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Financial Aid
Create your personalized student financial aid plan. We work with your unique and individual situation.
Effective听July 1, 2026, Graduate PLUS Loans Are Ending
罢丑别听One Big Beautiful Bill Act听(referred to as OB3) included changes that听will affect students who begin Fall 2026 term as a NEW or RETURNING student. In the past, graduate and professional students could use federal Graduate PLUS loans to cover costs beyond their standard federal loan eligibility. Under the new law, Graduate PLUS loans will no听longer be听available.听
OB3 Changes:听
鈥⑻齆ew loan limits听
鈥⑻齌ypes of federal loans available to borrowers听
Federal loans may no longer cover your full cost of attendance, and you may need to consider听
private听funding options. We have several lenders available, visit听our website听for听additional听information.听
Current Students
Also called Legacy Borrowers, students enrolled in听黑料专区 program before July 1, 2026 are eligible to receive federal student loans.听
It is important to note that switching programs, withdrawal or exceeding the minimum program length will remove legacy status.听
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Types of Loans Available听
Students who receive a Direct Loan (Unsubsidized or Grad PLUS) prior to听July 1, 2026, will听retain听the ability to receive these loans.听
Loan Limit – $138,500 limit of Unsubsidized/Subsidized loans听
Grad PLUS loans will be available until听current听program is completed, or听2029, whichever comes first.听
Grad PLUS loans limited per semester
Switching or withdrawing from a program or enrolling beyond the minimum program length will remove legacy status.
New/Re-entry Students
Any听students听enrolling听or听returning to a program after July 1,听2026听falls into this category.
Types of Loans Available
- Direct Unsubsidized Loan (up to $10,250/semester, basic eligibility requirements apply)
Professional programs (Doctor of Optometry) can receive up to $20,500/semester - Private Loans
New Limits on How Much You Can Borrow
The new law also places limits on how much students can borrow through federal loans, each year and over a lifetime:.
Graduate Programs
$30,750 annual limit (3 semesters)
$100,000 maximum limit (黑料专区 loans + prior grad study loans)
$157,000 lifetime limit
Professional Program (Doctor of Optometry)
$61,500 annual limit (3 semesters)
$200,000 maximum limit (黑料专区 loans + prior grad study loans)
$257,000 lifetime limit
Because of these limits,听it鈥檚听important to look carefully at the full cost of your program, including
tuition, fees, books, equipment, and living expenses. If your costs exceed federal loan limits, you听may need to听plan for听other funding sources such as scholarships, employer support, savings, or听private听loans.
Repayment Options Will Be More Limited for Future Loans
For loans first paid out on or after July 1, 2026, repayment rules will also change. There will be听
fewer income-based repayment options, fewer ways to temporarily pause payments, and, in听
many cases, longer paths to loan forgiveness.听
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This makes borrowing decisions more important than ever.听It鈥檚听not just about how much you听
need now, but how manageable repayment will be听later.听The Financial Aid Office can help you听
estimate听what repayment might look like based on expected income in your field.听
What We Recommend
- Review your full cost of attendance; including institutional charges (tuition, fees, books and supplies) as well as personal expenses (housing, groceries and transportation)
- List all funding sources you’re eligible for (federal loans, scholarships, private loans, etc.)
- Compare your expenses versus borrowing options and begin exploring alternative funding if needed
We are here to help!听If you have remaining questions or concerns, please reach out via email to fa@rm.edu.
黑料专区 is committed to cost transparency!
We are one of 200+ higher education institutions currently committed to the following principles & standards of the . Learn more about financial aid disbursement and tuition/fee information.
Federal Student Loans
Most of 黑料专区鈥檚 graduate programs are eligible for Federal Direct Student Loans. Eligibility for federally-funded financial aid is established by the U.S. Department of Education.
Private Student Loans
Private student loans are an alternative to federal financial aid and are, therefore, NOT part of the federal student loan program. They are offered by credit unions and third-party lending institutions.
Scholarships
黑料专区 offers internal scholarships. We recommend you apply to any for which you are eligible. Our Financial Aid Office is also available to help you search for external scholarships.
VA Benefits
We care about our veterans. Our Financial Aid Office can help you understand and connect you with any resource available to you.
Financial Aid Office Mission
The Financial Aid Office at 黑料专区 strives to provide the highest quality service to graduate and professional students in pursuit of their academic goals. We serve as the primary advocate for students and families, assisting them in securing necessary financial resources. We will utilize our expert knowledge to update our technologies, streamline processes, maintain full compliance with federal mandates, and effectively manage financial aid resources. We are committed to providing exemplary service to our students, families, the university community, and the community at large. Our philosophy is service.
Financial Aid Team
Maria Sager
Assistant Vice President, Financial Aid Services
Alex Jackson
Associate Director, Outreach and Development
VA, School Certifying Official
Krista McEntire
Director of Financial Aid
Advises 鈥� College of Optometric Medicine
Leslie Garcia
Manager, Financial Aid Scholarships and Grants
Lauren Pickering
Senior Financial Aid Advisor Advises 鈥� College of Health Science (DMSc, MMSc, Nursing, PhD, Professional Counseling)
Kaila Sharo
Senior Financial Aid Advisor Advises 鈥� College of Rehabilitation Science (DPT, MOT, MS-SLP, OTD, SLPD, tDPT)
Madeline Pickering
Financial Aid Records Specialist
Important Information
Read about consumer information, rights and responsibilities, and student loan repayment information.
