Tuition and Financial Aid
This site provides details on tuition and fees, applying for financial aid, types of funding, billing policies, and more. Please review all the information carefully and contact the Office of Financial Aid if you have any questions.
Anticipated-Aid and Disbursement of Financial Aid
Anticipated Financial Aid
Anticipated financial aid is a credit that the Office of Financial Aid (OFA) has on record as aid awarded and accepted by a student and is expected to disburse to the student account. Students are not responsible to pay for the portion of the bill that is covered by anticipated financial aid (see note below*). OFA updates the Student Accounts Office (SAO) of anticipated aid credits on a regular basis.
Students will not be responsible to pay for the portion of their bill covered by anticipated aid in the absence of the required documents, unless a specified deadline has past. Deadlines for required documents are emailed to students individually and students are expected to submit these requirements within the requested timeline. If documentation is not received, funding may be cancelled and subsequently removed as anticipated aid. Students may view their documentation requirements at MyFinaid.
*Please note: if a student is sponsored by a Third Party Contract (i.e. outside organization), the third party is required to complete the requested Third Party Contract Online form. As degree programs are assessed tuition as flat rate, SAO sends invoices to sponsors as tuition and fees are assessed. However, for non-degree programs that are assessed as per-credit, to ensure correct bills are sent to a third party, bills are not generally sent until after the 2nd add/drop period of each term. Therefore, the third party is not required to make the payment by the initial term due date, but is required to submit the online form. It is the student’s obligation to make sure that their third party makes payment within that term. Lack of payment by a third party in one term may jeopardize a student’s ability to register for the next term. If the third party fails to make payment, it is ultimately the student’s responsibility to pay their bill in full.
Viewing and accepting Financial Aid
Students that are receiving financial aid may view and accept/decline/reduce their current awards by visiting MyFinaid.
All financial aid awarded by Harvard (scholarships and/or loans) is disbursed directly onto the student’s account. If a student is receiving financial aid and they do not see it reflecting on their account or within MyFinaid, they should contact OFA to ensure that all forms have been received from either the student, an outside agency, or from an academic department within the School.
Disbursement of Financial Aid
Disbursement dates at the School vary depending on a myriad of factors, such as the type of funding, when the fund is awarded, when a student applies for financial aid, and/or when documentation is received. Below are some specific types of funding and the standard processes of disbursement.
The standard loan disbursement dates are late September for the fall term and end of January for the spring term. First-time federal borrowers to the School are required to complete a one time Master Promissory Note and Entrance Interview per loan type. All new and returning borrowers must “accept” their loan awards on MyFinaid in order for the loan to reflect as anticipated aid on the student account, be processed and subsequently disbursed. Students are instructed on how to complete this process via email. Once all required documents are received the disbursements will reflect on a student account. Disbursement will not occur until all documents are received; therefore disbursement dates may be subsequently delayed if requirements are not fulfilled on time.
OFA at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health is responsible for the disbursements of all School funding (scholarships and stipends, NOT payroll). This is typically in late September and end of January. Although these funds remain as anticipated, this delay will not impact any credit balances owed to a student or a student’s ability to enroll. Harvard policy indicates that a student can not receive a scholarship or combined scholarships over tuition and mandatory student fees (individual health fees). Therefore, should a student have a scholarship in excess of this amount, it will automatically be reduced by the end of the year.
Outside Awards will only reflect as anticipated aid on a student’s account if OFA has received a written confirmation on the letterhead of the outside agency awarding the funds. Students are required to notify the School of any and all outside awards that they are receiving. Students are responsible for any balance on their account due to an outside award payment which is promised but not made by an outside organization.