Types of Aid

Students enrolled at least half-time in a degree or approved graduate certificate program at EVMS are eligible to apply for federal student loans. Learn more about the application process and eligibility requirements. Students will receive an award notice detailing loans for which they are eligible to complete the loan process.

Federal loans would include Title IV loans such as the Direct Unsubsidized Loan and the Direct Grad PLUS Loan. MD students may be eligible for federal Title VII loans from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).

All federal loans carry a right of rescission or the right to cancel.

Students should carefully read all rights and responsibilities associated with each loan as provided in the promissory note for each.

Note: Interest rates for each academic year are available online from the federal government. Historical rates are also available.

Interest rates for direct loans
first disbursed on or after July 1, 2023,*

All interest rates shown in the chart above are fixed rates for the life of the loan.

*Excerpted from the Office of Federal Student Aid.

Graduate students are only eligible to receive Direct Unsubsidized Loan. Unsubsidized means the loan accrues interest in the student's name during periods of enrollment, grace, deferment, or forbearance, as well as repayment.

• The interest rate is 7.05%
• 1.057% origination/default fee held by the federal processer from each disbursement (effective October 1, 2022, through September 30, 2023)
• 6-month grace period between enrollment and repayment
• Annual limit:
  • School of Health Professions programs: $20,500
  • Doctor of Medicine program: $40,500 (higher during M3 and M4 years)
• Aggregate for undergraduate and graduate:
  
  • School of Health Professions programs: $138,500
  • Doctor of Medicine program: $224,000
  • Masters of Public Health: $224,000
  • Masters of Healthcare Administration: $224,000

Standard repayment is over 10 years. Higher levels of borrowing may entitle the borrower to up to 25 years to repay under certain repayment options. Learn more about the Direct Unsubsidized Loan.

Graduate students who complete the FAFSA are eligible to apply for a Direct Grad PLUS Loan for the difference between their cost of attendance budget less any other financial aid they are utilizing. The Grad PLUS Loan is an unsubsidized loan. Unsubsidized means the loan accrues interest in the student's name during periods of enrollment, grace, deferment, or forbearance, as well as repayment.

• The interest rate is 8.05%
• 4.228% origination fee withheld by federal processer from each disbursement (effective October 1, 2022, through September 30, 2023)
• 6-month automatic forbearance between enrollment and repayment
• Credit-based (may require a creditworthy cosigner)

Standard repayment is over 10 years. Higher levels of borrowing may entitle the borrower to up to 25 years to repay under certain repayment options. Learn more about the Direct Grad PLUS Loan.

Loans for Disadvantaged Students or Primary Care Loans from Title VII funding from the HRSA may also be awarded to qualified students subject to the availability of funding. Learn more about the requirements for these loans:

• Primary Care Loans
• Loans for Disadvantaged Students

To apply for these loans, complete the steps detailed under the application process that pertain to Title VII aid.

Because of the generosity of the community and alumni, students may receive one of the EVMS institutional loan funds. Awarded based on need and availability of funds, these loans are subsidized. Subsidized means that interest is waived during periods of enrollment, grace, or deferment. 

• Interest rate 5%
• 12-month grace period between enrollment and repayment
• 10-year standard repayment
• No origination/default fee

University Accounting Services acts as originator and servicer for these loans as a third-party servicer for EVMS. Students will be required to complete online entrance counseling and a promissory note, as well as review required disclosures. 

Private or alternative loans are loans not from federal or institutional sources. These loans may be available based on good credit or with a credit-worthy cosigner. EVMS Financial Aid urges extreme caution with this type of loan.  Be sure you exhaust all federal and institutional sources first and carefully examine the terms and conditions, including repayment options, before committing to a private or alternative loan. 

Private educational loans:

• will reduce your eligibility for other loans
• may have interest rates that adjust monthly
• cannot be consolidated later with other Title IV federal loans via federal direct consolidation
• may or may not have forbearance options during residency
• cannot be consolidated in a federal consolidation loan in order to take advantage of income-based repayment or possible federal loan forgiveness programs

Note that medical residency and relocation loans are not included in the definition of private or alternative loans as they are not for educational purposes. 

International students enrolled in health professions programs may be eligible to apply for some private loans. However, they are usually required to have a credit-worthy U.S. citizen or permanent resident as a cosigner. 

EVMS does not have preferred lenders for private or alternative student loans and does not track the current rights and responsibilities of various private lenders. We urge students to be educated borrowers and carefully read all disclosures provided. In recent years, EVMS students have used the following private lenders:

• Sallie Mae Student Loans 
• College Avenue
• Citizens
• Lendkey
• SoFi

This list is not presented in any order nor does it represent a complete list of those companies offering private student loans. Please use caution in applying for or accepting private education loans.

