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.
In-School Deferment
Federal loans and some private and institutional loans have in-school deferment options which allow students to defer their loan payments while enrolled in school. Most in-school deferments require that a student be enrolled at least half-time and in a degree-granting program to be eligible.
At Harvard Chan, a student is considered at least half-time when they are enrolled in 10 or more credits in a single semester (Fall or Spring). Enrollment is reported on a monthly basis, so it is possible for your status to change if you drop or add credits over the course of a semester.
Credits taken during the summer term are not counted towards Fall. To be at least half-time in the summer term, a student must be enrolled in 7.5 or more credits. Winter session courses are counted towards total Spring enrollment.
As the borrowers, students are ultimately responsible for making sure their loans are in the correct status.
Deferment Process
In-school deferment of federal loans is automated*. Many private lenders also participate in this automated process. However, since some private loans may not update automatically, you should check with any private loan lenders regarding deferment procedures. If a paper form is required, please submit it to the Registrar’s Office , during or after the term enrollment period.
*Harvard University participates in The National Student Clearinghouse. Harvard University’s Student Accounts collects enrollment information from each school’s Registrar’s Office for those students registered with a valid U.S. Social Security Number. This information is reported to a company called The National Student Clearinghouse (NSC). NSC then transmits the enrollment data (half-time, full-time, graduated, withdrawn, etc.) to NSLDS. The first scheduled date to send information to NSC for the Fall term is at the end of September after the first add/drop period for the Fall. The first scheduled date to send Spring term enrollment information is in February after the first add/drop period for the spring.