Applying for Financial Aid

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Application and Review

CURRENT APPLICANTS –

To be considered for institutional financial aid…

  • February 7, 2025 (11:59 PM EST): GUSOM Financial Aid Form must be submitted by this date to be considered for institutional aid (regardless of admission status; no exceptions to this deadline)
  • February 7, 2025 (11:59 PM EST): 2025 – 2026 FAFSA must be submitted by this date to be considered for institutional aid (regardless of admission status; no exceptions to this deadline)
  • February 7, 2025 (11:59 PM EST): CSS Profile must be submitted by this date to be considered for institutional aid (regardless of admission status; no exceptions to this deadline)

All incoming students who wish to apply for need-based institutional aid must complete (1) the Georgetown School of Medicine Financial Aid Application; (2) the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA); and (3) the CSS Profile regardless of admission status.  Please read the instructions that are included with the financial aid application carefully, and note all filing deadlines, to ensure all required information is provided to our office. International students are not eligible to apply for need-based institutional aid.

To be considered for federal loans only…

Accepted applicants will be notified of their financial aid package beginning in late February.

CONTINUING STUDENTS – 

Continuing students will be notified of their financial aid package beginning in late April.

Award Notification and Acceptance

  • Financial assistance awards are posted to the university’s MyAccess system;
  • Students must log-in to MyAccess using their university NetID and password to view their financial aid eligibility;
  • Incoming students receive their university Net ID and will be notified by e-mail when their financial aid award is available for review;
  • Returning students will also receive an e-mail notification when their financial aid award has been posted to MyAccess;
  • Students may accept, reduce or reject all or a portion of their financial aid eligibility for the academic year (i.e. a student can accept all of their unsubsidized Direct Stafford Loan eligibility and reduce or reject their unsubsidized Direct Grad PLUS Loan);
  • A student who accepts federal student loans as part of their financial aid must then complete the required Federal Student Aid (FSA) applications, promissory notes and entrance counseling before our office can disburse those funds.

Federal Direct Stafford Loan

All first-time Federal Direct Stafford Loan borrowers at Georgetown must complete the following loan requirements on StudentAid.gov (new window) before loan funds are disbursed. Returning students who have borrowed the Federal Stafford Loan at GUSOM do NOT have to complete these action items annually. 

  1. Students need their FSA ID in order to log-in;
  2. Once logged-in to the Direct Loan site, choose “Complete MPN”;
  3. Choose “Subsidized/Unsubsidized” and follow the prompts from there;
  4. The Stafford MPN will pre-populate with information from your FAFSA, please review this information and make any necessary corrections (e.g. make sure the correct aid year is selected);
  5. “Georgetown University” will be the only available option when you are asked to choose your school (all GU campuses use the same federal code for Direct Loans)

Federal regulations require all first-time borrowers of Federal Direct Stafford to complete entrance counseling in the first year they borrow these loan funds.

We recommend that students complete entrance counseling at the time they complete the Stafford MPN.

Federal Direct Graduate PLUS Loan

All first-time Federal Direct GradPLUS Loan borrowers at Georgetown must complete the following loan requirements on StudentAid.gov (new window) before loan funds are disbursed. 

IMPORTANT: returning students who have borrowed the Federal Direct GradPLUS Loan at GUSOM do NOT have to complete the GradPLUS Entrance Counseling or MPN annually; however, it is critical to note that the GradPLUS Application / Credit Authorization is REQUIRED annually. 

COMPLETED ANNUALLY BY ALL BORROWERS –

  • Credit Application – select “Apply for a Grad PLUS Loan” under “Apply For Aid” tab. If your credit is denied, follow the instructions per the Department of Education regarding the potential for approval with a credit-worthy endorser
  1. Once logged-in to the Direct Loan site, choose “Apply for a PLUS Loan”;
  2. Choose “Graduate PLUS” and provide all requested information.

