Boston University Medical Campus
Student Financial Services

THE AWARD DECISION

OUTSTANDING OBLIGATIONS TO OTHER INSTITUTIONS If you are in default on a student loan from another institution or if you owe tuition to another university or college, you will not be eligible for BUSM assistance regardless of payment arrangements made with the other institution.

NOTIFICATION OF AWARD DECISION New students will receive a preliminary award once they have submitted a FAFSA, PROFILE, and a completed BUSM Application for Financial Assistance. Other decisions will be announced after student budgets are set and funds assured for the upcoming year, usually during the month of June.

Since it is assumed that you will apply for Federal Direct Loans and other outside loans, you should begin this process in May.

APPEALS Students appealing their financial aid package should speak to an Office of Student Financial Services (OSFS) staff member within 30 days of the institutional award notification date.

If the issue is unable to be resolved to the student’s expectations at the meeting, within 14 days of the meeting the student may submit a typewritten letter of appeal addressed to the Financial Aid Committee, c/o Ms. Kathy R. Stavropoulos, Executive Director, 715 Albany Street, Room A403, Boston, MA 02118. The letter should explain the circumstances of the appeal and include any documentation necessary to support the claim for the appeal. The Financial Aid Committee, which serves as a policy-making and advisory body to the Executive Director, will consider the merits of the appeal, and provide the student with a written response.

Subsequently, the student may re-appeal that decision within 14 days of the date of Financial Aid Committee letter by presenting new evidence or requesting to appear before the Committee.

ADJUSTMENTS IN FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE PACKAGES OSFS reserves the right to adjust a student’s package when the student’s support from all sources exceeds need, when institutional resources change, when circumstances such as number of family members in college change, when a student’s enrollment status changes; or when a student receives any scholarships and/or loans provided by sponsors outside the university. Federal program regulations require a reduction in financial assistance when a student’s support from all sources exceeds financial need. Private programs require a reduction in financial assistance when a student’s support from all sources exceeds the cost of attendance.

TUITION DEPOSIT A non-refundable early tuition payment of $500 is due May 15th. It may be refunded to you after registration if you receive sufficient assistance to meet all charges for the year. Students with questions about the tuition deposit policy should contact the Office of Admissions directly: (617) 638-4630.

MEDICAL PATHWAYS There are various ways to complete the requirements for the M.D. degree at Boston University and it is important to know exactly which office you should apply to for financial assistance.

• MMEDIC Students apply to the undergraduate Office of Financial Assistance for the first 4 years, BUSM for the last 4 years.
• Seven-Year Medical Program The student applies to the undergraduate Office of Financial Assistance for the first 3 years and to the School of Medicine for the last 4 years. Federal assistance only is available for summer course work, but students must be registered for a minimum of six credits to be eligible. Students are advised that any aid, including merit scholarships, awarded for four years of undergraduate studies does not transfer to medical school and students forfeit the fourth year of undergraduate financial assistance. Furthermore, BUSM does not make up for forfeited undergraduate assistance and will provide eligible B.A./M.D. students with financial assistance not to exceed the normal institutional assistance package of other first-year medical students.

BUSM Applications for Financial Assistance are due by 5:00 p.m. April 18, 2008 or within 45 days of admission, whichever is later.

• M.D./Ph.D. Students admitted into the combined degree program must meet admissions requirements for both the medical and graduate schools. The program will ordinarily take a minimum of 7 years to complete. The School of Medicine provides financial assistance during the years a student is working toward the M.D. degree; assistance provided by the Division of Graduate Medical Sciences is considered a resource. The Division of Graduate Medical Sciences provides assistance during the Ph.D. years. However, students in any year of the M.D./Ph.D. program should submit loan applications to OSFS for certification.

Students who receive financial assistance from the Medical Sciences division are expected to repay scholarships and grants should they drop out of the M.D./Ph.D. dual degree program. The School of Medicine does not provide institutional funding to students to cover such expenses. Students may apply for additional private sector loans.