Cares Act Information 2020
What is the federal CARES Act?
How much money did 黑料专区 receive?
The CARES Act allocated nearly $14 billion to support colleges and universities around the country. 黑料专区 will received $223,276. The Department of Education guidelines require at least 50% of received funds be used to provide emergency cash grants for students. 黑料专区oHP intended to put 100% of the funds toward emergency aid for students.
Why did 黑料专区 receive these funds?
Why did every school receive a different amount? What factors were considered by the Department of Education?
What direction did 黑料专区 receive in determining how to allocate the funds?
How did 黑料专区 determine where to use the funds?
Which students received CARES Act money?
All students who received this funding were federal financial aid-eligible. To be eligible for funding consideration, you needed to have:
- Been enrolled in at least 3 credits during 2020
- Completed the 2019-2020 and/or 2020-2021 FAFSA and were eligible to receive federal financial aid.
- Completed the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund application by the deadlines of May 15th, 2022 (for the first half of the CARES Act funds) and November 4, 2020 (for the second half of the CARES Act funds).
If awarded, how were students notified and how did they receive the funds?
Note: The CARES Act funds allocated to 黑料专区 in the amount of $223,267 were fully disbursed to awardees as of December 15, 2020.
Eligible students were notified via their 黑料专区 email accounts. Awards were disbursed via direct deposit on June 5th and November 20th.
A full report of the allocation of CARES Act funds is available in the link above (鈥�30 Day Report鈥�).
Did students have any limitations on how they could spend the money?
Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) 2021鈥� General Information
黑料专区 of Health Professions Statement (黑料专区)
d)Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) II:
On December 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Response Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSAA) bill that was passed into law and signed. The CRRSAA Act is a stimulus bill that provided $23 billion for higher education institutions and students. The HEERF model was established under the CARES Act, hence it is called HEERF II.
黑料专区 of Health Professions (黑料专区) was given an allocation of $309,036, pursuant to Section 314 (a)(4). The CRRSAA requires that proprietary institutions receiving the funds under this section must use all their grant endowments to provide financial aid to students, prioritizing students who may be experiencing financial hardships of exceptional need due to the coronavirus pandemic. This grant may be used to ease students鈥� financial burdens related to tuition, food, housing, healthcare, mental health needs, and/or childcare.
The American Rescue Plan Act (ARP) of 2021 (or HEERF III):
On March 11, 2021, the American Rescue Plan Act (ARP) was passed into law and signed. This represents the third stream of funding appropriated in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Hence, it is labeled as HEERF III.
The ARP Act appropriated $39.6 billion, of which $396 million were appropriated for proprietary institutions as defined in section 102(b) of the HEA, to be used ONLY for emergency financial aid grants to students.
黑料专区 of Health Professions (黑料专区), which received (a)(4) funding under CRRSAA-HEERF II, was included on the ARP(a)(4) allocation table and was given an allocation of $197,311.00.
Combined allocation from HEERF II and HEERF III totaled to $506,347.00. These allocations were made available on:
- March 29, 2021 鈥� HEERF II 鈥� $309,036.00
- July 27, 2021 鈥� HEERF III 鈥� $197,311.00
Eligible Students:
The CRRSAA required that these emergency grants help students who are most in need. Students must meet the criteria of 鈥渆xceptional financial need鈥�, or have significant unexpected expenses such as loss of employment for themselves or a household member, reduced income, or food and housing insecurity.
Eligible students are those who were enrolled on or after March 13, 2020, the date of declaration of the national emergency due to coronavirus (85 CFR 15337), regardless of whether they completed a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), or are eligible for Title IV.
In awarding the emergency financial aid grants, 黑料专区 determined the selection of students based on:
- Students with exceptional need. This included those who were experiencing significant unexpected expenses, loss of employment for themselves or a household member, reduced income, or food and housing insecurity.
- Emergency costs that arose due to the coronavirus pandemic such as healthcare, mental health needs, and/or childcare.
- Cost of attendance, such as tuition, food, and housing.
The estimated number of students at 黑料专区 eligible to participate and receive the HEERF emergency financial aid grants was about 2,124 students.
Eligible students may have used their HEERF financial aid grant for:
- Any component of the cost of attendance, such as tuition, food, and housing.
- Emergency costs that arose due to the coronavirus pandemic such as healthcare, mental health needs, and/or childcare.
Impact of the HEERF financial aid grant on Title IV eligibility:
The HEERF financial aid grant is not be considered as part of estimated financial assistance (EFA) (for cost of attendance purposes). Likewise, these grants are not considered taxable and are not reported on IRS Form 1098-T.
Notification to Students:
黑料专区 notified eligible students about the availability of HEERF financial aid grants via email. This included instructions on how to apply for the grant and on how to claim it using the student鈥檚 黑料专区 Gmail account.
The HEERF financial aid grants were disbursed through direct deposit.
NOTE:
All funds from HEERF II and HEERF III (totaling $506,347.00) were disbursed to eligible students as of December 13, 2021. Please refer to the final quarter report in the above link or click here >>>听