How is my financial aid eligibility determined?

The university uses a standard student budget called a Cost of Attendance (COA) when offering federal and campus-based financial aid awards. The COA is not the tuition/fees bill; it is the total estimated amount it will cost you to attend each year or term based on averages. It includes billed (direct) and non-billed (indirect) costs. actual indirect costs may differ from student to student. The COA includes tuition and fees, room and board, allowances for books, supplies, transportation, loan fees, and, if applicable, dependent care. The law school determines grant and scholarship offers independently from the main campus and notifies recipients directly. Grant and scholarship awards made by the law school are typically assimilated into the federal student aid offer and result in a package combining the federal student loans, grants and scholarships (gift aid). Graduate PLUS Loan or private student loan eligibility is generally the difference between the standard student budget and gift aid. Visit the “How To Apply” portion of our website for more information. 

Eligibility for most gift aid awards is determined prior to your first year. Awards are typically automatically renewed up to a total of three years (six semesters) provided that you maintain full-time enrollment. Waiving the need to apply each year allows students to create a financial plan for all three years of the JD program. While initial eligibility for need-based aid is subject to verification, summer earnings have no impact on awards.

That said, continuing students have the opportunity to submit the Continuing Student scholarship application in the summers after 1L and 2L years. You are also encouraged to submit applications for external (outside) scholarships prior to your 1L year and throughout your studies at Berkeley Law.