COMPLETED AS FIRST-TIME BORROWER –

  • Master Promissory Note for a Subsidized/Unsubsidized Loan (MPN) – select “Complete a Master Promissory Note (MPN) – MPN for Graduate/Professional Students” under “Complete Aid Process” tab. 
  1. From the main page of the Direct Student Loans site choose “Complete MPN”;
  2. Choose “Graduate PLUS” and follow the prompts from there;
  3. Like the Stafford MPN, the Grad PLUS MPN will pre-populate with information from your FAFSA that you should review carefully;
  4. Returning students who have borrowed the Grad PLUS Loan at GUSOM do not have to complete a new Grad PLUS MPN each year unless they chose the annual MPN option in the previous year

Federal regulations require all first-time borrowers of Federal Direct GradPLUS to complete entrance counseling in the first year they borrow these loan funds.

We recommend that students complete entrance counseling at the time they complete the GradPLUS MPN.

DISBURSEMENT

  • Once a student has (1) accepted their financial aid award on MyAccess and (2) completed ALL required loan documents and entrance counseling, the funds are scheduled for disbursement based upon federal regulations;
  • Students receive financial aid in two (2) equal disbursements (Fall & Spring semesters);
  • Financial aid funds are FIRST applied directly to the student’s tuition account;
  • Students who receive financial aid funds in EXCESS of tuition and fees may request a refund of the over-payment;
  • Refunds can be used to cover living expenses, purchase equipment, or pay other education-related costs;
  • Refunds are processed by the Office of Revenue and Receivables (located on the main campus in the lower level of the White-Gravenor Building);
  • Refunds are requested through GU Experience; students can choose to receive their refund by either direct-deposit or a check mailed to the student’s local address.

REFUNDS

STEP 1: Setting Up A Refund Method

In order to receive a refund of a credit balance via direct deposit, you will need to establish an electronic refund account. Please note that only students are allowed to create an electronic refund profile:

  • Login to GU Experience.
  • Click on ‘Open Student Accounts Dashboard’
  • Click on the ‘Student Account Services’ link
    • This will take you to our secure payment gateway and you will be prompted to enter your NetID
  • You will next see a row of tabs just under the Georgetown header. Click on ‘Refunds’
  • Under the heading ‘Current Refund Method’, click on ‘Set Up Account’ 
  • Enter the required fields denoted by a red asterisk (*). If you wish to use the account as a preferred payment method for faster future payments, check the box to the left of ‘Preferred payment method’. NOTE: a credit card cannot be used as a refund account

STEP 2: Requesting Your Refund

Students with credit balances are entitled to have the overage refunded to them. A credit balance is indicated on the bill by a negative value in the ‘Account Balance’ field. Students with outstanding balances awaiting Financial Aid disbursements, Third-Party payments, or scholarships are not eligible for a refund, even if the “Current Due” field contains a negative value.

The following steps will allow the student to request a refund online (note: authorized users cannot perform these tasks):

  • Login to GU Experience.
  • Click on ‘Open Student Accounts Dashboard’
  • Click on ‘Refund Request’ link
  • Click on ‘Submit’

Revenue and Receivables processes refund requests within three (3) business days of submission. Additional processing time for the generation and mailing of a refund check, or for the execution of an electronic transfer of funds, is outside the control of Revenue and Receivables. If the request is denied, an email will be sent to the student’s Georgetown email address. 

If the student is requesting the return of funds paid via a credit-card (e.g., via PayPath), the refund will be sent to the credit-card in question. Otherwise, if an electronic refund method has been saved, the funds will be deposited into that account. If no eRefund method has been established, a check will be cut and sent to one of the addresses on file for the student, according to the following hierarchy: local on-campus, local off-campus, and permanent.

If Revenue & Receivables attempts to refund back to a credit card but are unable to do so for technical reasons, the refund will be generated as a paper check and mailed to the local or permanent address they have on file.