Financial Aid at Meadville Lombard

Meadville Lombard is committed to helping our students finance their education. As you begin your application for admission, you might want to look over some of our resources available to help you calculate your finances: tuition and fees, cost of attendance, and net price calculator. Whether it is through institutional aid, federal student aid, veterans’ benefits, or other sources of funding, we work with our students to help them navigate the task of funding their education. Below is an outline of some of these types of financial aid.

Institutional Aid

Thanks to generous gifts from individuals and organizations who support Meadville Lombard and our mission, we have been able to meet more and more of our students’ financial needs in recent years. Institutional aid is available for students enrolled in the Master of Arts (Religion) and Master of Divinity degree programs. 

In the Fall 2024 incoming class, 90% of students received some form of institutional aid.

Meadville Lombard provides two forms of institutional aid: merit-based aid in the form of named scholarships and need-based aid in the form of tuition reduction grants. All institutional aid is subject to both eligibility and availability.

Applying for Institutional Aid

To apply for institutional aid students should do the following:

1. Complete their Application for Admission
2. Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)(US citizens and permanent residents only)
3. Complete the Institutional Aid Application (Online Version or PDF Version) 
4. Schedule a financial aid interview with Student Affairs after your application for admission and institutional aid application is complete.

For merit-based aid, consideration is based on the information you provide on your application for admission, the institutional aid application, and your financial aid interview. For need-based aid, consideration is based on the information you provide on your application for admission, the FAFSA, the institutional aid application, and your financial aid interview.  

Priority Application Due Dates for Institutional Aid  

The Financial Aid Awarding Committee reviews Institutional Aid Applications based on priority deadlines. Applications received by the priority deadlines are given first consideration for institutional aid. Applications received after the priority deadlines are reviewed on a rolling basis. 

For Spring Admission 

• Priority Due Date: November 15
• Official Application Due Date: December 1

For Fall Admission 

• Priority Due Date: February 1
• Official Application Due Date: July 1

Named Scholarships

Each year, Meadville Lombard offers at least one full-tuition, merit-based scholarship and a number of smaller, merit-based scholarships to full-time students enrolled in the Master of Arts (Religion) or Master of Divinity degree programs. Named scholarships are subject to eligibility and availability.

Full-tuition scholarships provide students 100% tuition assistance for the length of their program as long as the student remains full-time, maintains good academic standing, and completes their program as outlined in their financial aid offer letter. Priority consideration is given in the order in which applications are completed.

The following is a partial list of our full-tuition scholarships. Not all scholarships are available every year.

• The Hardy and Betty Sanders Scholarship for Excellence
• The Stanley D. Christianson Family Endowed Scholarship for Excellence
• The Arnold and Julia Bradburd Endowed Scholarship for Excellence
• The Julia Bradburd Endowed Scholarship for Excellence
• The Ed and Betty Law Endowed Scholarship
• The Joseph and Marion Wertheim Endowed Scholarship for Excellence
• The Spencer and Susan Lavan Endowed Scholarship

Tuition Reduction Grants

Meadville Lombard offers need-based institutional aid to students in the form of tuition reduction grants. These grants offer a reduction of tuition charges in the form of an annual grant for the length of each student's degree program. To be eligible, students must be enrolled in a degree program at least half-time and demonstrate financial need. As with named scholarships, tuition reduction grants are subject to eligibility and availability.

Rolling Scholarship Decisions

The committee considers applications received on a rolling basis.

For merit-based aid, consideration is based on the information you provide on your application for admission, the institutional aid application, and your financial aid interview. For need-based aid, consideration is based on the information you provide on your application for admission, the FAFSA, the institutional aid application, and your financial aid interview.

Other Scholarships and Aid

Other scholarships and aid are also available to our students including scholarships for Unitarian Universalist ministerial students, scholarships from the John Haynes Holmes Memorial Fellowship, and others. We also accept the vast majority of scholarships and grants that students receive from outside institutions. Studentaid.gov's scholarship page is a useful resource for identifying other forms of available aid.

Federal Student Aid

Any student who is enrolled at least half-time in a graduate degree program at Meadville Lombard, who is in good academic standing with the school, and who is a citizen or permanent resident of the United States may be eligible to receive federal student loans. Information on federal direct loans is available from the Federal Student Aid website.

In accordance with Federal Guidelines Meadville Lombard has adopted a Direct Loan Quality Assurance Policy and Procedure.

Veteran Benefits