Graduate Financial Aid

The Touro University System is committed to helping students afford the opportunity for a valuable education. In order for Touro to determine eligibility for its financial aid programs, all students except international students must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa. Financial aid is provided through college, state, and federal funds for scholarships, grants, loans, and employment. Awards are designed to recognize scholastic achievement, service, and/or demonstrated need. The variety of financial aid programs available allows many students to greatly reduce their educational costs while attending Touro University.

It is the student’s responsibility to request, complete, and submit all forms with necessary documentation for all financial aid programs, including scholarships, in a timely manner. Students who would have otherwise been eligible may not receive funding when they fail to timely submit documents. These awards are not granted retroactively and are subject to the availability of funds.

Financial aid awards are not guaranteed and may be reduced or cancelled after being offered or disbursed to students. Financial aid awards are subject to all revisions in federal, state and institutional policies, availability of funds, changes in enrollment, changes in housing status, as well as updates in FAFSA information, failure to meet minimum grade requirements, failure to complete the semester, and failure to timely submit all required documentation.

Students must meet Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) requirements at all times in order to receive and retain financial aid.

Because of the nature of federal, state and institutional guidelines affecting financial aid programs, the information contained in this catalog is subject to change. For further information about available financial aid programs and whether you meet eligibility requirements please visit:

https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa - federal website for submitting the Free Application for Federal Student Aid

https://studentaid.gov - federal website for student and parent loan applications and information

https://www.csac.ca.gov/cal-grants - state website for California students to apply for various grants

http://www.isac.org/students/ - state website for Illinois students to apply for various grants

https://www.hesc.ny.gov/ - state website for New York students to apply for various grants

Financial Aid Self-Service

Financial aid is an enabling element in your educational pursuit. To that end, Touro has implemented the Touro One student portal. With this system, you can review your financial aid awards in real-time, accept or reject loan-based financial aid, gain insight into what might be delaying your financial aid, and much more. You can also register and pay your bill via the student portal. Visit https://touroone.touro.edu.

As part of our Financial Aid Self-Service tool, our student services helpdesk aims to assist all students at the Touro University with their student services questions. To assist you off-campus or for general financial aid inquiries, please contact TouroOne Helpdesk at help@touro.edu, via phone at 844-868-7666 or via Zoom. To schedule a meeting with our specialist, visit https://tcus.service-now.com/sp

Student Administrative Services Help Desk

As part of our Financial Aid Self-Service tool, our student services helpdesk aims to assist all students at the Touro University with their student services questions. To assist you off-campus or for general financial aid inquiries, please contact TouroOne Helpdesk at help@touro.edu, via phone at 844-868-7666 or via Zoom. To schedule a meeting with our specialist, visit https://tcus.service-now.com/sp.

Federal Application Requirements and Procedures

All students who wish to apply for financial aid must complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA or a Renewal FAFSA) and submit it to the U.S. Department of Education (ED) once for each academic year. The FAFSA can be completed online at https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa. Applications become available on October 1 for the upcoming school year that begins with the following summer semester. For example, for the 2025-2026 academic year (which includes the summer 2025, fall 2025 and spring 2026 semesters) the FAFSA was available on October 1, 2024.

Financial aid funding is designed to help bridge the gap between the cost of attending a college and the student’s (and parent’s, when applicable) available resources. Most awards are determined by need. Please note: Financial need has no bearing on admission decisions. Touro administers federal, state, institutional and local sources of aid, as detailed in the following pages.

Students who wish to apply for financial aid, including grants, parent and student loans, work-study, and/or scholarships, are required to complete the FAFSA. The college codes to be used on the FAFSA for Touro’s locations are listed below.

Apply for Aid in 6 Steps

Step 1: Create a StudentAid.gov Account

Every contributor—anyone (you, your spouse, a biological or adoptive parent, or your parent's spouse) who's required to provide information on the FAFSA form—needs a StudentAid.gov account before accessing and completing their section of the online form. We strongly recommend you and your contributor(s) create StudentAid.gov accounts before starting your FAFSA form. When you create your account, be careful to enter your name and Social Security number (SSN) exactly as they appear on your Social Security card. Contributors can access their StudentAid.gov account by using their FSA ID (account username and password). Note: Contributors without an SSN can create a StudentAid.gov account to fill out their portion of your FAFSA form online. To start the online FAFSA form, select “Start New Form.” You’ll be taken to the “Log In” page to enter your account username and password. After logging in, you’ll be given the option to select your applicable role to fill out the FAFSA form: “Student” or “Parent.” You (the student) should select “Student.” If a parent wants to start their dependent child’s FAFSA form, they should select the “Parent” option.

Note: Contributors without an SSN can create a StudentAid.gov account to fill out their portion of your FAFSA form online.

To start the online FAFSA form, select “Start New Form.” You’ll be taken to the “Log In” page to enter your account username and password. After logging in, you’ll be given the option to select your applicable role to fill out the FAFSA form: “Student” or “Parent.” You (the student) should select “Student.” If a parent wants to start their dependent child’s FAFSA form, they should select the “Parent” option.

