Earning an advanced degree can open doors to exciting career growth and higher earning potential. While the decision to continue your education is a big step, proper financial planning can make it a rewarding one. For those planning to attend graduate school, understanding your funding options is key. Scholarships created specifically for graduate students can ease the pressure of student loans, allowing you to focus on achieving your aspirations without the added stress of financial strain.
Paying for graduate school
Just like with finding money for your undergraduate degree, the same steps and resources can be available to you as a master’s or doctorate student. Scholarships that cover your tuition, fees and books, etc., are desirable, but know that these kind of scholarships are highly competitive. Most graduate students use a combination of scholarship opportunities, tuition waivers, grants, and fellowships to fund their graduate school experience.
Scholarships for graduate students
Similar to your undergraduate degree, there are scholarships available for professional degrees. While there are fewer scholarships for college students attending graduate school, there is still money out there to be had so don’t discount this option without giving it a chance.
When it comes to scholarships, it’s a good idea to keep yourself organized. You may want to create a scholarship spreadsheet to keep track of the scholarships, the application requirements and due dates. Carefully check to ensure you qualify for the scholarship before beginning your application.
Fulbright Program
Fulbright Grants help promote the exchange of ideas across countries and are sponsored by the U.S. Department of State. Partnering with 140 countries around the world, the Program gives students the opportunities to pursue their study, conduct research, or teach English abroad. While receiving a Fulbright grant, you will be able to live, interact, and learn from those living in the host country. Fulbright Grants have a variety of award opportunities depending on the type of award you are applying for:
- Open Study/Research Award- you design and propose a project for a specific country
- English Teaching Assistant- you provide the presence of a native English speaker to help supplement local English language instruction
- Fulbright-Fogarty Fellowships in Public Health- promotes research of public health in locations with limited resources
- Fulbright-National Geographic Storytelling Fellowship- assist in producing online and digital content that develops the global narratives and commonalities that are found in spite of national or regional boarders
Programs like the Fulbright Grant Program facilitate an exchange of ideas through learning and sharing daily interactions and exchanges. Through cultural exchanges, students learn and question their own lives and cultures to promote mutual understanding.
Length and funding vary based on the grant applied for.
Rhodes Scholarship
The Rhodes Scholarship is the oldest and one of the most notable international scholarships, established in 1903. It seeks to connect learners with varied backgrounds and views to openly debate and challenge thinking to create new ideas. Many Rhodes Scholars go on to serve and impact their communities for good by serving within government, research, education, journalism, and many other fields.
Students are invited to apply for this opportunity and if selected will be supported throughout their time of study at the University of Oxford. 102 scholarships are awarded each year. These scholarships cover all school fees for two to three years and allow you to study any full-time subject at Oxford University.
Truman Scholarship
Undergraduate students with a strong potential for leadership, who excel academically, and are dedicated to public service are invited to apply for the Truman Scholarship. This scholarship is intended to help advance your academic pursuits in any graduate degree (except for MBA degrees). 55 to 65 scholars are selected to receive up to $30,000 for graduate school.
Applying for the Truman Scholarship begins the year before you graduate with your bachelor’s degree. You must be attending grad school directly following your undergraduate course work. This scholarship is directed to students who intend to use graduate school to help you pursue a career in public service. Your current or former U.S.-based accredited school will have to nominate you for the Truman Scholarship. This limits your school to four nominees along with three additional transfer nominees.
Beinecke Scholarship
The Beinecke Scholarship is geared to graduate-level studies of the arts, humanities, or social sciences. Undergraduate juniors who are enrolled in participating institutions must be planning on attending graduate school upon graduation and should contact the liaison of their particular institution for more information regarding the nomination process.
Scholarship recipients initially receives $4,000 prior to entering graduate school and receives $30,000 more while they are attending graduate school. You are encouraged to attend graduate school upon undergraduate graduation. This scholarship provides you five years after your undergraduate graduation to utilize the provided funding.
Other scholarship opportunities
In searching for a scholarship, realize that you can use lots of ways to customize your search. Scholarships can be specific to your industry, degree, region, or university. Talking to the financial aid office or to the department of your specific major could lead you to invaluable scholarships.
Also seek out for scholarships that are geared toward your demographic and specific population. Region-based scholarships make for a smaller pool of applicants, so contact your state’s Department of Education for more information.
The applications for scholarships are usually free, but you may have to pay for copies of your undergraduate transcript for your applications. You should read all the requirements for the scholarship prior to beginning your application.
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More ways to pay for graduate school
Grants for graduate school are like scholarships in that you do not typically have to pay them back. Different organizations, companies, states, and others have available grants for graduate students. Grants usually are most often need-based and can be related to your prospective field. Federal grants are usually need-based and can be available if you are working to fill a specific need or discipline.
