Financial Aid: Eligibility Requirements

In order to apply for and receive financial aid, you must meet the following eligibility requirements.

Eligibility Requirements

1. Citizenship

  • U.S. citizenship or permanent residency is a prerequisite for financial aid.
  • Foreign students are not eligible for institutional or federal financial aid. Please contact the M.D. Admissions Office for additional information.

2. Enrollment & Satisfactory Academic Progress

  • Each student must meet the enrollment and satisfactory progress as defined in Section 7.2: Standards for Performance and Satisfactory Progress on pages 106-107 of the 2009-10 M.D. Program Handbook.

  • Federal law and regulations require that students receiving financial assistance from federal funds must maintain satisfactory academic progress. The following policy presents the standards adopted by Stanford University School of Medicine for students receiving financial aid. This policy supersedes prior policy.

    • Per quarter:

      1. Autumn, winter, spring: nine medical school units each quarter (medical school course work includes all courses and research units offered through the medical school).
      2. Summer: a minimum of nine units that must include three medical school units.

    • Per academic year: minimum of 36 medical school units.

      1. Students planning not to register for a quarter, or to register for summer and take only three medical school units, must be careful that during each academic year they complete a minimum of 36 medical school units. No financial aid will be disbursed to a student who completes less than the minimum. Units for a course dropped will not be included.

      2. Academic deficiencies must be corrected within the time frame established by the Committee on Student Performance.

  • Advanced degrees outside of the medical school do not qualify for financial aid funding through the medical school.

  • A student who has completed his or her degree requirements, with the exception of the ACLS, will not be eligible for financial aid funding.

3. Financial Need

  • All financial aid administered by Stanford University School of Medicine is based on demonstrated financial need, not academic achievement.

  • Stanford's financial aid program requires that you, your parents and your spouse provide all financial information fully and accurately. If you are over 30 years of age, parental information is not required.

  • Maximum Financial Aid Eligibility
      1. For students in the M.D. program: five years (i.e. 20 quarters).

      2. For M.D. students working on a master's degree at the medical school: six years (i.e. 23 quarters)

      3. Funding beyond the maximum time frames will be provided only if there are significant mitigating circumstances and the student's Academic Advisor gives his or her approval.

      4. The maximum time allowed does not include periods of approved leaves of absence.

      5. For transfer students: quarters completed prior to entering Stanford University School of Medicine are subtracted from the maximum financial aid eligibility amount.

4. Change in Financial Status

  • All students regardless of age must promptly notify the Financial Aid Office in writing of any change in their financial circumstances during the year.

  • Failure to report changes such as marital status, parental income, assets, scholarship aid, work income, etc., could result in a total loss of assistance, revision of past awards, serious disciplinary action, or all three.

5. Agreement to Student Rights and Responsibilities

Student Rights and Responsibilities (Opens PDF file in new browser window)

6. Thank-You Letter and Annual Dinner

  • Most of our grant, loan and medical scholar funds exist because of generous gifts from alumni or friends of Stanford.

  • If you are awarded such funds, you may be required to write the donor(s) a thank-you letter and attend the annual dinner, usually held in late February. Your cooperation is needed and expected since maintaining the good will of Stanford's donors helps assure the availability of funds for the future.

  • Aid recipients who fail to comply with these requirements by the specified date will lose eligibility for Stanford grants or loans — or both — the following year.

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