Step 2: Gathering Needed Documents

You might need the following information or documents as you fill out the FAFSA form:

• Your parents’ SSNs if they have SSNs and you're a dependent student

• Tax returns

• Records of child support received

• Current balances of cash, savings, and checking accounts

• Net worth of investments, businesses, and farms

Keep these records! You may need them again. Do not mail these supporting records to us unless otherwise instructed to do so.

Step 3: Starting your FAFSA® Form

The 2025–26 FAFSA form is available now for the award year that runs from July 1, 2025, to June 30, 2026. We encourage you to fill out the form as soon as possible on or after the applicable FAFSA launches to meet FAFSA federal, state, and school deadlines.

FAFSA® Filing Options

You may choose any of these methods to file a FAFSA form:

• Log in at fafsa.gov to apply online.

• Complete a FAFSA PDF (Note: you must print out and mail the FAFSA PDF for processing).

If you are starting the FAFSA form for the first time on fafsa.gov, select “Log In To Start” and enter your account username and password to access the FAFSA form.

If you are applying for a summer session, contact the financial aid office at your college or career/trade school to find out which school year you should select when you complete your FAFSA form.

Listing Colleges

While completing the FAFSA form, you must list at least one school to receive your information. The schools you list will use your FAFSA information to determine the types and amounts of student aid you may receive.

The school code for most Touro University schools in New York is 010142.  See the table above for exceptions.

Determining Your Dependency Status

The FAFSA form asks a series of questions that determine whether you are a dependent or independent student for purposes of applying for federal student aid. If you are a dependent student, you must report parent information, as well as your own information, on your application. If you’re curious, you can find out now whether you’re a dependent student.

Reporting Parents' Information

If you’re a dependent student, you’ll need to report parent information on your FAFSA form. Visit our page on reporting parent information to find out who counts as your parent, what to do if you don’t live with your parents, and what to do if you don’t have access to your parents’ financial information.

Providing Financial Information

The FAFSA form asks for financial information, including information from tax forms and balances of savings and checking accounts.

• The 2025–26 FAFSA form asks for 2023 tax information.

Automatically Transferring Your Tax Information

Your contributor’s federal tax information will be transferred from the IRS into your FAFSA form.

All contributors must provide consent and approval for the U.S. Department of Education to:

• disclose their personally identifiable information provided on the FAFSA form to the IRS to match their information with their tax information;

• obtain their federal tax information from the IRS and include with the FAFSA form;

• use their federal tax information to determine your Student Aid Index and Federal Pell Grant eligibility;

• share their federal tax information with colleges, career/trade schools, and state higher education agencies for use in awarding and administering financial aid; and

• reuse their federal tax information on another FAFSA applicant's form (e.g., if a parent has multiple dependent students or for a parent's own FAFSA form as an aid applicant).

NOTE: Even if contributors don't have an SSN, didn't file taxes, or filed taxes outside of the U.S., they will still need to provide consent and approval.

IMPORTANT: If a required contributor doesn't provide consent and approval to have their federal tax information transferred into the FAFSA form, you (the student) will not be eligible for federal student aid—even if the contributor manually enters tax information into the FAFSA form.

To ensure the information is secure, the federal tax information won't display on the FAFSA site or the FAFSA Submission Summary.

Signing and Submitting the FAFSA® Form

After you complete your required section of the FAFSA form online, you’ll acknowledge the terms and conditions of the form and electronically sign your section. You can then submit your section of the FAFSA form. However, your FAFSA form won’t be considered complete until all required contributors provide their information on the FAFSA form, give their consent and approval to transfer federal tax information into the form, and provide their signatures.

After you and your parent (and/or any other required contributor) sign and submit the FAFSA form, the form will be considered complete and will be submitted for processing.

If you submit the FAFSA form, you’ll see a confirmation page that displays your completion date, data release number, and next steps. You’ll also see your estimated Student Aid Index, estimated Federal Pell Grant eligibility, and information about other federal student aid for which you may be eligible. This confirmation page is emailed automatically to you for your records.

Note: The Student Aid Index on the confirmation page is only an estimate. The official Student Aid Index will appear on the FAFSA Submission Summary.

Check Your FAFSA® Form Status

Check the status of your form by logging in to your StudentAid.gov account and selecting your FAFSA submission from the “My Activity” section of your account Dashboard.

If you submitted a paper FAFSA form, you can check its status after it has been processed (roughly 7–10 days from the date mailed).

The status of your application will be one of the following:

• Draft: Your section of the FAFSA form is incomplete.

• In Progress: You provided your consent, approval, and signature to your section of the FAFSA form, but the FAFSA form has not been submitted yet.

• In Review: The FAFSA form was submitted but hasn’t been processed yet.

• Action Required: You are missing your consent and approval or signature; or the FAFSA form was processed, but a correction is required.

• Processed: Your application was processed successfully. No further action is needed.