TEACH Grant
As a TEACH Grant recipient, you are required to be enrolled as a undergraduate, post baccalaureate, or graduate student in a school that participates in the TEACH Grant Program. You are also required to maintain a specific GPA. Students commit to a teaching service Agreement to Serve or Repay. The Agreement states that you will teach a high need subject in a low-income area with a shortage of educators. You also agree to serve for four years. If you do not uphold your end of the agreement, your grant will convert to a federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan.
Rotary Foundation Peace Fellowship
The Rotary Foundation's Peace Fellowship seeks to award students interested in helping find lasting solutions for the difficult issues. Candidates who have demonstrated devotion to seeking out peace and resolving conflict will take on extensive research with an involved and diverse cohort.
The program devoted to the study of peace and development and last 15-24 months. Fellowship applicants must have three years of full-time relevant experience. Your most recent degree should have been completed at least three years ago.
Fellowships
Fellowship funding is given to assist in subsidizing the cost of your education. Fellowship committees typically look at your future potential to make a positive impact within your academic discipline. Fellowships can also build your reputation as a scholar and sets you apart in the job market.
Often with a fellowship, your tuition can be covered, and you may also be given a living expenses stipend. Fellowship funds can often be used for tuition, textbooks, housing, or any other costs relating to your education. From time to time, fellowships may fund scholarly trips, projects, dissertations, or thesis projects.
More >>> Graduate Fellowships
Student Loans
In being dedicated to your education, it may become necessary to borrow a loan. After exhausting federal grants, scholarships, and fellowships, it may be time to weigh your student loan options. With both federal and private student loans, you can bridge gaps in your financial aid that may arise.
Federal Student Loans
Graduate students, no matter if there is a financial need or not, are eligible for Direct Unsubsidized Loans. These loans have low, fixed rates and also have access to federal repayment plans with forbearance and deferment terms. You are also not required to have a credit check, a cosigner, or a separate loan application.
Federal student loans also include Grad PLUS loans. While you should borrow as much as you can to cover graduate school costs with unsubsidized loans, Grad PLUS loans are available to you. These loans have a higher interest rate and origination fee. The loan limits for Grad PLUS Loans are dependent on your school’s cost of attendance minus any other aid received and there are no aggregate loan limits.
More >>> Student Loans for Graduate School
Private Student Loans
When it comes to private graduate student loans, you can seek out competitive rates based on the current market trends. It is possible to make private student loans feasible with a variety of terms and benefits that are offered by each lender. Along with flexible repayment terms and a variety of benefits potentially offered by each lender, you can make a private student loan work for you.
Private loans offered by banks and credit unions will complete a credit check to ensure you can qualify for a graduate student loan. You may be required to apply with a cosigner if you have an adverse credit history, a low credit score, and little to no employment history.
Best Private Student Loans for Graduate School
- Check your eligibility in just 2 minutes
- No fees for origination, disbursement, prepayment, or late payment3
- Skip a payment once per year (once repayment period restarted)4
This information is for graduate and undergraduate students attending participating degree-granting schools. Borrowers must be U.S. citizens or U.S. permanent residents if the school is located outside of the United States. Non-U.S. citizen borrowers who reside in the U.S. are eligible with a creditworthy cosigner (who must be a U.S. citizen or U.S. permanent resident) and are required to provide an unexpired government-issued photo ID to verify identity. Applications are subject to a requested minimum loan amount of $1,000. Current credit and other eligibility criteria apply.
Actual rate and available repayment terms will vary based on your income. Fixed rates range from 3.72% APR to 16.74% APR (excludes 0.25% Auto Pay discount). Variable rates range from 5.24% APR to 17.10% APR (excludes 0.25% Auto Pay discount). Earnest variable interest rate student loan origination loans are based on a publicly available index, the 30-day Average Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) published by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. The variable rate is based on the rate published on the 25th day, or the next business day, of the preceding calendar month, rounded to the nearest hundredth of a percent. The rate will not increase more than once per month. Although the rate will vary after you are approved, it will never exceed 36% (the maximum allowable for this loan). Please note, Earnest Private Student Loans are not available in Nevada. Our lowest rates are only available for our most credit qualified borrowers and contain our .25% auto pay discount from a checking or savings account. It is important to note that the 0.25% Auto Pay discount is not available while loan payments are deferred.
1You can take advantage of the Auto Pay interest rate reduction by setting up and maintaining active and automatic ACH withdrawal of your loan payment. The interest rate reduction for Auto Pay will be available only while your loan is enrolled in Auto Pay. Interest rate incentives for utilizing Auto Pay may not be combined with certain private student loan repayment programs that also offer an interest rate reduction. For multi-party loans, only one party may enroll in Auto Pay.
