Navigating Financial Aid

Most students will use a combination of personal resources, scholarships, student loans, and possibly employer sponsorship to cover the cost of their education. You can review the cost of the program and find information on a wide range of funding options on the Financing Your Degree section of our website. 

During the admissions process, all applicants to the Full-Time program were assessed for merit-scholarship eligibility. If you were offered a scholarship from Rice Business, it will be noted in your admit letter.

The first step following admission is to submit your enrollment deposit by the date specified in your letter of admission. The deposit reserves your seat in the class and will trigger the creation of your account access to ESTHER, Canvas, student ID, and your @rice.edu email.

Your deposit is non-refundable and will be applied toward the cost of your first semester’s tuition and fees.

After submitting your enrollment deposit, you will receive log-in credentials for your ESTHER account*. From there, you will be able to view your semester bill (charges will be posted by July), make payments, set-up semester payment plans, and view financial aid information. 

The JGSB Student Financial Services office will communicate with you using your Rice University email address, so it is important that you complete the steps provided to access your system accounts and check them periodically. We encourage you to set up your account so that it forwards your Rice emails to a personal account you check often. 

*Please note that log-in credentials will begin to be assigned in April.

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is the first step when applying for Federal student loans.

Note that this funding resource is limited to domestic students only (US Citizens and Permanent Residents – green card holders).

When completing the 2023-2024 FAFSA you will be asked to use your 2021 tax information. The Data Retrieval Tool (DRT) allows you to download your tax information directly into your FAFSA application.

Your FASFA should be submitted before August 1st (preferably) to allow us sufficient time to process your awards and for you to complete the necessary loan application steps to meet the Fall Payment Arrangement Deadline.

You are setting out on what is likely to be one of your greatest investments of time, energy, and financial resources. Therefore, it is important to fully understand all of the potential funding resources available (scholarships, payment plans, corporate sponsorships, student loans) and to reach out to the Student Financial Services Office with any questions you may have. 

The best place to start is on the Financing Your Degree section of our website. 

Cost and Funding Calculators are available for each MBA program to assist you in planning/budgeting for your upcoming year. Once you've downloaded the document in Excel, you'll find tabs with the following information:

1. Important Dates and Helpful Links
2. Cost of Attendance Budgets
3. Loan Comparison Sheet
4. Funding Calculator

The Cost & Funding Calculator will help you determine which type of loans to apply for and help you calculate how much to request.

Once you have determined which type of loan you're interested in, use the application steps to ensure you complete all of the requirements.

Rice University begins processing FAFSA applications beginning June 1 for the 2023-2024 academic year. 

At that point, our office will notify you via your Rice email address once we have received your FAFSA and will provide you with next steps.

In addition to completing the FAFSA, there are additional steps you'll need to take for each type of loan that you apply for. The loan application steps are provided to make this process simple. 

The University Cashier’s Office begins billing in early July for Fall and early January for Spring. The Payment Deadlines are:

• Fall: September 10, 2023
• Spring: February 10, 2024

You can access your student account in ESTHER at any time to review charges, check your balance, make payments, etc. Additional information can be found here. 

Payment Plan
The University Cashier’s Office offers a Semester Payment Plan that allows you to pay the semester balance in 4 installments. This will be available to set-up through your ESTHER account in July for the Fall semester and in December for the Spring semester. There is a $75 charge each semester to enroll in the payment plan. 

Third Party Sponsorship is a billing method in which an employer, corporation, or government can be invoiced directly. Additional information about setting this up can be found on the Cashier's website. 

Tuition Reimbursement is an arrangement with your employer that typically involves the student covering their costs either through student loans or out of pocket and then being reimbursed at the end of the semester once grades have been posted. Employers typically ask for a tuition breakdown per class. Because tuition is a flat-rate charge (no matter how many credits you take) you will not find per-class charges in your ESTHER account. Simply reach out to Matt Wakeman, the Director of Student Financial Services, and he can provide documentation for your employer. 