• Closed: Your FAFSA form was never submitted and can no longer be submitted because the federal FAFSA deadline passed.

Review Your FAFSA Submission Summary

The FAFSA Submission Summary is a summary of the FAFSA data you submitted. You (the student) will get your FAFSA Submission Summary after your FAFSA form is processed. Look over your FAFSA Submission Summary carefully, make sure you didn’t make a mistake on your FAFSA form, and make corrections to your FAFSA data if necessary. Find out more about the FAFSA Submission Summary , its purpose, how the method you use to file your FAFSA form determines when you’ll get the FAFSA Submission Summary, and what you should do with the FAFSA Submission Summary.

What NOT to Expect from the FAFSA Submission Summary

The FAFSA Submission Summary won’t tell you how much financial aid you’ll get. Also, if you provided consent and approval to obtain your federal tax information from the IRS, the FAFSA Submission Summary won’t show the details of your (or parent) income and tax information.

Provide Required Verification

You might see a note on your FAFSA Submission Summary saying you’ve been selected for verification; or your school might contact you to inform you that you’ve been selected. Verification is the process your school uses to confirm that the data reported on your FAFSA form is accurate. If you’re selected for verification, your school will request additional documentation that supports the information you reported.

Don’t assume you’re being accused of doing anything wrong.  Some people are selected for verification at random; and some schools verify all students' FAFSA forms. All you need to do is provide the documentation your school asks for—and be sure to do so by the school’s deadline, or you won’t be able to get federal student aid.

In most cases, you won't have to verify income and tax information. However, if you are selected for verification, the school may ask you to submit a tax transcript or other documentation to confirm the information you reported.

Step 4: Review the Cost of Attendance (COA)

You can find your estimated COA on the tuition page.

The maximum amount of aid for which you apply in a year cannot exceed the COA for that year.

Step 5: Complete the Entrance Counseling

First time borrowers at Touro University must complete the Entrance Counseling. This will ensure you understand the terms and conditions of your loan and your rights and responsibilities. You will learn what a loan is, how interest works, your options for repayment, and how to avoid delinquency and default. Make sure to complete the Entrance Counseling for Graduate and Professional students.

Step 6: Sign the Master Promissory Note (MPN)

First time borrowers taking out a Direct Unsubsidized Loan must complete and sign an MPN . Parent PLUS Loans and Grad PLUS loans require a separate MPN.

Once all steps are completed you will receive your financial aid offer and instructions through your student Touro email. Please monitor your Touro email account daily.

Exit Counseling

Students who are graduating, withdrawing, or dropping below half time enrollment need to complete the Exit Counseling.

Notes on Financial Aid

In reviewing your application, we may request additional documentation. Loan funds are disbursed directly to the University to cover the cost of tuition. The Bursar’s Office distributes refunds within 14 days of receiving the funds.

We verify enrollment and satisfactory academic progress before disbursing funds. For information on fund distribution, please contact the Bursar at bursar@touro.edu.

Basic Eligibility Criteria

• Demonstrate financial need (for most programs);

• Be a U.S. citizen or an  eligible noncitizen; 

• Have a valid Social Security number (with the exception of students from the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, or the Republic of Palau);

• Be enrolled or accepted for enrollment as a regular student in an eligible degree or certificate program;

• Be enrolled at least half-time to be eligible for Direct Loan Program (opens in a new tab) funds;

• Maintain  Satisfactory Academic Progress;

• Provide consent and approval to have your federal tax information transferred directly into your 2025-26 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form, if you're applying for aid for July 1, 2024, to June 30, 2025;

• Sign the certification statement on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form stating that:

  1.  you are not in  default on a federal student loan,

  2. you do not owe money on a federal student grant, and

  3. you will use federal student aid only for educational purposes; and

• Show you’re qualified to obtain a college or career school education by:

  1. having a high school diploma or a recognized equivalent such as a General Educational Development (GED) certificate;

  2. completing a high school education in a homeschool setting approved under state law (or—if state law does not require a homeschooled student to obtain a completion credential—completing a high school education in a homeschool setting that qualifies as an exemption from compulsory attendance requirements under state law).

IMPORTANT: On the FAFSA form, a contributor refers to anyone (you, your spouse, your biological or adoptive parent, or your parent's spouse) who's required to provide information on the FAFSA form. If a required contributor doesn't provide consent and approval to have their federal tax information transferred into your FAFSA form, you won't be eligible for federal student aid—even if they manually enter tax information into the FAFSA form.

Provide Required Verification

You might see a note on your FAFSA Submission Summary saying you’ve been selected for verification; or your school might contact you to inform you that you’ve been selected. Verification is the process your school uses to confirm that the data reported on your FAFSA form is accurate. If you’re selected for verification, your school will request additional documentation that supports the information you reported.

Don’t assume you’re being accused of doing anything wrong. Some people are selected for verification at random; and some schools verify all students' FAFSA forms. All you need to do is provide the documentation your school asks for—and be sure to do so by the school’s deadline, or you won’t be able to get federal student aid.

