- Edited By Jeevan D'Souza
- Expert Reviewed By Soumen Chatterjee
Paying for a master’s degree can involve several sources of financial support, including scholarships, grants, federal student aid, employer tuition assistance, and other funding options. Students seeking federal aid can start by understanding how FAFSA works for graduate school
OMC organizes financial aid resources to help you understand the different ways graduate students can fund their education, identify options that may apply to you, and navigate financial aid decisions throughout the graduate school process.
Start Here: How Do You Want to Fund Your Master’s Degree?
- Looking for scholarships — Explore scholarship opportunities for graduate and master’s students.
Explore → Graduate School Scholarships
- Applying for federal financial aid — Learn how FAFSA works for graduate students and what types of federal aid may be available.
Start → FAFSA for Graduate School
- Looking for grants — Explore graduate-school grants and other forms of funding that generally do not need to be repaid.
Explore → Graduate School Grants
- Using employer education benefits — Learn how employer tuition assistance and reimbursement programs can help cover graduate-school costs.
Explore → Employer Tuition Reimbursement for Graduate School
Explore Funding Options
Graduate students may use different sources of financial support depending on their eligibility, employer benefits, and financial circumstances. Explore the major funding paths below to understand your options and the steps involved.
Scholarships
Scholarships can help reduce graduate-school costs without requiring repayment. Eligibility may depend on factors such as academic background, field of study, professional goals, or student characteristics.
- Explore → Graduate School Scholarships
Grants and Federal Aid
Federal student aid and grants can help eligible graduate students cover education-related costs. FAFSA is the starting point for determining eligibility for federal student aid, while grants may be available through government agencies, universities, and other organizations.
- Start with → FAFSA for Graduate School
- Explore → Graduate School Grants
Employer Funding
Some employers help employees pay for graduate education through tuition reimbursement, tuition assistance, or other education benefits. Eligibility, reimbursement limits, and program requirements vary by employer.
- Start with → Employer Tuition Reimbursement for Graduate School
- Explore → Companies That Pay for Grad School
Other Ways to Fund Graduate School
Scholarships, grants, and employer benefits are not the only ways students may finance graduate education. Depending on your circumstances, student loans and graduate assistantships may also help cover tuition or other education-related expenses.
- Explore → How Do Student Loans Work?
- Explore → Graduate Assistantships
How to Think About Paying for Graduate School
Paying for a master’s degree may involve more than one funding source. Depending on your eligibility and circumstances, scholarships, grants, employer education benefits, assistantships, federal student aid, and student loans may each cover part of the total cost.
Start by identifying funding that does not need to be repaid, such as grants and graduate school scholarships , then consider other options available to you. When comparing your choices, look at the amount of funding available, eligibility requirements, application deadlines, renewal conditions, and any remaining costs you would need to cover.
The amount of financial aid you receive can also affect the actual cost of attending a particular program, so compare your funding options alongside tuition and other education-related expenses before making a final decision.