Financial aid for graduate students is in large part provided by individual departments based on the mission and goals of the unit. The Office of Financial Aid does not award scholarships, grants, fellowships, or GTA/GRA waivers for graduate students. The student should contact the academic unit in which the student is enrolled or plans to enroll. The Office of Financial Aid offers Federal Work-Study and Federal Direct Loans and provides information on additional financing options, including Federal Direct Graduate PLUS loans and alternative (private) loans.

DU graduate students are eligible for two types of aid:

• Federal and state aid (available to U.S. citizens and permanent residents), which includes the Colorado Graduate Grant, Federal TEACH Grant, Federal Work-Study, and Federal Direct Loans, and

• Merit-based aid, which includes divisional/departmental scholarships, graduate assistantships, fellowships, and other merit-based aid awarded or initiated by the student’s academic program of study.

To apply for federal aid and certain types of institutional need-based aid, a student must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Only U.S. citizens, permanent residents, and eligible non-citizens can submit a FAFSA. International students are not eligible.

The FAFSA is typically available on October 1st of each year. The University of Denver’s school code is 001371. Applicants and students are encouraged to submit the FAFSA by the March 1st priority deadline every year. Approximately 30% of financial aid applications are selected by the U.S. Department of Education for review. This process of review is known as verification. If a student is selected for verification, Financial Aid will send an email to the student requesting additional documentation.