In most cases, you won't have to verify income and tax information. However, if you are selected for verification, the school may ask you to submit a tax transcript or other documentation to confirm the information you reported.

Touro reserves the right to revise its financial aid programs. All programs are subject to change due to modifications in government or institutional policies. Additional criteria and information may be obtained from the Office of Financial Aid. Students are responsible for reading the Financial Aid Terms & Conditions before deciding to accept or reject their financial aid. View the disclosures at “View the disclosures” within your account in the Touro One Portal.

Tuition Payment Plans

Tuition payment plans are available. Please direct all inquiries to the Office of the Bursar.

Federal Work-Study: Undergraduate and Graduate Students

Federal Work-Study

Federal Work-Study (FWS) is a need-based program which provides part-time employment for undergraduate and graduate students with financial need, allowing you to earn money to help pay education expenses. The program encourages community service work and work related to your course of study. 

Funds for this program are awarded to eligible students as part of the financial aid process. Selection and placement for Work Study recipients is determined by student's eligibility, institutional funding, job availability and suitability for the position. Funds are limited and awarded on a first come, first served basis each academic year.

Students may work a maximum of 30 hours/week during the summer semester and a maximum of 20 hours/week during the fall and spring semester at a rate of $20/hour beginning July 1, 2025.

Federal Work-Study Guidelines and Timesheet Instructions

Eligibility

• To be eligible for FWS, students must complete a FAFSA.

• Students must maintain a 2.0 GPA (unless such GPA does not meet Satisfactory Academic Progress in their school or program of study) to receive Federal Work-Study.

• Students who fail to make Satisfactory Academic Progress must immediately discontinue Federal Work-Study.

• If you cannot report for work as instructed, or no longer want employment, you must notify your direct supervisor. Failure to do so will jeopardize your future FWS eligibility.

Location

Regulations stipulate that students may only work for their assigned department.

Workdays & Hours

Students may not work:

• during scheduled class time

• more than 30 hours a week during the summer semester and a maximum of 20 hours/week during the fall and spring semester

Students may work up to the last day of their individual finals for each semester.

Timesheets
You must electronically report your time on the TouroOne Portal. Supervisors must approve your timesheet for each pay period. Instructions are given when you are approved for Federal Work Study.

Time In & Time Out
Time must be entered in the following format: HH:MM AM or PM.  Time must be entered in 15-minute intervals only.  Accepted entries are: 00, 15, 30, and 45.  Do not use military time.

Breaks
FWS participants must take an unpaid one-half (1/2) – hour break when working more than five (5) hours, and a 1-hour break when working 7 ½ hours or more.

How to Apply for Federal Work Study Positions

1. If you are interested in federal work study, first speak to your financial aid counselor about adding a FWS award for you.

2. Once you have received and accepted a FWS award you can then look for available positions in TouroOne by logging into TouroOne and clicking on the Financial Aid Page. Once you do that you will see a sub tab called “Federal Work Study Jobs: Clicking on that will bring you to the page that has the available Federal Work Study Jobs. 

3. Once you have a supervisor interested in hiring you the supervisor of the position needs to email a completed job description form along with your name and T# to Cheryl Weiner (cheryl.weiner@touro.edu) to let her know that they would like you to work to fill the position.

4. Once Cheryl receives that email she will send a packet to you.

5. When Cheryl receives the completed packet from you, an email will be sent with the start date. You may not begin working until you receive and reply to an email from Cheryl with your start date.

Alternately, if you are interested in working off campus, there are several off-campus position in the financial services tab of TouroOne. If you are interested in one of those positions, you would contact Cheryl and Cheryl would forward the information to the supervisor and you would then proceed as in steps 4 and 5 above.

If you are interested in another position that is not posted, you would need to have the agency complete our job description and need assessment forms so that we can evaluate if the position can qualify as a FWS position, before beginning above process.

Loans: Undergraduate and Graduate Students

When you apply for financial aid, you might be offered loans as part of your school’s financial aid offer. A loan is money you borrow and must pay back with interest.  Student loans can come from the federal government, from private sources such as a bank or financial institution, or from other organizations. Federal student loans usually have more benefits than private loans.

To apply for a federal student loan, you must first complete and submit a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form. Based on the results of your FAFSA form, Touro University will send you a financial aid offer, which may include federal student loans. Touro will tell you how to accept all or a part of the loan.

Before you receive your loan funds, you will be required to

• complete entrance counseling, a tool to ensure you understand your obligation to repay the loan;

• sign a Master Promissory Note, agreeing to the terms of the loan.

Contact the financial aid office at the school you are planning to attend for details regarding the process at your school.

Types of Federal Student Loans

If you would like to learn more about the student loans, please use this link: https://studentaid.gov/understand-aid/types/loans

Annual and Aggregate Federal Direct Stafford Loan Limits

You must complete exit counseling when you leave school or drop below half-time enrollment. The purpose of exit counseling is to ensure you understand your student loan obligations and are prepared for repayment.