2Nine-month grace period is not available for borrowers who choose our Principal and Interest Repayment plan while in school.
3Earnest does not charge fees for origination, late payments, or prepayments. Florida Stamp Tax: For Florida
residents, Florida documentary stamp tax is required by law, calculated as $0.35 for each $100 (or portion thereof) of the principal loan amount, the amount of which is provided in the Final Disclosure. Lender will add the stamp tax to the principal loan amount. The full amount will be paid directly to the Florida Department of Revenue. Certificate of Registration No. 78-8016373916-1.
4Earnest clients may skip one payment every 12 months. Your first request to skip a payment can be made once you’ve made at least 6 months of consecutive on-time payments, and your loan is in good standing. The interest accrued during the skipped month will result in an increase in your remaining minimum payment. The final payoff date on your loan will be extended by the length of the skipped payment periods. Please be aware that a skipped payment does count toward the forbearance limits. Please note that skipping a payment is not guaranteed and is at Earnest’s discretion. Your monthly payment and total loan cost may increase as a result of postponing your payment and extending your term.
The information provided on this page is updated as of 02/19/2025. Earnest reserves the right to change, pause, or terminate product offerings at any time without notice.
Earnest Private Student Loans are made by One American Bank, Member FDIC, or FinWise Bank, Member FDIC. One American Bank, 515 S. Minnesota Ave, Sioux Falls, SD 57104. Finwise Bank, 756 East Winchester, Suite 100, Murray, UT 84107.
Earnest loans are serviced by Earnest Operations LLC, 300 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza, Suite 340, Oakland 94612. NMLS #1204917, with support from Higher Education Loan Authority of the State of Missouri (MOHELA) (NMLS# 1442770) One American Bank, FinWise Bank, and Earnest LLC and its subsidiaries, including Earnest Operations LLC, are not sponsored by agencies of the United States of America.
© 2025 Earnest LLC. All rights reserved.
THIS IS AN ADVERTISEMENT. YOU ARE NOT REQUIRED TO MAKE ANY PAYMENT OR TAKE ANY OTHER ACTION IN RESPONSE TO THIS OFFER.
- Get your rate in about 2 minutes4
- 4x more likely to be approved by applying with a qualified cosigner5
- No Application or Origination Fees
1Student Loan Rate Disclosure: Variable interest rates range from 4.99% - 15.60% (4.99% - 15.61% APR). Fixed interest rates range from 3.99% - 15.60% (3.99% - 15.61% APR).
2Automatic Payment Discount: Borrowers will be eligible to receive a 0.25 percentage point interest rate reduction on their student loans owned by Citizens Bank, N.A. during such time as payments are required to be made and our loan servicer is authorized to automatically deduct payments each month from any bank account the borrower designates. Discount is not available when payments are not due, such as during forbearance. If our loan servicer is unable to successfully withdraw the automatic deductions from the designated account three or more times within any 12-month period, the borrower will no longer be eligible for this discount.
3Loyalty Discount: The borrower will be eligible for a 0.25 percentage point interest rate reduction on their loan if the borrower or their co-signer (if applicable) has a qualifying account in existence with us at the time the borrower and their co-signer (if applicable) have submitted a completed application authorizing us to review their credit request for the loan. The following are qualifying accounts: personal checking, personal savings, personal credit card or previous student loans owned by Citizens Bank, N.A. Please note, our checking and savings account options are only available in the following states: CT, DC, DE, FL, MA, MD, MI, NH, NJ, NY, OH, PA, RI, VA, and VT and some products may have an associated cost. This discount will be reflected in the interest rate disclosed in the Loan Approval Disclosure that will be provided to the borrower once the loan is approved. Limit of one Loyalty Discount per loan and discount will not be applied to prior loans. The Loyalty Discount will remain in effect for the life of the loan.
4Get My Rate: Selecting “Get My Rate” only requires a "soft credit pull" which does not affect your credit score. Submitting a full application will result in an inquiry on your credit report.
5Citizens Undergraduate Booked Loans from 10/1/2023 through 9/30/2024 were 4 times more likely to be approved with a qualified cosigner.
6Multi-Year Approval: Funds available for future use are subject to a soft credit inquiry at time of your next request to verify continued eligibility. After we make the initial Loan to you, you must continue to meet eligibility criteria to obtain additional funds under the Multi-Year Approval feature. Terms and conditions are outlined in the promissory note. Multi-Year Approval borrowers have a 99% approval rate on future requests for additional funds. The additional funds approval rate is based on the percentage of approved Multi-Year borrowers from Citizens between October 1, 2023 and October 1, 2024. The approval rate represents only borrowers who had previously accepted the Multi-Year Approval offer. Please Note: International students are not eligible for Multi-Year Approval.
