Scholarship is for students majoring in Power Engineering Technology, with preference given to students from Northern Maine.

• The Dora Millett Scholarship Fund is for graduating seniors from Kittery, Maine, attending the Maine Maritime Academy as freshmen.

• The Myron D. Rust Scholarship Fund gives preference to high school seniors from Eliot, Kittery, Wells, or York, Maine.

• The J. Scott Searway Endowed Regimental Scholarship Fund is for students from the Portland, Maine, area school systems and Chebeague Island, Maine, demonstrating financial need who are in a regimental major or participating in the Regimental Training Program.

• The Winget Family Scholarship Fund is for students demonstrating extreme financial need with at least a 3.3 high school GPA and no final grades below a C.

First-Year Students – Need-Based Scholarships

• The Kenneth M. Curtis Scholarship Fund is the school’s only need-based grant for first-year students and is available on a first-come, first-served basis with a $2,000 maximum award.

Upper-Class Students – Endowed Scholarships

• More than 130 scholarships are available to students with a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.5 at the end of each fall semester.

All Students – Private Scholarships

• Students are encouraged to seek private scholarships from community and civic organizations, as well as state and national organizations, through “no-cost” search sites.

Federal Work-Study Opportunities

The Maine Maritime Academy participates in the Federal Work-Study Program and has opportunities for all students to work on campus, even if they were not awarded Federal Work-Study eligibility.

Students can work more than one job but no more than 20 hours a week during the semester or 40 hours a week during breaks longer than five days.

There are many on-campus job opportunities available to students and community jobs in the surrounding towns and the Maine Maritime Academy area.

Take Advantage of Another Resource

As you work through finding the best way to pay for college, CollegeFinance.com can offer student loan guidance about planning, borrowing, repaying, and additional resources on making the most of your college investment. We are the ultimate financial guide to help you through your college years.