Students enrolling at EVMS should plan their finances to have funds to support them for the first month of each term in order to allow time for the release of aid, disbursement to the student account, and processing of credit balance refunds. Unexpected emergencies happen. A small emergency loan may be available to help cover those emergency expenses until financial aid is released.

An emergency loan carries no fee or interest if paid within 30 days. The amount of the loan is applied to the student's tuition account as a charge. The most common method of repayment is the disbursement of financial aid for the next term. 

Students must meet with Financial Aid to complete an emergency loan application and discuss the amount needed. Applications for $500 or less may be approved by a Financial Aid Counselor. Larger amounts may require additional signatures from the Director, Associate Director, and/or Associate Dean of Admissions and Enrollment. Once approved, the application is delivered to Financial Services for processing. The check, authorization for use of Title IV aid, and promissory note will be available at Financial Services no sooner than 24 hours (one business day). Students will be notified by a student loan officer in Financial Services when the paperwork is ready to be completed. Students must go to Financial Services to sign the promissory note and take delivery of the check.

Caution: This loan is an advance on your funding for the term and not additional funding. Using funds early may result in a shortage of funds before the end of the term. Carefully review your program calendar for start dates. Your scheduled disbursement dates are reflected on the disbursements tab of your EVMS Online Financial Aid System under each academic year to assist you with your financial planning. Typically, when all requirements have been met for classroom programs, your aid will be processed on the first day of each term. For distance or hybrid programs, your aid will be released on the eighth day of the term (or the next business day). All aid is released initially in as close to equal amounts as possible over the academic year to your student tuition account.

EVMS scholarships are awarded based on financial need, merit, or fields of interest in medicine. All students wishing to be considered for EVMS scholarships are required to submit an EVMS Financial Aid and Scholarship Application to EVMS Financial Aid by the published deadline. EVMS Development continues to work diligently with the community and donors to help grow available funds.

Explore scholarship opportunities for the School of Medicine or for the School of Health Professions.

The Commonwealth of Virginia provides funding for grants to degree-seeking Virginia residents attending EVMS. Need determination along with residency is part of the approval process. The average state scholarship for eligible graduate and professional students is $1000-$1200, depending on the program of study.

Virginia Military Survivors and Dependents Education Program

The Virginia Military Survivors and Dependents Education Program (VMSDEP) provides eligible students enrolled in a Virginia public college or university with certain education benefits in acknowledgment of the military service and sacrifice of their military parent or spouse. To be eligible, a student must be accepted by and enrolled in a Virginia public college or university, and the student must be a spouse of a qualifying military service member or a child between the ages of 16 and 29 (inclusive) of a qualifying military service member. Visit the Virginia Department of Veterans Services or contact the Virginia Department of Veteran Services in Richmond at 804.225.2083 for more information. 

Note: EVMS does not apply waivers retroactively.  Current waivers are applied to current and/or future terms as determined by DVS. 

Continue to search for any and all resources such as outside scholarships and/or low-interest loans. Look to alumni groups, civic organizations within the community, religious affiliation as well as any organization with which you or a member of your family has a connection. Do not be afraid to approach family, friends, or members of your community. Not everyone will be able to help, but by networking, you may connect with an individual or organization that can assist. Every gift dollar received is a dollar less to borrow and a dollar less to repay in achieving your educational goals. 

Consider:

• speaking with parents and extended family members about assistance, however small
  • Do any of their employers offer scholarships or sponsoring programs? Can they help pay interest on your loans while you are enrolled?
• speaking with your family doctor to see if they can act as a mentor or perhaps suggest a patron or benefactor
• using free scholarship search sites such as FastWeb and Sallie Mae Graduate School Scholarship to search for outside resources
• searching for program-specific funding like the National Health Service Corps Scholarship program for MD and Physician Assistant students or the Health Professions Scholarship Program scholarships for medical or physician assistant students entering the military
• other government funding agencies, such as the following:
  • Navy Health Professions Scholarship Program (HPSP)
  • Air Force HPSP
  • Army HPSP
  • National Health Service Corps (NHSC) scholarships
  • NHSC loan repayment

Whenever EVMS Financial Aid learns of possible scholarships, we will post to myPortal and send an announcement to eligible group(s) at their EVMS email address. We also maintain a

 for which students have applied in the past. This is not meant to be an up-to-date or complete listing, simply a historical one, but the list is reviewed annually to confirm web addresses, etc. Please contact us by phone at 757.446.5804 or by email at finaid@evms.edu if you experience any broken links or inaccurate information so we may update this listing.