Loan funds and scholarships will be released to the University Cashier’s Office around August 16th for Fall and around January 3rd for Spring.

If you chose to borrow an amount that is greater than your tuition bill (for living expenses, etc.), the overage will be refunded to you in approximately 3 business days following disbursement. 

You are encouraged to add your bank account information to ESTHER so that refunds can be processed via direct deposit. Otherwise a check will be mailed to you and may take at least 2 weeks to receive. 

1. Log-in to ESTHER
2. Select Student Services and Account Information link
3. Under Account Summary - Pay My Bill - Bill Payment Suite, select Payment Suite
4. Select Electronic Refunds located on the My Profile setup menu on the right side of the screen

Individuals with at least 90 days of aggregate service after September 10, 2001, or individuals discharged with a service-connected disability after 30 continuous days on active duty, are eligible to participate in the Post 911 GI Bill. The percentage of eligibility ranges from 50% - 100%. You must also be on Active Duty or have received an honorable discharge to be eligible.

The Veterans Affairs Post-911 GI Bill Percentage of Eligibility Chart will assist you in determining your percentage of eligibility.

• The 100% eligibility cap for Private Schools for the 2023-2024 academic year is $27,120.05
• Pays up to 36 months of education benefits.
• Annual book stipend up to $1,000.
• Pays BAH at the E5 with dependents rate - input Rice University's zip code (77005) when utilizing the BAH Calculator.
• Please reference the US Department of Veterans Affairs: Post 911 GI Bill for further information.

The Yellow Ribbon Program allows institutions to enter into a voluntarily agreement with the VA to fund tuition and fee expenses that exceed the tuition and fee amounts payable under the Post 911 GI Bill cap. If you are Yellow Ribbon eligible, Rice Business will cover 50% of the remaining cost (after you have met your GI Bill cap) with a Yellow Ribbon scholarship which will matched dollar-for-dollar by the VA for a full 100%. 

In other words, students attending Rice Business who are Yellow Ribbon eligible will have the full cost of their program covered through a combination of their GI Bill benefits and the Yellow Ribbon scholarship program. 
 
To be eligible for the VA's Yellow Ribbon Program:

• You must be eligible at 100% for the Post-9/11 GI Bill.
• Please reference the US Department of Veterans Affairs: Yellow Ribbon website for further information.

Rice Business does not limit the number of veteran students who may be awarded Yellow Ribbon or the total dollar amount of the Yellow Ribbon scholarship. There are no additional steps required to apply. 

In order to certify your benefits, the following documentation must be submitted through the Rice Box (our secure online portal).

1. Rice University Veterans Affairs Information Form: Authorization to Certify Benefits
   • Please email the Rice University VA Certifying Official to request this form: Matt Wakeman (mw75@rice.edu)
2. Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty (DD-214):
   • If you have been discharged from active service, please submit a copy of your MEMBER-4 or SERVICE-2 form. The document must indicate Character of Service: Honorable. 
3. Certificate of Eligibility (COE): You may request your Certificate through the VA.gov site – the Post 9/11 GI Bill section will walk you through the application steps. Please be sure to indicate “Rice University” as the school for which you are applying.
4. Military Transcript(s): This is a listing of all military training received while in the Service. Please utilize the applicable link below to request your transcript:
   • Joint Services Transcript: Army, Coast Guard, Marines, and Navy
     • Please designate your transcript be sent electronically to "Rice University (William Marsh)."
   • Air University/Community College of the Air Force: Air Force
     • Please have your transcript mailed to you directly. Once received, please submit it for your University VA file.

Veteran students at Rice Business have their own dedicated VA School Certifying Official. Instead of reaching out to the Rice University Registrar's Office for assistance, you can speak directly to Matt Wakeman, Director of Student Financial Services, with all your military funding and financial services questions. Matt can be reached at 713-348-3886 or mw75@rice.edu.

As an International Student, you are required to demonstrate sufficient funding to cover the Cost of Attendance in order to obtain your student visa. We encourage you to review the information on the Office of International Students and Scholars site and reference the International Financial Declaration Form for MBA Students.