You'll learn about what your federal student loan payments will look like after school. We'll recommend a repayment strategy that best suits your future plans and goals.

You can find your personal loan details through your loan servicer account and your StudentAid.gov account.

Repaying Student Loans 101

https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/repayment/repaying-101

The interest rates for Direct Subsidized Loans and Direct Unsubsidized Loans first disbursed on or after July 1, 2025, and before July 1, 2026, are shown in the chart below.

Note: The interest rates shown above are fixed rates for the life of the loan.

Have other questions about interest?

• Understanding interest rates and fees—Find out how interest is calculated.

• Information for military members—If you are a member of the military, you may be eligible for special interest benefits relating to your federal student loans.

What are the loan fees?

All Direct Subsidized Loans and Direct Unsubsidized Loans have a loan fee. The loan fee is a percentage of the loan amount and is proportionately deducted from each loan disbursement. The percentage for all Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized loans first disbursed on or after Oct. 1, 2020, is 1.057%. Loans first disbursed before that date had different loan fees.

Private Loans

In addition to the above loans, students and parents may apply for private loan programs. These loans are not need-based, require a credit check and may require other evaluations of the borrower’s credit-worthiness. Alternative loans may require that the borrower apply with a co-signer.

Students who owe balances from prior years or who are ineligible for federal loans may wish to explore private loan funding. ELM Select is a tool that may aid you in selecting a private educational loan.

Touro is not affiliated with any private educational lender and encourages students to use all federal and state funding prior to seeking funds from private educational lenders. The Office of Financial Aid will offer advice to students on resources to finance their educational expenses.

New York State Awards

Veterans Tuition Award (VTA)

Available for graduate (and undergraduate) programs to eligible veterans and certain dependents.
https://www.hesc.ny.gov/vta (via NYS Grants & Scholarships list)

Master’s in Education Teacher Incentive Scholarship

A full-tuition award for students pursuing a master's degree in education (SUNY/CUNY) who commit to teaching in NYS public schools for five years.
https://newyork.teach.org/aid/nys-masters-education-teacher-incentive-scholarship

NYS Math & Science Teaching Incentive Program

Available to graduate (and undergraduate) students preparing to teach math or science at the secondary level in NYS.
https://www.hesc.ny.gov/find-aid/nys-grants-scholarships/nys-math-and-science-teaching-incentive-program

NYS Regents Awards for Children of Deceased and Disabled Veterans

Applicable for graduate students whose parent served and died or became disabled in service.
https://www.hesc.ny.gov/regents

Alternate Sources of Aid

Financial Aid for Consortium Agreements

Touro students who want to attend other institutions in the United States or abroad for a semester or more) may be able to use federal financial aid under a consortium agreement. Students must be approved by their respective academic department prior to attending another institution for the semester(s). At least four weeks prior to the start of the semester(s), students must contact the Office of Financial Aid to complete the Consortium Agreement and to provide documentation of the Cost of Attendance (COA), course registration, contact information at the other school and their Touro academic department’s approval.

Veterans Benefits

Veterans may qualify for additional benefits, including the Yellow Ribbon Program (described below). For more information, contact the following agencies:

• U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), https://www.va.gov

• GI Bill®, http://www.gibill.va.gov *

• Office of Financial Aid at Touro

* "GI Bill®” is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). More information about education benefits offered by VA is available on the official U.S. government website at www.benefits.va.gov/gibill.

Yellow Ribbon GI Education Enhancement Program

Touro is proud to be a part of the Yellow Ribbon GI Education Enhancement Program. The program is a provision of the Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2008 and allows degree-granting institutions of higher learning in the United States to voluntarily enter into an agreement with the VA to fund tuition expenses that exceed either the Post 9/11 GI Bill® annual cap for private institutions or the resident tuition and fees for a public institution. The participating educational institution can contribute up to 50% of those expenses, and the VA will match the same amount as the institution.

Students must be eligible for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® at the 100% rate to be considered for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Specific eligibility requirements for the Yellow Ribbon Program may be found online at http://www.gibill.va.gov/.

Eligible students fit the criteria as follows:

• Served an aggregate period of active duty after Sept. 10, 2001 of at least 36 months.

• Were honorably discharged from active duty for a service-related disability and served 30 continuous days after Sept. 10, 2001.

• Are dependents eligible for Transfer of Entitlement under the Post-9/11 GI Bill® based on his/her service under the eligibility criteria listed above.

Students who wish to be considered should complete and submit an application form available online at http://www.gibill.va.gov/. The VA will inform students via written notification with an explanation of its decision on program eligibility. If approved, students will receive a Certificate of Eligibility confirming their service meets the requirements of the Yellow Ribbon Program. All Certificates of Eligibility should be presented to the Office of Financial Aid for Touro's records. The Certificate of Eligibility does not guarantee Yellow Ribbon funding as the availability of annual funds for Touro's Yellow Ribbon Program is limited. Student eligibility is determined by the university’s veteran certifying officer. For more information on selection criteria for Touro's Yellow Ribbon Program, contact the Office of Financial Aid.

