OPTION A

Apply for Federal Student Loans ONLY

• Complete the 2026-27 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at studentaid.gov/fafsa using our federal school code 003125.
  
• Complete the UCCOM Financial Aid Application at medonestop.uc.edu under the "Financial Aid" tab.

(no parental information required for Option A)

OPTION B

Apply for Federal Student Loans AND Need-Based Scholarships & Loans

• Complete the 2026-27 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at studentaid.gov/fafsa using our federal school code 003125.
• Complete the UCCOM Financial Aid Application at medonestop.uc.edu under the "Financial Aid" tab.
• If you wish to be considered for UCCOM financial need-based aid, you will also submit the 2026-27 CSS Profile Application at CSS Profile using our school code 1814. The CSS Profile is $25 for the initial application to one institution and $16 for each additional institution. Applicants will submit parental information as part of the application. If your parents are divorced, each of your parents will complete their own CSS Profile. You and your custodial parent will complete your CSS Profile using your College Board account/log-in credentials, and your non-custodial parent will need to create a College Board account first (if they don't currently have one) before they submit their own CSS Profile.
• If you apply for UCCOM need-based financial aid, you will also submit SIGNED copies of your parents’ 2024 federal income tax return (i.e., 1040 with all schedules) and 2024 W2’s to the College of Medicine Office of Student Financial Services. This includes both custodial and non-custodial parents when applicable. Signed documents may be uploaded at medonestop.uc.edu (select Financial Aid > Financial Aid Document Upload). If your parent(s) did not file a federal tax return for 2024, you must complete the 2026-27 Tax Waiver Statement, available on our website under Forms.

Application Deadline

The deadline to complete either option above is February 25, 2026. Students with complete files by this date will receive an email notification in April 2026 when their estimated financial aid offer is available. You may check on the status of your application at medonestop.uc.edu inside the portal under "Checklist". Applicants accepted to the College of Medicine after mid-February will be given appropriate deadline extensions. Applicants to the MD/PhD program should not follow the instructions above.

Accepting Your Financial Aid

• Federal student loan funds for medical students nationwide are lent by the U.S. Department of Education through the Direct Loan Program. If you expect to borrow under this program then complete online loan entrance counseling by mid-July at FederalStudentAid.
• New borrowers of Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan must also complete a loan agreement known as a Master Promissory Note (or MPN). For this, go to FederalStudentAid and choose the Unsubsidized Loan option. 
• In June 2026, you will receive an email notification from the UCCOM Office of Student Financial Services when your official financial aid award offer is available online for you to view and accept. This notification will be sent to your UC email account and will direct you to the 'My Finances' tile in Catalyst.
• Upon viewing your official award offer in Catalyst, you may then accept online the amount of Federal Unsubsidized Stafford Loan funds you wish to borrow for the upcoming year. Accept only what you are sure you will need. The amount you accept as a first-year medical student will be divided into two equal halves that will disburse separately at the start of fall 2026 semester and then at the start of the spring 2027 semester. We recommend you borrow conservatively and then request an increase from the unused loan funds later in the year if needed.

Note: Students that are awarded UCCOM need-based financial aid must accept a minimum of $20,000 in student loans during the same academic year in order to to receive their institutional funds. Students who borrow less than this requirement will forfeit any UCCOM financial need-based scholarships and loans.

• If the Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford loan does not meet all your financial needs for the 2026-27 year, you may decide to apply online for a private alternative loan.  These non-federal student loans allow MD students to borrow up to the remainder of their M1 year cost of attendance (less their other financial aid). The University of Cincinnati does not endorse lenders or loan products, nor does it limit student choice. But to assist students who may be looking for an alternative lender, we do ask lenders that UC students have used to make their loan information available via Fastchoice, a free loan comparison tool. For more information, visit our Private Alternative Loans webpage.
• At the start of the school year, you should be prepared to meet expenses, such as security deposits for an apartment, utility set-ups, immunizations, etc., which you will incur before any financial aid refund dollars become available. These one-time expenses may amount to as much as $2,000.