Financial aid at EVMS includes grants and scholarships as well as education loans.
Grants and scholarships are gift aid, which do not usually require repayment, but may have other requirements (i.e., course of study, service, need, merit) in order to receive funding. Education loans require repayment, which begins after a grace period. The grace period starts when a student drops below half-time enrollment (ideally because of graduation).
Available loans at EVMS include the federal Direct Unsubsidized and Direct Grad PLUS loans. The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) also provides funding for primary care loans, loans for disadvantaged students and loans for students in the Doctor of Medicine program. There are also a limited number of EVMS institutional loans based on extreme need.
Regardless of your level of satisfaction with your education, student loans must be repaid. Under certain circumstances, borrowers may qualify for some forms of loan forgiveness (i.e., public service loan forgiveness, etc.) during loan repayment.
Education Loans
Loans are funds that require repayment. EVMS participates in the Direct Unsubsidized and Direct Grad PLUS Loans Program and the HRSA Title VII loans for Doctor of Medicine students. Doctor of Medicine students interested in practicing primary care, or qualifying as coming from a disadvantaged background, may apply for loans offered by the Department of Health and Human Services under Title VII. Students who indicate their desire to be considered for need-based institutional loans may be eligible for school-administered loans. Private or alternative loans may also be available, but EVMS Financial Aid urges extreme caution in using those loans.
Federal Loans
Students enrolled at least half-time in a degree or approved graduate certificate program at EVMS are eligible to apply for federal student loans. Learn more about the application process and eligibility requirements. Students will receive an award notice detailing loans for which they are eligible to complete the loan process.
Federal loans would include Title IV loans such as the Direct Unsubsidized Loan and the Direct Grad PLUS Loan. MD students may be eligible for federal Title VII loans from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).
All federal loans carry a right of rescission or right to cancel.
Students should carefully read all rights and responsibilities associated with each loan as provided in the promissory note for each.
Note: Interest rates for each academic year are available online from the federal government. Historical rates are also available.
Interest Rates for Direct Loans First Disbursed On or After July 1, 2019*
Direct subsidized loans - Undergraduate
Loans first disbursed on or after July 1, 2018 and before July 1, 2019
Loans first disbursed on or after July 1, 2019 and before July 1, 2020
Direct unsubsidized loans - Undergraduate
Loans first disbursed on or after July 1, 2018 and before July 1, 2019
Loans first disbursed on or after July 1, 2019 and before July 1, 2020
Direct unsubsidized loans - Graduate or Professional
Loans first disbursed on or after July 1, 2018 and before July 1, 2019
Loans first disbursed on or after July 1, 2019 and before July 1, 2020
Direct Grad PLUS loans - Parents and graduate or professional students
Loans first disbursed on or after July 1, 2018 and before July 1, 2019
Loans first disbursed on or after July 1, 2019 and before July 1, 2020
*All interest rates shown in the chart above are fixed rates for the life of the loan.
Direct Unsubsidized Loan
Graduate students are only eligible to receive the Direct Unsubsidized Loan. Unsubsidized means the loan accrues interest in the student’s name during periods of enrollment, grace, deferment or forbearance, as well as repayment.
- Interest rate is 6.08%
- 1.059% origination/default fee held by the federal processer from each disbursement (effective October 1, 2019 and before October 1, 2020)
- 6-month grace period between enrollment and repayment
- Annual limit:
- School of Health Professions programs: $20,500
- Doctor of Medicine program: $40,500 (higher during M3 and M4 years)
- Aggregate limit for undergraduate and graduate:
- School of Health Professions programs: $138,000
- Doctor of Medicine program: $224,000
Standard repayment is over 10 years. Higher levels of borrowing may entitle the borrower up to 25 years to repay under certain repayment options. Learn more about the Direct Unsubsidized Loan at Studentaid.gov.
Direct Grad PLUS Loan
Graduate students who complete the FAFSA are eligible to apply for a Direct Grad PLUS Loan for the difference between their cost of attendance budget less any other financial aid they are utilizing. The Grad PLUS Loan is an unsubsidized loan. Unsubsidized means the loan accrues interest in the student’s name during periods of enrollment, grace, deferment or forbearance, as well as repayment.
- Interest rate is 7.08%
- 4.248% origination fee withheld by federal processer from each disbursement (effective October 1, 2019 and before October 1, 2020)
- 6-month grace period between enrollment and repayment
- Credit based (may require a credit worthy cosigner)
Standard repayment is over 10 years. Higher levels of borrowing may entitle the borrower up to 25 years to repay under certain repayment options. Learn more about the Direct Grad PLUS Loan.
HRSA Title VII Loans (MD students only)
Loans for Disadvantaged Students or Primary Care Loans from Title VII funding from the HRSA may also be awarded to qualified students subject to availability of funding. Learn more about the requirements for these loans:
To apply for these loans, complete the steps detailed under application process that pertain to Title VII aid.
Institutional Loans
Because of the generosity of the community and alumni, students may receive EVMS institutional loan funds. Awarded based on need and availability of funds, these loans are subsidized. Subsidized means that interest is waived during periods of enrollment, grace or deferment.
- Interest rate 5%
- 12-month grace period between enrollment and repayment
- 10-year standard repayment
- No origination/default fee
University Accounting Services acts as originator and servicer for these loans as third party servicer for EVMS. Students will be required to complete online entrance counseling and a promissory note, as well as review required disclosures.