Transfer of Post-9/11 GI-Bill® Benefits to Dependents

The transferability option under the Post-9/11 GI Bill® allows service members to transfer unused benefits to their spouses or dependent children. The U.S. Department of Defense determines whether or not veterans can transfer benefits to family members. Eligible candidates are members of the Armed Forces (active duty or selected reserve, officer or enlisted) on or after Aug. 1, 2009, qualify for the Post-9/11 GI Bill®, and:

1. Have at least 6 years of service in the Armed Forces (active duty and/or selected reserve) on the date of approval and agree to serve four additional years in the armed forces from the date of election.

2. Have at least 10 years of service in the Armed Forces (active duty and/or selected reserve) on the date of approval, are precluded by either standard policy (service or Department of Defense) or statute from committing to four additional years and agree to serve for the maximum amount of time allowed by such policy or statute.

3. Are or will become eligible for retirement during the period from Aug. 1, 2009 to July 31, 2012 and agree to serve an additional period of service noted in bulleted points a to d (see list below). Service members are considered eligible for retirement if they have completed 20 years of active federal service or 20 qualifying years as computed pursuant to section 12732 of title 10 U.S.C. This will no longer be in effect on Aug. 1, 2013; on or after this date, all members must comply with items 1 and 2.

   a. For individuals eligible for retirement on Aug. 1, 2009, no additional service is required.

   b. For individuals eligible for retirement after Aug. 1, 2009 and before Aug. 1, 2010, one year of additional service is required.

   c. For individuals eligible for retirement on or after Aug. 1, 2010 and before Aug. 1, 2011, two years of additional service is required.

   d. For individuals eligible for retirement on or after Aug. 1, 2011 and before Aug. 1, 2012, three years of additional service is required.

4. Such transfer must be requested and approved while the member is in the Armed Forces.

Eligible Dependents

An individual approved to transfer an entitlement to educational assistance under this section may transfer his/her entitlement to:

• A spouse

• One or more children

• Any combination of spouse and children

• A family member must be enrolled in the Defense Eligibility Enrollment Reporting System (DEERS) and be eligible for benefits at the time of transfer in order to receive transferred educational benefits.

A child's subsequent marriage will not affect his/her eligibility to receive the educational benefit; however, after an individual has designated a child as a transferee under this section, the individual retains the right to revoke or modify the transfer at any time.

A subsequent divorce will not affect the transferee’s eligibility to receive educational benefits; however, after an individual has designated a spouse as a transferee under this section, the eligible individual retains the right to revoke or modify the transfer at any time.

Nature of Transfer

An eligible service member may transfer up to the total months of unused Post-9/11 GI Bill® benefits, or the entire 36 months if the member has used none (unless the U.S. Departments of Defense or Homeland Security limit the number of months an individual may transfer). The use of transferred educational benefits by family members is subject to:

Spouse:

• May start to use the benefit immediately.

• May use the benefit while the member remains in the Armed Forces or after separation from active duty.

• Is not eligible for the monthly housing allowance while the member is serving on active duty.

• Can use the benefit for up to 15 years after the service member’s last separation from active duty.

Child:

• May start to use the benefit only after the individual making the transfer has completed at least 10 years of service in the Armed Forces.

• May use the benefit while the eligible individual remains in the Armed Forces or after separation from active duty.

• May not use the benefit until he/she has attained a secondary school diploma (or equivalency certificate) or reached 18 years of age.

• Is entitled to the monthly housing allowance stipend even though the eligible individual is on active duty.

• Is not subject to the 15-year delimiting date, but may not use the benefit after reaching 26 years of age.

For more information, please visit www.gibill.va.gov.

Tuition Exemption Benefit

As part of Touro University’s commitment to supporting our employees, we are pleased to offer a Tuition Exemption benefit for eligible employees, their spouses, and dependent children. This benefit provides discounts on tuition and certain fees for Touro University programs.

To learn more or to apply, please visit the TouroOne portal and follow these steps:

• Select the Employee tab

• Click the dropdown arrow

• Choose “Benefits: Touro University”

• Scroll down to the “Tuition Exemption Information” section

There, you will find a link to our comprehensive FAQ and the Tuition Exemption Application Form. We encourage all applicants to review the FAQ, as it answers many common questions about the benefit.

Withdrawal Policy, Federal Return to Title IV (R2T4)

Objective

The Title IV Student Withdrawal Policy is designed to ensure the accurate and timely determination of:

1. The date of the institution’s determination that a student withdrew;

2. The student’s withdrawal date; and

3. The student’s last date of attendance.

The policy maintains the proper disposition of Title IV funds, in accordance with 34 CFR 668.22 of the Code of Federal Regulations.

Background

Title IV or federal financial aid is awarded to students based upon the assumption that they will complete their semesters of enrollment and earn satisfactory grades. When students fail to complete their classes, they may lose eligibility for federal funds that they already received or could have received.