Please understand that the Cost of Attendance doesn't mean that's how much you will actually be charged by Rice University. Cost of Attendance estimates are provided to assist first-year students in preparing a budget for the academic year. Your own costs may vary depending on lifestyle preferences and personal situation. 

In addition to being part of the student visa process, the Cost of Attendance is also a figure that banks/lenders require you to provide to them when you apply for student loans. 

Cost of Attendance - any additional aid (including scholarships) = maximum loan amount you can apply for.

For those planning to wire funding from abroad, Rice University has partnered with Flywire to facilitate this process for as low a cost to you as possible. Please reference the University Cashier's Office for additional information on using Flywire. 

Please note that you will not be able to send excess funds to the University for personal use. Payments for off-campus housing, or other personal living expenses should be directed to your personal bank account, (not the University). The Cashier's Office is required to return excess funds to the bank account where the wire originated.

Additional information for students from India can be found here. 

The primary sources of funding for International Applicants are personal resources, a lending institution in the home country, or a private loan through a domestic bank with a US Citizen or US Permanent Resident cosigner. US law mandates that you demonstrate adequate funding to obtain your visa for enrollment. Further information is available through the Office of International Students and Scholars.

The following loan opportunities may not require a US citizen or permanent resident co-signer.

Banco de México-FIDERH is a federal trust managed by the Central Banco de México that offers affordable low-interest loans to Mexican students for graduate studies either in Mexico or abroad. The Jones Graduate School of Business (JGSB) participates in a collaboration agreement with FIDERH. If (1) a Full Time MBA applicant is awarded an admissions scholarship and (2) is approved for funding by FIDERH, the JGSB guarantees that the total admissions scholarship award will be a minimum of 25% of tuition*.
*Funding awarded as an admissions merit scholarship will be considered toward meeting the institution’s portion of the joint agreement.

CONACYT is a member of Mexico’s department of education and offers scholarship and stipend opportunities to Mexican nationals seeking to study abroad.

FUNED is a non-profit private organization which offers Mexican nationals low-interest loan funding. The Jones Graduate School of Business (JGSB) participates in a collaboration agreement with FUNED. If (1) a Full Time MBA applicant is awarded an admissions scholarship and (2) is approved for funding by FUNED, the JGSB guarantees that the total admissions scholarship award will be a minimum of 25% of tuition*.
*Funding awarded as an admissions merit scholarship will be considered toward meeting the institution’s portion of the joint agreement.

Global Student Loan Corporation is a third-party loan facilitator that assists in providing educational loans without a US citizen or permanent resident co-signer to citizens of India. The interest rate is approximately 13.0% based on HSBC’s Retail Lending Rate which is occasionally reset. There will be a one-time administration fee of 2.75% paid by the borrower. There will also be a site-use fee of approximately $75. Borrowers may have up to 15 years to repay.

GradRight is a third-party loan facilitator that allows students from India to compare and submit their profile to 30+ banks at once. These public/private sector banks and lenders will bid to finance your loans based on your profile. 

The Leo S. Rowe Pan American Fund grants interest-free educational loans to outstanding students, from Latin American and Caribbean OAS member countries, to help them finance their higher education studies in the United States. These loans are granted with the understanding that loan recipients commit to repaying the loan in full within a term of, at most, fifty-three months after completion of the studies or research program for which the loan is granted and to returning to their home countries within a year after completion of their studies in the US.

Prodigy Finance is a third-party lender specializing in loans for international, post-graduate students at competitive interest rates without requiring collateral or co-signers. At this time, Prodigy Finance will only provide loans to students in our Full-Time MBA program.

Most private lending institutions in the U.S. require international students to have a U.S. citizen or permanent resident cosigner (green card holder). 

There are two lenders who do not require co-signers: Prodigy Finance and MPOWER Financing.  