Private or Alternative Loans
Private or alternative loans are loans not from federal or institutional sources. These loans may be available based on good credit or with a credit worthy cosigner. EVMS Financial Aid urges extreme caution with this type of loan. Be sure you exhaust all federal and institutional sources first and carefully examine the terms and conditions, including repayment options, before committing to a private or alternative loan.
Private Educational Loans:
- will reduce your eligibility for other loans
- may have interest rates which adjust monthly
- cannot be consolidated later with other Title IV federal loans via federal direct consolidation
- may or may not have forbearance options during residency
- cannot be consolidated in a federal consolidation loan in order to take advantage of income-based repayment or possible federal loan forgiveness programs
Note that medical residency and relocation loans are not included in the definition of private or alternative loans as they are not for educational purposes. However, MedCAP loans would be included in calculations for other aid.
International students enrolled in health professions programs may be eligible to apply for some private loans. However, they are usually required to have a credit worthy U.S. citizen or permanent resident as a cosigner.
EVMS does not have preferred lenders for private or alternative student loans and does not track current rights and responsibilities of various private lenders. We urge students to be very cautious with these loans and carefully read all disclosures provided. Over the past 3 years, a few students enrolled at EVMS have used the following private lenders. This list is limited to those lenders which are still offering private student loans to all credit worthy students:
- Discover
- Sallie Mae
- Wells Fargo
- SunTrust
- College Avenue
- Affinity Federal Credit Union
This historical list is not presented in any order nor does it represent a complete list of those companies offering private student loans. Please use caution in applying for or accepting private education loans.
Emergency Loans
Students enrolling at EVMS should plan their finances to have funds to support them for the first month of each term in order to allow time for releasing of aid, disbursement to the student account and processing of credit balance refunds. Unexpected emergencies happen. A small emergency loan may be available to help cover those emergency expenses until financial aid is released.
An emergency loan carries no fee or interest if paid within 30 days. The amount of the loan is applied to the student’s tuition account as a charge. The most common method of repayment is from disbursement of financial aid for the next term.
Students must meet with Financial Aid to complete an emergency loan application and discuss the amount needed. Applications for $500 or less may be approved by a Financial Aid coordinator. Larger amounts may require additional signatures from the director, associate director and/or associate dean of admissions and enrollment. Once approved, the application is delivered to Financial Services for processing. The check, authorization for use of Title IV aid and promissory note will be available at Financial Services no sooner than 24 hours (one business day). Students will be notified by a student loan officer in Financial Services when the paperwork is ready to be completed. Students must go to Financial Services to sign the promissory note and take delivery of the check.
Caution: This loan is an advance on your funding for the term, not additional funding. Using funds early may result in a shortage of funds before the end of the term. Carefully review your program calendar for start dates. Your scheduled disbursement dates are reflected on the disbursements tab of your EVMS Online Financial Aid System under each academic year to assist you with your financial planning. Typically, when all requirements have been met for classroom programs, your aid will be processed on the first day of each term. For distance or hybrid programs, your aid will be released on the eighth day of the term (or the next business day). All aid is released initially in as close to equal amounts as possible over the academic year to your student tuition account.
Finanical Aid: Satisfactory Academic Progress
In order to continue to receive federal, state and institutional financial aid, you must maintain satisfactory academic progress according to your program’s guidelines; you must also meet the pace requirements of federal regulations. As a student at Eastern Virginia Medical School, you are required to be familiar with these requirements as well as your program requirements. Please download and read the full satisfactory academic progress policy and review as needed. Should you have any questions about the policy, please contact Financial Aid by phone at 757.446.5804 or by email at finaid@evms.edu.
The required satisfactory academic progress appeal form is also available should you need to appeal a financial aid suspension.
If you meet all progress requirements stated in the EVMS and your program’s student handbooks, you will meet satisfactory academic progress requirements for financial aid. If not, there is a timeline for when you will lose aid eligibility.
Example:
After Term 1
Academic Standing: Good
Financial Aid Academic Standing: Good
After Term 2
Academic Standing: Warning
Financial Aid Academic Standing: Warning
After Term 3
Academic Standing: Probation
Financial Aid Academic Standing: Loss of aid/subject to appeal
After Term 4
Academic Standing: Probation, continued
Financial Aid Academic Standing: Appeal must be refiled/updated
After Term 5
Academic Standing: Standing regained
Financial Aid Academic Standing: Eligible for Aid
150% Rule
Financial aid cannot be offered for terms beyond 150 percent of the normal program length. Although terms do not have to be consecutive for aid purposes, if at any point it is not feasible for the student to complete the program within 150 percent of the normal program length, financial aid eligibility ceases.
Example (based on full-time attendance):
Normal Progress:
- Doctor of Medicine - 8 Terms
- Physician Assistant - 7 Terms
- Surgical Assistant - 5 Terms
- Master of Public Health - 6 Terms
- Medical Master’s - 2 Terms
- Art Therapy & Counseling - 4 Terms
- Biomedical Sciences Research, MS - 4 Terms
- Reproductive Clinical Science, MS - 4 Terms
- Biomedical Sciences, PhD - 6 Terms
150% Rule:
- Doctor of Medicine - 12 Terms
- Physician Assistant - 10.5 Terms
- Surgical Assistant - 7.5 Terms
- Master of Public Health - 9 Terms
- Medical Master’s - 3 Terms
- Art Therapy & Counseling - 6 Terms
- Biomedical Sciences Research, MS - 6 Terms
- Reproductive Clinical Science, MS - 6 Terms
- Biomedical Sciences, PhD - 9 Terms
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