Postbaccalaureate Premedical Program Students

The FAFSA opens on October 1 each year and postbac applicants should complete the FAFSA before they enroll in the program.

• Complete the online version of the FAFSA using Bryn Mawr College code #003237. You must sign your online FAFSA with an FSA ID.
• Report social security numbers and full legal names as they appear on your social security card. You can update this information through Bionic. Without them, the U.S. Department of Education cannot process your financial aid results.
• Your grade level for the postbac program is 5th year/other undergraduate. You should enter that you are seeking "other/undecided." Do not enter yourself as a graduate student or indicate that you are seeking a master's or doctoral degree.

• This form certifies whether or not you have previously borrowed Federal Direct Loans for preparatory coursework.
• You must complete and return the Postbac Preparatory Release Form to the Office of Financial Aid before your loans can be certified.
• Please note that you are only eligible to borrow Federal Direct Loans for preparatory coursework taken in one single, consecutive 12-month period.
• If you plan to use private alternative loan funding, please complete the Private Alternative Loan form instead.

The Federal Direct Loan Program enables students who are U.S. citizens or U.S. permanent residents and enrolled at least half-time (two units) to borrow directly from the federal government rather than from a bank. Loans made through this program include the Direct Subsidized and the Direct Unsubsidized Loans. Eligibility for the Subsidized Loan is determined by the information provided on the FAFSA.

Direct Subsidized Loans: The student must demonstrate federal financial need. The U.S. Department of Education will pay (subsidize) the interest that accrues during certain periods. 

Direct Unsubsidized Loans: Financial need is not a requirement. The student is responsible for paying the interest that accrues. 

The Federal Direct Loans maximum for the academic year differs based on dependency status. Your dependency status and eligibility for the interest subsidy will be determined by the answers you provide on the FAFSA. No more than $5,500 may be subsidized. You must have remaining eligibility under the Federal Direct Loan aggregate limits.

Summer/Fall or Fall/Spring
$5,500 for dependent postbac students (subsidized loan only)
$12,500 for independent postbac students

Spring Term
As a student enrolled at least half-time in preparatory courses, you are eligible for Federal Direct Loans for one consecutive 12-month period. If your enrollment spans more than one academic year or two terms within the consecutive 12-month period, you may borrow an additional loan. If you borrow for the summer/fall terms, you may borrow a second loan for the spring. A dependent student may borrow the full amount of $5,500 and an independent student may borrow the full amount of $12,500 in the spring.

Federal Direct Loan Aggregate Lifetime Limits
Dependent- $31,000 (No more than $23,000 of this amount may be in subsidized loans.)
Independent - $57,500 (No more than $23,000 of this amount may be in subsidized loans.)

All first-time Federal Direct Loan borrowers must complete a Master Promissory Note and Entrance Counseling at www.studentaid.gov by using their FSA ID. Students can monitor their federal grant and student loan usage through the Federal National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS). Federal grants and loans are scheduled for disbursement on the first day of classes for each term. Financial aid is credited to the student’s account in two equal disbursements (fall and spring).

Once a student graduates or drops enrollment below half-time they must complete exit counseling at www.studentaid.gov. Loan repayment begins 6 months after the student ceases to be enrolled at least half-time. Students can identify their loan servicer, browse repayment plans, and more at studentaid.gov

Dependent undergraduate students whose parents are applying for a PLUS Loan must complete a FAFSA. The Federal Direct PLUS Loan is a non-need based loan program designed to help parents provide funds for the parental contribution. A PLUS Loan applicant must pass a credit check. Interest is charged on PLUS Loans during all periods, beginning on the date of the first loan disbursement. There are no aggregate PLUS Loan limits. The annual amount is limited by cost of attendance

The Yellow Ribbon GI Education Enhancement Program is a provision of the Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2008. It is a supplement to the “Post GI Bill Benefit in Pennsylvania” also known as Chapter #33 and expands veterans’ higher-education benefits. Students applying to Bryn Mawr may also be eligible for additional aid beyond the VA benefit.

