Grants and Scholarships

Federal Pell Grant
Created as the cornerstone of federal aid for needy undergraduate students, the Federal Pell grant program provides funding for undergraduates demonstrating high levels of need (students who already have their first degree of bachelors or higher are not eligible for Federal Pell).  Through the Academic Competitiveness Grant, additional funding is available to freshman and sophomore Federal Pell recipients who meet certain academic criteria.

Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG)
Federal SEOG provides additional grant funding for undergraduates, primarily to supplement the grants of Federal Pell recipients.

Louisiana's Tuition Opportunity Program for Students (TOPS)
Louisiana's TOPS is a comprehensive program of state scholarships with three levels: the Opportunity Award; the Performance Award; and the Honors Award. Each award has specific eligibility and selection criteria, including, ACT score, and completion of a specified high school college preparatory core curriculum, and grade point average of the core courses.  Click here for more information.

Institutional Scholarships and Grants
LSUHSC schools award scholarships and grants funded through institutional sources, the LSUHSC Foundation, and generous donations.  See the school specific sections of the LSUHSC-NO Catalog/Bulletin for details.

LSUHSC Hardship Waive
This is a need based grant program meeting a State legislative mandate to set aside a portion of funds from tuition increases to alleviate the impact of those increases for needy students. Funds are awarded to Louisiana residents demonstrating significant financial need; this is defined as an official Expected Family Contribution (EFC) Free Application for Federal Student Aid result in the Federal Pell-Eligible range. Due to limited available funds, the school may consider for funding only applicants with Zero EFC and no other significant gift assistance. Awards are made on a first come first served basis. Award amounts vary.

Go Grant
Go Grant is a new Louisiana need based scholarship program, which provides funding to Federal Pell Grant Recipients. For 2009-10, the third academic year of the program, funding is limited to students attending their first, second or third year of college post high school, and students who will be 25 or older by the end of 2009 and who have not attended college in the previous two regular semesters.  Funding during any academic year may be limited in a manner that would prevent full awards to all qualified applicants.   LSUHSC awards Go Grants to qualified applicants with complete aid application files based on FAFSA completion date (earliest dates first) until available funding is exhausted.

Fee Waivers and Stipends

Fee waivers and stipends are available to qualified students. Contact the program in which you are interested for further information on this type of aid.

Federal Loans

The Student Financial Aid Office offers assistance to students through the following Federal long-term loan programs. Repayment of these loans is deferred as long as the borrower is enrolled for at least a half-time course load.  In school deferment for Nursing Student Loans and the Dental Health Professions Student Loans is limited to study in the respective heath care discipline.  Specific qualifications for the loan programs are listed below.

Federal Perkins Loan
This loan requires evidence of financial need for eligibility. The interest rate is 5% and does not accrue while the student is enrolled on at least a half-time basis. There are provisions for cancellation for designated public service in some health professions.

Federal Direct Subsidized/Unsubsidized Loan Program
These federal loans feature a subsidized need based component and an unsubsidized non-need based component. The government does not charge interest on the subsidized component during qualifying in-school, grace and deferment periods. The interest rate is 6.8%. However, the subsidized component rate is lower for undergraduates in 2011-12 (3.4%). The subsidized component rate is scheduled to revert to the 6.8% rate for undergraduates beginning with the 2012-13 academic year. Federal law discontinues the subsidy on new loans for graduate/professional students for periods of enrollment beginning on or after 7/1/12.

► Federal Direct Subsidized/Unsubsidized Loan Academic Year Limits ◄

Medical and Dental students can generally borrow close to the Student Standard Budget limit for Louisiana residents (covering educational costs and an allowance for basic living expenses) minus other aid received. For Medical and Dental students, funding is limited to $40,500 for a nine month academic year, with some adjustment for longer and shorter academic years.

Academic year loan limits for other students are as follows.

Dependent sophomore – $6,500            Independent sophomore – $10,500
Dependent junior/senior – $7,500           Independent junior/senior – $12,500
        Graduate/professional (other than Medicine and Dentistry) – $20,500

These amounts may be reduced based on the applicable Student Standard Budget and other aid received. The Subsidized component is limited to the lesser of the Student Standard Budget minus the Expected Family Contribution and other aid received, or as follows.

Sophomore – $4,500              Junior/Senior – $5,500         

Graduate/Professional – $8,500 (for periods of enrollment beginning before 7/1/12)

Federal PLUS Loans
Through the Federal PLUS program, graduate level students and the parents of undergraduate dependent students can borrow additional funds for educational expenses.  The interest rate is 7.9%. Total funding including PLUS must not exceed the student budget established by the school.

Nursing Student Loan
Masters degree seeking graduate Nursing students demonstrating financial need are candidates for the Nursing Student Loan. The loans are interest free during qualifying in-school, grace and deferment periods, and 5% interest rate during repayment.

Health Professions Student Loan
Dental students demonstrating financial need after assessment of both student and parent resources may receive funding through this program.  These loans are also interest free during qualifying in-school, grace and deferment periods, and 5% interest rate during repayment.

ØØNote  Eligibility for federal loans is determined based on the results of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA); however, loan applicants must also file promissory notes and complete loan entrance counseling.

Employment

Federal College Work-Study Program (FWSP)  provides part-time employment opportunities for college students who are in need of earnings. This program enables students to earn money during the academic year and/or Summer to help defray expenses. The Office is responsible for determining the eligibility of all students who apply for work under this program.

Veterans Benefits

The Veterans Administration officer for the Health Sciences Center is the Registrar, who certifies enrollment and academic load of veterans. The Veterans Administration determines the amount.

Social Security

Students eligible for these benefits should contact their local Social Security Administration office for details.

Emergency Loans

Short-term loans for use in emergency situations relating to education are available through the Office of Student Affairs of each school in the Health Sciences Center. Processing time for checks is two working days following loan approval.

Other Aid Programs

The Health Sciences Center recognizes and administers other programs over which it has no authority to determine qualifications or amounts.  Students are required to notify the Student Financial Aid Office promptly of any aid received from outside sources.

Scholarships offered by persons or organizations who determine the recipient and amount but require the funds to be handled through the Health Sciences Center are welcome.