Information advertised valid as of 05/01/25. Rates and offer subject to change. All accounts, loans and services subject to individual approval.
© 2025 Citizens Financial Group, Inc. All rights reserved. Citizens is a brand name of Citizens Bank, N.A. Member FDIC
- Competitive APRs starting at 3.47%1
- Coverage up to 100% of your school-certified cost of attendance ($1,000 minimum) 2
- Apply online in 3 minutes and get an instant credit decision
College Ave's student loan products are made available through Firstrust Bank, member FDIC, First Citizens Community Bank, member FDIC, or M.Y. Safra Bank, FSB, member FDIC. All loans are subject to individual approval and adherence to underwriting guidelines. Program restrictions, other terms, and conditions apply.
1All rates include the auto-pay discount. The 0.25% auto-pay interest rate reduction applies as long as a valid bank account is designated for required monthly payments. If a payment is returned, you will lose this benefit. Variable rates may increase after consummation.
2As certified by your school and less any other financial aid you might receive. Minimum $1,000.
3This informational repayment example uses typical loan terms for a freshman borrower who selects the Flat Repayment Option with an 8-year repayment term, has a $10,000 loan that is disbursed in one disbursement and a 7.78% fixed Annual Percentage Rate (“APR”): 54 monthly payments of $25 while in school, followed by 96 monthly payments of $176.21 while in the repayment period, for a total amount of payments of $18,266.38. Loans will never have a full principal and interest monthly payment of less than $50. Your actual rates and repayment terms may vary.
Information advertised valid as of 03/03/2025. Variable interest rates may increase after consummation. Approved interest rate will depend on creditworthiness of the applicant(s), lowest advertised rates only available to the most creditworthy applicants and require selection of the Flat Repayment Option with the shortest available loan term.
- AFFORDABLE fixed rates starting at 3.44% APR with Automatic Debit Discount*
- 1% CASH BACK Graduation Reward*
- COVER UP TO 100% of your tuition and eligible living expenses.
* Ascent’s undergraduate and graduate student loans are funded by Bank of Lake Mills or DR Bank, each Member FDIC. Loan products may not be available in certain jurisdictions. Certain restrictions, limitations, terms and conditions may apply for Ascent's Terms and Conditions please visit: AscentFunding.com/Ts&Cs. Annual Percentage Rates (APRs) displayed above are effective as of 5/1/2025 and reflect an Automatic Payment Discount of 0.25% for credit-based college student loans and 1.00% discount on outcomes-based loans when you enroll in automatic payments. The Full P&I (Immediate) Repayment option is only available for college loans (except for outcomes-based loans) originated on or after June 3, 2024. For more information, see repayment examples or review the Ascent Student Loans Terms and Conditions. The final amount approved depends on the borrower’s credit history, verifiable cost of attendance as certified by an eligible school, and is subject to credit approval and verification of application information. Lowest interest rates require full principal and interest (Immediate) payments, the shortest loan term, a cosigner, and are only available for our most creditworthy applicants and cosigners with the highest average credit scores. Actual APR offered may be higher or lower than the examples above, based on the amount of time you spend in school and any grace period you have before repayment begins. 1% Cash Back Graduation Reward subject to terms and conditions. For details on Ascent borrower benefits, visit AscentFunding.com/BorrowerBenefits. The AscentUP platform is only available to eligible Ascent borrowers and subject to terms and conditions.
The minimum amount is $2,001 except for the state of Massachusetts. Minimum loan amount for borrowers with a Massachusetts permanent address is $6,001.
- Prequalification: Prequalify to estimate your rate without affecting your credit score
- Online Application Process: Submit online application in minutes
- Flexible Repayment Options: ELFI offers immediate, interest only, partial payment, and fully deferred repayment options
- No Fees: No application fees, origination fees, or prepayment penalties
- Low Rates: Fixed rates from 3.69% to 14.22% and variable rates from 5.00% - 13.97%*
- Award winning Customer Service: Individually paired Student Loan Advisor to guide you through the application process
*ELFI is a nationwide student loan provider offered by Tennessee based SouthEast Bank. ELFI is designed to assist students financially with receiving their education. Subject to credit approval. See Terms & Conditions. Interest rates current as of 01-01-2025. Variable interest rates may increase after closing but will never exceed 18.00%. Interest rates may also differ from the rates shown above. The term of your loan, financial history, and other factors, including your cosigner’s (if any) financial history can affect the interest rate. For example, a 10-year loan with a fixed rate of 7% would have 120 payments of $11.61 per $1,000 borrowed. Rates are subject to change.
