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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.

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Federal Loans

Beginning with the 2026-2027 academic year, there are significant changes to federal loan borrowing for students beginning enrollment in their current programs in the 2026-2027. More information is available: 

  • Harvard has created a webpage that summarizes the most significant changes. 
  • The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) has put together a very helpful summary of changes. 
  • The National Association of Independent Colleges and University (NAICU) provides a useful list of frequently asked questions. 

Students eligible to apply are US Citizens, US Permanent Residents, Citizens of Freely Associated States, Refugees, and Persons granted Asylum. 

International students are not eligible for federal aid.  

To qualify for federal loans, students must submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form and maintain enrollment in a minimum of 7.5 credits per each term of enrollment. 

Terms and conditions for federal direct unsubsidized loans in 2026-2027 

Students enrolled at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health prior to the 2026-2027 academic year can find information on loan eligibility. 

  • Full-time students can borrow up to $20,500 maximum per academic year. 
  • Part-time students are limited to borrowing a prorated amount based on their percentage of full-time enrollment. 
  • Maximum of $100,000 aggregate lifetime Direct Unsubsidized Loan borrowing for graduate programs (which includes all degrees at Harvard Chan). Students who borrowed for professional degree programs (MD or JD) have a lifetime limit of $200,000 in total (with no more than $100,000 in graduate program borrowing) 
  • Lifetime aggregate borrowing limit for federal loan programs (undergraduate, graduate, professional, Grad PLUS, Perkins) of $257,000. 
  • The federal origination fee for loans is 1.057%. This fee is automatically deducted from the loan prior to disbursement.  
  • Loan is unsubsidized; meaning interest begins accruing at disbursement and continues accruing during the school year. If you choose not to pay the interest while you are in school or during other grace periods, that interest will be added to the principal amount of your loan when you begin repayment. Please note that you are not required to make any interest payments while you are in school.  
  • Master Promissory Note (MPN) and entrance interview are required for disbursement and can be completed online.  
  • Exit counseling is required for all graduating students as well as those whose enrollment falls below half-time status.  

For more detailed information, visit the Federal Student Aid website.  

Students needing to borrow beyond the $20,500 available through the Direct Unsubsidized Loan can review private loan information which is available here.  

Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) 

Federal direct loans may qualify for a Public Service Loan Forgiveness Plan if you work full-time for a nonprofit or public-sector employer after graduation. 

This video provides an overview of the program: 

Loan Payment Deferment

Federal loans automatically defer payment while you are enrolled in school. Most such deferments require that you be enrolled at least half-time in a degree-granting program. At Harvard Chan School, that means you must be enrolled in at least 7.5 credits for each term of enrollment.

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