University of Virginia (UVA) is an excellent institution located in Charlottesville, Virginia. Currently, the university has around 15,000 undergraduate students and 7,000 graduate students in attendance. Since its establishment in 1819, the university has educated hundreds of thousands of students, and partially due to the high-quality education that they had received at the University of Virginia, they became successful. In this article, we will be covering the financial and scholarships that are offered at the University of Virginia.
Cost of Attendance
As a public university, the University of Virginia has different fee structures according to the student’s residency. For students from Virginia, the tuition fee is approximately $16,000 a year and room and board is $12,000 a year. Counting the additional expenses, the total cost of attendance is around $33,000 a year. For students not from Virginia, the tuition fees are $46,000 a year and the total cost of attendance is $66,000 a year.
These cost of attendance, especially for students not from Virginia, is a huge sum for most, if not all students who are reading this article. The University of Virginia offers great financial aid programs for its students.
The financial aid at the University of Virginia is indeed generous. The university is committed to meeting 100% of the demonstrated financial need (meeting full need). This means that your family will pay what they can afford, and how much your family can afford is calculated based on your family’s financial situation. The CSS Profile and FAFSA are two documents that do the calculation. After your family pays what they can afford, the rest of the cost of attendance is covered by UVA’s scholarships, grants, and limited loans.
Another good news is that the financial policy of UVA is need-blind admissions. This means that how much your family requires in financial aid does not affect the admission decision. So, you will be in no way be in a disadvantaged because of your financial situation.
So, let’s look at the specifics.
University of Virginia Scholarships
There are a variety of different types of scholarships that are offered at the University of Virginia. Most of these do not require a separate application.
1. Student Financial Service (SFS) Scholarships
There are many scholarships that are offered by the student financial service at UVA. These scholarships are funded by private donors and organizations, and you do not need a separate application to apply for these scholarships. They will choose the recipients based on the information that you have provided on your application to the university.
2. SFS Scholarships Needing a Separate Application
There are some scholarships that are offered by the SFS that you need to check the eligibility of, and if you do meet the eligibility criteria, you need to submit a separate application. These scholarships can be found here. These scholarships have very specific eligibility criteria and do require a separate application, so if you are eligible for one or more scholarships, you definitely need to apply. The chances of you receiving are very high compared to scholarships that do not require an application because there will be much less competition.
3. Department Scholarships
Most, if not all departments at the University of Virginia offer scholarships to freshmen who will join their department. You will need to either look up information at your department’s website or email a person in that department for scholarship information. Some of these scholarships have a separate application, so it will be worth your time to ask or look up information.
4. Alumni Association Scholarships
There are hundreds of scholarships that are available at the Alumni Association. These scholarships can be up to fully-funded scholarships, which means that the scholarships cover full tuition, room, and board. Many of these have a separate application that you will need to fill out to apply.
These are the main scholarships that are given to students looking to come to the University of Virginia. If you want more details about these scholarships, visit the UVA Scholarships Page!
University of Virginia Grants
There are many grants that are offered at the university. These grants include university grants, Federal grants, and state grants. University grants form the majority of the financial aid for most students, and these come from the funds of the University of Virginia. Federal grants are funded by the United States government and provide up to a maximum of $6,000 a year for Pell Grants and $4,000 for SEOG awards. There are state grants that are available for University of Virginia residents as well.
How to Apply for Scholarships and Grants
To apply for scholarships and grants, you will need to fill out two documents, which are FAFSA and CSS Profile. Also, you will need to apply separately for scholarships that require an additional application.
You will need to submit FAFSA and CSS Profile by March 1 for both Early Action and Regular Decision. However, the priority deadlines for Early Action and Regular Decision are December 1 and February 1, respectively. So, to be considered for the maximum amount of financial aid, submit your application by these priority deadlines and even better, way before those deadlines!
Visit this page to learn more about applying for financial aid at UVA.
Limited Student Loans
The University of Virginia does offer loans as part of the financial aid. However, the maximum loan that you will receive is $7,000 a year, and many students receive less than that amount. Your financial need, apart from these loans, will be covered by grants and scholarships, which do not need to be repaid.
UVA Net Price Calculator
If you want to get a rough estimate of the cost of studying at UVA, you can use their Net Price Calculator! This tool will give you an estimation of your financial aid based on the numbers that you provide.
I hope that this article on University of Virginia Scholarships and Financial Aid was helpful. As you can see above, the university is committed to removing the financial barrier that is between students and quality education. If you are from Virginia, I highly recommend that you visit the Virginia Scholarships Category. If you are not from Virginia, you should visit Authority Scholarships Website and view scholarships that are offered by universities in your state.