When a recipient of Title IV grant(s) and/or loan(s) withdraws (voluntarily or involuntarily) from Touro during a payment period (or semester) in which he/she began attendance, the college must determine the amount of the grant and/or loan assistance earned by the student as of his/her withdrawal date. This policy establishes steps that Touro must take to ensure compliance with federal regulations.

Policy

Touro must always return any unearned Title IV funds that it is responsible for within 45 days of the date Touro determined the student withdrew and offer any post-withdrawal disbursement of loan funds within 30 days of that date. Reference:  Student Financial Aid Handbook, Volume 5; Chapter 1 Withdrawals and Return of Title IV Funds.

Withdrawal Date

A student’s withdrawal date varies depending on the type of withdrawal. Reference: Determining a student’s withdrawal date at a school that is not required to take attendance in the Student Financial Aid Handbook, Volume 5; Chapter 1 Withdrawals and Return of Title IV Funds.

Official Notification Provided

• In a case when the student provides official notification of his/her intent to withdraw, Touro will use the date of notification as follows:

• In the event that a student begins Touro’s withdrawal process,* the date the student begins the process is the date of withdrawal.

• In the event that a student sends written notification of intent to withdraw, the date Touro receives the written notice is the date of withdrawal.

• In the event that a student makes an oral notification to the Office of the Registrar, which is Touro’s designated office for beginning the withdrawal process, the date will be documented by this office. The date of withdrawal will be recorded as of the date of oral notification, unless there is subsequent written notification, in which case the date that Touro receives the written notification may be the withdrawal date.

*To begin the withdrawal process, the student contacts the Office of the Registrar to obtain the appropriate withdrawal form. If the student both begins the withdrawal process and provides a notification to Touro, the earlier of the two dates will be used as the withdrawal date.

Official Notification Not Provided

In a case when the student does not provide official notification of his/her intent to withdraw, Touro may use the midpoint of the payment period as the date of withdrawal, with the following exception:

• When an official notification was not provided by the student because of circumstances beyond his/her control (i.e., illness, accident, grievous personal loss, or other circumstances), the date of the onset of such circumstances will be serve as the withdrawal date as determined by the Office of the Registrar.

Last Date of Attendance

Touro may always use the withdrawal date as the student's last date of attendance at an academic activity reported by a faculty member on a course enrollment roster or final grade sheet. Examples of academic activities are exams, tutorials, computer-assisted instruction, academic counseling, turning in class assignments, or attending a study group assigned by the University. The faculty member will maintain documentation of the last date of attendance.

Date of Institution’s Determination of Student Withdrawal

The date of Touro’s determination that a student withdrew varies depending upon the type of withdrawal. Reference: Determining a student’s withdrawal date at a school that is not required to take attendance, Student Financial Aid Handbook, Volume 5; Chapter 1 Withdrawals and Return of Title IV Funds.

Date of Official Notification Provided

This is the date the student provides official notification to Touro or begins the withdrawal process, whichever is later.

Date of Official Notification Not Provided

This is the date that Touro learns the student has ceased attendance. Touro will perform the Return to Title IV Funds calculation and return any unearned funds no later than 45 days after the end of the payment period determining the withdrawal date. For a student who withdraws without providing notification to Touro, the institution must determine the withdrawal date no later than 30 days after the end of the earliest:

• Payment period or period of enrollment (as appropriate)

• Academic year

• Educational program

Reference: Student Financial Aid Handbook, Volume 5; Chapter 1 Withdrawals and Return of Title IV Funds.

Calculation of Earned Title IV Assistance

U.S. Department of Education software will be used to perform all refund calculations. A copy of the completed calculation worksheet will be kept in the student’s file in the Office of Financial Aid. The amount of Title IV assistance earned by the student is calculated by determining the percentage of grant and/or loan assistance earned by the student and applying that percentage to the total amount of grant and/or loan assistance disbursed to the student or on the student's behalf for the payment period, as of his/her withdrawal date. The percentage of Title IV assistance earned will be equal to the percentage of the payment period completed by the student, when said percentage is less than 60%. If the student’s withdrawal date occurs after the completion of 60% of the payment period, the percentage earned is 100%.

Post-Withdrawal Disbursements

If the total amount of the Title IV grant and/or loan assistance earned by the student is more than the amount that was disbursed to the student as of the withdrawal date, the difference between the two amounts will be treated as a post-withdrawal disbursement. In the event of outstanding charges on the student’s account, Touro will credit his/her account for all or part of the amount of the post-withdrawal disbursement, up to the amount of allowable charges.

If Direct Loan and/or Federal Perkins Loan Program funds are used to credit the student’s account, Touro will notify the student (or parent for a PLUS Loan) and provide the student (or parent) with the opportunity to cancel all or a portion of the loan(s).

