Just like when you were an undergraduate, you’ll need to submit your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) each year of graduate studies.
As you may already know, government grants are not an option for graduate study. Once you complete the academic requirements of your bachelor's degree, eligibility ends for grants such as the Federal Pell Grant and PA State Grant, regardless of financial need or further enrollment in undergraduate or graduate courses.
The good news is that, unlike most colleges, the graduate tuition rate at Penn College is the same as the undergraduate. Plus, you can apply for loans to cover your educational costs.
This program is more or less the same federal loan program that many undergraduates borrow from, with three big differences:
If you borrowed through the Federal Direct Subsidized/Unsubsidized Loan program the year before you begin a Penn College graduate program, the good news is that you won’t need to complete a new MPN, as long as your most recent loan disbursement is within 12 months of your first Penn College graduate Unsubsidized Loan disbursement.
If your last Federal Direct Loan disbursement was more than 12 months ago, then you'll need to complete a new MPN to borrow through the Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan program.
If you never borrowed through the Federal Direct Subsidized/Unsubsidized Loan program, you will also need to complete Direct Loan Entrance Counseling.
Accept, Reduce or Decline Your Unsubsidized Loan
All students with a finalized FAFSA are offered the maximum loan amount by way of their Financial Aid Offer via the Student Portal.
Find out how much you previously borrowed via Federal Direct Loans.
This federal graduate loan program, commonly called a ‘Grad PLUS Loan’, is similar to the Federal Direct Parent PLUS Loan for undergraduates, except students — rather than parents — are the borrowers.
Note: starting with the Summer 2026 semester, which begins our 2026-27 award year, this loan will be available only to students who previously borrowed through the Grad PLUS Loan or Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan programs while enrolled at Penn College in the same graduate program and had no break in enrollment.
The Grad PLUS loan interest rate is typically higher than the Direct Unsubsidized Loan. The Financial Aid team recommends you only consider this loan if you can’t borrow all you need through the Direct Unsubsidized Loan program. Compare interest rates.
The U.S. Department of Education conducts a credit check as part of the loan application process. Grad PLUS borrowers who have what the government calls “an adverse credit history” still may be able to gain approval, either by getting an endorser (cosigner) or appealing a denial.
The PLUS Origination Loan Fee Calculator helps borrowers account for the origination fee and determine how much to borrow. The U.S. Department of Education deducts this fee from the borrowed amount of a PLUS Loan at the time of disbursement. The fee can be different each year. The fee from October 1, 2020 through September 30, 2026 is 4.228%.
It’s wise to consider the fee when determining how much to borrow. For example, if $10,000 is precisely what you need to supplement other aid and cover the balance of all educational expenses, the PLUS calculator tells you that the amount to borrow should be $10,441, to account for the fee. Borrowing a total of $10,000 would mean the disbursed amount would be over $400 short.
The calculator is easy to use. Whether you are borrowing for a single semester or for a full academic year (fall and spring semesters), simply enter the expected PLUS Loan funding needed for the period and the calculator will tell you what the origination fee will be and how much to borrow to get your desired loan funding.
Please note, an origination fee is subtracted from the borrowed amount prior to disbursement. If you wish to receive a specific loan amount, please enter that figure and the tool will calculate the borrowing amount, accounting for the origination fee.
If you need this loan, apply at studentaid.gov. You’ll see a demo that you may want to view first. If approved, you will also need to complete a Master Promissory Note (MPN) for your Direct PLUS Loan.
Reduce or Cancel the Loan
To reduce your loan or cancel it, please contact the Financial Aid Loans Team. Be sure to include your full legal name, student ID number, loan type and the total amount per semester you want to retain or cancel.
Note that the loan amounts will be updated evenly across the fall and spring semesters.
Just like Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan borrowers, Grad PLUS borrowers don’t need to start repaying their loan until they graduate, leave school, or drop below half-time enrollment.
Learn more about Grad PLUS loans including fees, interest rate, and what constitutes adverse credit history.
These non-federal educational loans are available for students who can't borrow all they need through the Direct Unsubsidized Loan program. Not all private alternative loan lenders offer graduate degree loans, but many do.
To reduce your loan or decline it, please contact the Financial Aid Loans Team. Be sure to include your full legal name, student ID number, loan type and the total amount per semester you want to retain or decline.
If you need to submit a loan application(s) to help pay for your graduate courses, apply:
If your first graduate courses begin in Fall Semester.
If your first graduate courses begin in May.
If you are enrolled in the Physician Assistant (PA) Studies program that is a combined Bachelor and Master of Science (B.S./M.S.) Degree, completing the FAFSA in preparation for the final fall semester can be tricky. That's because the Penn College financial aid award year begins in the summer semester, but the final year of the PA program — the only year at the graduate level — starts in the fall semester.
This FAFSA question can be a confusing one:
“When the student begins the 20xx-xx school year, what will their college grade level be?”
The answer to this question should be Other undergraduate if you will still be in the undergraduate component of the PA program during the coming summer semester, even though you will begin your graduate coursework the following fall semester.
If you're heading into your final full year and answer Master's, doctorate or graduate certificate program to this question, you will not be eligible for government aid during the coming summer semester because you are not yet in graduate courses. Don’t worry about fall. In early July you will simply change the answer on your FAFSA in preparation for the coming fall semester, when you begin your first semester of graduate coursework.
This very last summer semester is at the graduate level. Because the Penn College financial aid award year starts with summer semester, you need to complete a final FAFSA for it. And the FAFSA question above is answered as you would expect: Master's, doctorate or graduate certificate program.
The tip below applies if you don't plan to take undergraduate courses during the summer semester before you start your master's. If you do plan to take courses over the summer, reach out to the Financial Aid team before completing your FAFSA.
The Master of Science (M.S.) in Nursing Education program and Master of Science Physician Assistant Studies programs are both traditional graduate level programs, so you can answer Master's, doctorate or graduate certificate program to the following question on the FAFSA:
“When the student begins the 20xx-xx school year, what will their college grade level be?”