If you will be using private student loans or applying to third-party scholarship organizations, please thoroughly research the organization and choose the funding option that is right for you. Additional information about private student loans can be found here. Select "International" from the drop down menu and click on "View Loans". 

• American-Mideast Educational & Training Services Inc.

• Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund

• Ayn Rand Essay Scholarship

• College Board

• College Scholarships

• COMEXUS

• EduPass

• Fastweb.com

• FinAid.org

• Government Finance Officers Association

• Graduate School Scholarship Search

• International Education Financial Aid

• International Scholarships

• International Student Organization

• Latin America Network Information Center (LANIC)

• Latin American Scholarship Program of American Universities (LASPAU)

• Mensa Education & Research Foundation

• Mobility International USA (MIUSA)

• Organization of American States

• Organization of American States Scholarship

• Rotary International

• U.S. Department of State: Bureau of Educational & Cultural Affairs

Disclaimer: The above list of funding organizations is provided as a courtesy to assist you in your funding research; we do not promote the use of any particular entity. 

Will Rice University act as a co-signer on a student loan?
No. The institution does not act as a co-signer or guarantor of student loans. 

When do I start applying for private student loans?
Soon after you are admitted to the program and have submitted your enrollment deposit, you should begin the visa process with the Office of International Students. As part of that process, you will have to show that you have sufficient funding to cover the estimated cost of tuition, fees, and living expenses. 

In order to expedite this process, we recommend students begin applying for a private loan as soon as possible. 

What is the estimated Cost of Attendance (COA) budget?
The Estimated Cost of Attendance budget consists of direct costs (tuition & fees) and estimated allowances for indirect costs (room & board, transportation, etc.) for one academic year.

The COA does not mean that is how much you will be charged at Rice, but is meant to be used as a budgeting tool. It also represents the MAXIMUM amount of total aid you can receive each year (including scholarship, loans, etc.). 

How much should I borrow?
Financial Aid is for one academic year at a time (not for the full program). You should review the Estimated Cost of Attendance for assistance in determining how much to apply for. The COA represents the MAXIMUM amount of total aid you can apply for each year (COA - Annual Scholarship = Maximum Loan Request). 

Can I pay my tuition each semester with a wire transfer from my home country?
No, your bank will not be able to wire funds directly to Rice University. For students planning to wire funding from abroad, we have partnered with Flywire to facilitate this process at as low a cost to you as possible. Please reference the University Cashier's Office for additional information.

If you wire more funds than what is due on your student account, the overpayment will not be refunded. The Cashier's Office is required to return the overpayment to the originating bank through Flywire. 

What is the deadline for making billing or payment arrangements?
Fall: Billing begins the first week of July with a payment deadline of September 10th
Spring: Billing begins the first week of December with a payment deadline of February 10th

Where can I review charges, check my account balance, or make payments?
Once you have access to ESTHER, you can review your charges, see anticipated credits, make payments, etc. Here is additional information on where to go in ESTHER to access the Payment Suite

When will I receive my loan funding that I can use for living expenses?
Loan funds and scholarships are scheduled to be released to the University Cashier's Office around August 16th for the fall semester and around January 3rd for the spring semester. The actual date that loan funds are received may vary depending on the lender.

If you chose to borrow an amount that is greater than your tuition bill, a refund will be processed for you within a few business days after we've received the funds. 

When the Cashier's Office processes your refund, a check will either be sent to your "mailing address" in ESTHER or will be directly deposited in your local bank account. In order to receive your funding as soon as possible, we highly recommend students open a local bank account once they have moved to Houston and then add that information to ESTHER. For instructions, see next question. 

Once I have a local bank account, how do I add that information to ESTHER?
Students expecting a refund each semester are encouraged to add their bank account information to ESTHER. Otherwise a check will be mailed to you and may take up to two weeks to receive. 

1. Log-in to ESTHER

2. Select Student Services and Account Information link

3. Under Account Summary - Pay My Bill - Bill Payment Suite, select Payment Suite

4. Select Electronic Refunds located on the My Profile setup menu on the right side of the screen