Any amount of a post-withdrawal disbursement that is comprised of loan funds and has not been credited to a student’s account will be offered to the student (or parent for a PLUS Loan) within 30 days of the date the college determined the student's withdrawal. Any earned grant funds that the student is eligible to receive due to a post-withdrawal disbursement will be provided within 45 days of the date of determination. Students will be notified of such disbursements in writing. The notification will include:

• Identification of the type and amount of the Title IV funds that make up the post-withdrawal disbursement (not to include any amounts that have been applied to the student’s account);

• Explanation that the student (or parent for a PLUS loan) may accept or decline some or all of the post-withdrawal disbursement (that which has not been applied to the student’s account); and

• Advisement that Touro is not required to make a post-withdrawal disbursement if the student (or parent for a PLUS Loan) does not respond within 14 days of the date that Touro sent the notification.

Upon receipt of a timely response from the student or parent, Touro will disburse funds in the manner specified in the response. Distribution will occur within 180 days of the date of determination of the student’s withdrawal date. If no response is received from the student or parent, Touro will not disburse any of the funds. Touro maintains the right to decide whether or not to make a post-withdrawal disbursement in the event that the student (or parent for a PLUS Loan) responds after 14 days of the date that notification was sent to them. If Touro decides not to make this post-withdrawal disbursement, it will inform the student (or parent) in writing. In the case of a post-withdrawal disbursement, grant funds will be disbursed prior to loan funds.

Refund of Unearned Funds to Title IV

If the total amount of Title IV grant and/or loan assistance that was earned by the student is less than the amount that was disbursed to the student as of the withdrawal date, the difference between the two amounts will be returned to Title IV programs and no further disbursements will be made. Funds will be returned as follows:

Refunds by the University

In the event that Touro is responsible for returning funds to Title IV programs, the funds will be returned in the order prescribed by the U.S. Department of Education (listed below) within 45 days of the date of determination of a student's withdrawal.

• Unsubsidized Federal Direct Student Loans

• Subsidized Federal Direct Student Loans

• Perkins Loans

• Federal Direct PLUS Loans

• Federal Pell Grants for the payment period for which a return of funds is required

• Academic Competitiveness Grant (ACG) for the payment period for which a return of funds is required

• National Science and Mathematics Access to Retain Talent Grant (SMART) for the payment period for which a return of funds is required

• Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (FSEOG) for the payment period for which a return of funds is required

• Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education Grant (TEACH) for the payment period for which a return of funds is required

• Other assistance under Title IV for which a return of funds is required

Refunds by the Student

In the event that the student is responsible for returning grants funds to Title IV programs, Touro will notify the student within 45 days of the date of determination of his/her withdrawal. The student will be advised concerning making arrangements for repayment.

In some cases, both the student and Touro are each responsible for returning funds to the U.S. Department of Education under the R2T4 regulations.

Payment Period or Enrollment Period

Withdrawals and the return of Title IV funds will be based on a payment period for all standard term (or semester) programs.

Documentation

Touro must document a student’s withdrawal date and the date of determination that the student withdrew. The documents will be kept in the student’s academic file in the Office of the Registrar. The Title IV funds calculation and other accompanying documentation will be secured in the Office of Financial Aid.

Additional Financial Aid Policies for Graduate Students

High School Diploma

If you enroll in higher education for the first time on or after July 1, 2012, in order to be eligible for federal student aid, you must have either a high school diploma or a recognized equivalent (such as a General Educational Development certificate (GED) or a home school education). You no longer have the option of becoming eligible for federal student aid by passing an approved test or completing at least six credit hours or 225 clock hours of postsecondary education. This may also apply to state grant and other state funded programs.

Touro also reserves the right to evaluate any high school diploma presented by a student. Touro may, at any time, request a copy of a high school transcript to validate a high school diploma. A high school diploma or recognized equivalent is required to receive federal student aid.

Transfer Students

All students transferring from other institutions will have their credits evaluated. The Office of Admissions will notify the Office of Financial Aid of the number of accepted credits.

The financial aid package will be prepared based on the number of accepted transfer credits. If a financial aid package is prepared prior to the final transfer credit evaluation, federal loans will be awarded based on the grade level for which the transfer credits have been accepted. If additional transfer credits are accepted, the Office of Admissions will notify the Office of Financial Aid. In addition, a student must contact the Office of Financial Aid to determine if he/she is eligible for an increase in federal student loans based on academic grade level.

Financial Aid for Repeated Coursework: Financial Aid Impact

Repeating courses may significantly impact Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) and eligibility for Title IV federal financial aid and institutional aid. All course repeats will count as attempted credits and be used in the quantitative and maximum timeframe components of the SAP policy. Students should consult with a financial aid advisor before registering for a repeated course.

The rules regarding repeated coursework will further impact recipients of Title IV federal financial aid funding. Students are allowed to repeat coursework under these circumstances for Federal Financial Aid:

• May repeat a previously passed course only once (and receive aid for the repeated course).

• May repeat a failed course until it is passed (aid eligibility will be limited to one repeat).

• May not repeat a previously passed course due only to a student’s failure to pass other coursework.