Chapter 31 VA recipients who receive funding to cover tuition, should know that any tuition awards offered by Bryn Mawr will be rescinded/replaced upon notification of a VA benefit.

Bryn Mawr College will need to verify your eligibility for the program before any funds can be awarded. Please contact the Office of the Registrar and be prepared to submit your Certificate of Eligibility. Once these documents have been received the Registrar will verify your eligibility and notify the Office of Financial Aid. For more information about yellow ribbon visit the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Private loans are non-federal education loans offered by a lender such as a bank or credit union. Students should consider applying for a private loan only after exhausting all other possible sources of funds. Private loans often have variable interest rates, require a credit check, and may have less attractive repayment plans than federal loans. Many lenders require a creditworthy co-signer. In general, students may borrow up to the cost of education minus all other financial aid received. Students who choose to borrow a private loan must select a lender of their choice and complete the lender’s application process. Bryn Mawr encourages careful borrowing by maximizing federal funding, considering interest rates offered and limiting the amount borrowed.

In your research for private alternative loans, you can use ELMSelect to compare the different lenders based on their options, benefits, and services and then apply directly online. We have created an impartial list of private loan products that our students have used in the past. They are listed on the ELMSelect website in random order. Bryn Mawr College students are not required to use the lenders on these lists.

You will find information about lenders, including interest rates and terms on ELMSelect. Please note the order of lenders is randomized each time you access the site. You can sort by low APR, alphabetically, fixed interest rates, and variable interest rates. You can compare up to 4 lenders at a time.

Once you have selected a lender you would like to use, you can apply for a loan through ELMSelect. After the lender has processed your application, it will send your application to Bryn Mawr for certification to confirm you are a student at Bryn Mawr, the number of courses enrolled, costs, etc. Our office will complete the certification request and send it back to the lender. The lender will then release the funds to the school for deposit to your student account.

You have the right to a six-month grace period before your repayment period begins on the principal of your loan. Your grace period begins when you leave school or drop below half-time status. Once you are enrolled in the Postbac program, you can request deferment of paying the loan until you have completed your education. Check with your lender for more information. You should submit deferment forms to the Bryn Mawr Registrar’s Office.

Summer is considered the start of the academic year for graduate and Postbac students. If you are starting in the Summer of 2025, that is the beginning of the 2025 academic year and you would complete the FAFSA for 2025-2026. If you finished a graduate program in the spring of 2025 and started a postbac program in the 2025 school year (Summer 2025), you are no longer considered to be enrolled in a graduate program as of the summer. Keep this in mind as you fill out your FAFSA.

Since the 1980s, the Philadelphia-based Measey Foundation has made an annual award to Bryn Mawr College for a limited amount of scholarship funds for students enrolled in Bryn Mawr's postbac premedical program. As designated by the Measey Foundation, the scholarship money is intended to reduce the financial burden on academically talented students who have already accrued debt from federal or private education loans. In recent years, scholarships have ranged from $3500-$6500 and have been awarded to 5-10 students per year. Measey Scholarship awards are not guaranteed at the point of admission to the program. Enrolled postbaccalaureate students are invited to apply at the midpoint of their year at Bryn Mawr. Scholarship awards are applied to the tuition costs of their final semester in the program.

The scholarship committee encourages scholarship applications from members of groups historically underrepresented in medicine or who are economically disadvantaged. The scholarship committee also considers the socioeconomic status of family of origin along with student loans and outstanding debt.

Your award having two unsubsidized loans mean you were awarded for a borrower-based academic year. The borrower-based academic year (BBAY) allows you to borrow more through federal loan programs. Your initial loan is calculated using the Summer and Fall terms as one loan period and Spring as a second loan period. You will have two equal disbursements for Summer and Fall. For BBAY awards, Spring begins a new, separate loan period, and your loan funds will be disbursed in one payment. Remember, loan funds must always be applied toward your bill first. Refunds are only calculated after the bill is paid in full. The amount that you borrow in the Spring term will reduce the amount of eligibility you have left to borrow for the following Summer term. Students are only eligible for the BBAY if they maintain at least half-time enrollment for consecutive summer, fall and spring semesters in the same award year.