Medical and Legal Students

The Department of Education (ED) recognizes that graduate medical students face special financial needs due to the extended periods of study their chosen fields require. Therefore, ED permits higher borrowing limits as well as specialized deferment and forbearance options for these students if they are attending school in the United States.

Legal students’ Title IV borrowing limits are the same as all other graduate students. However, there are private loan options available specifically to legal students, such as a bar study loan.

Medical Students

If you are a medical student, you may receive the Stafford graduate student annual loan limit of $20,500 for the 2008 – 2009 academic year, with a maximum of $8,500 of the total in subsidized loans. You may also receive additional unsubsidized Stafford Loans, depending on the program of study and the length of the program’s academic year.

Specialized Medical Enrollments:

In addition to the $20,500 annual loan limit, you may receive the following amounts if you are enrolled in one of the following programs:

Type of Medical Program	For a 9-Month Academic Year, You May Receive…	For a 12-Month Academic Year, You May Receive…
Public health, administration, chiropractic, and other degrees – Graduate of public health – Graduate in allied health – Doctor of chiropractic – Doctoral degree in clinical psychology – Master’s or doctoral degree in health administration – Bachelor or master of science in pharmacology or equivalent degree	Up to $12,500 in unsubsidized Stafford Loans	Up to $16,667 in additional unsubsidized Stafford Loans
Allopathic, osteopathic, veterinary, dentistry, naturopathic, and other degrees – Allopathic medicine – Osteopathic medicine – Dentistry – Veterinary medicine – Optometry – Podiatric medicine – Naturopathic medicine	Up to $20,000 in unsubsidized Stafford Loans	Up to $26,667 in additional unsubsidized Stafford Loans

Type of Medical Program

For a 9-Month Academic Year, You May Receive…

For a 12-Month Academic Year, You May Receive…

Public health, administration, chiropractic, and other degrees

– Graduate of public health
– Graduate in allied health
– Doctor of chiropractic
– Doctoral degree in clinical psychology
– Master’s or doctoral degree in health administration
– Bachelor or master of science in pharmacology or equivalent degree

Up to $12,500 in unsubsidized Stafford Loans

Up to $16,667 in additional unsubsidized Stafford Loans

Allopathic, osteopathic, veterinary, dentistry, naturopathic, and other degrees

– Allopathic medicine
– Osteopathic medicine
– Dentistry
– Veterinary medicine
– Optometry
– Podiatric medicine
– Naturopathic medicine

Up to $20,000 in unsubsidized Stafford Loans

Up to $26,667 in additional unsubsidized Stafford Loans

Keep in mind: The aggregate loan maximum you may borrow is $224,000. However, $65,500 of that amount may be in subsidized loans.

Law Students

In addition to the extended federal loan limits that are offered for graduate students, a special program offers law students a Bar Study Loan, which:

– Allows students to borrow from $500 – $15,000 to pay expenses
– May be used for bar review course fees, exam fees, and living costs

Contact your institution’s financial aid office for eligibility requirements for this type of loan.