Financial Answers
Master of Social Work
Expenses
Graduate Program Tuition is $695 per quarter hour.
Health Insurance - All Walla Walla University students must have health insurance while they are enrolled at WWU. Students are responsible for obtaining and maintaining their health insurance. If a student's health insurance lapses while they are a student at WWU, they are responsible for obtaining replacement coverage. If students require assistance in finding a health insurance plan to meet their needs, please go to und-ich.com/insurance.
Excess Student Accident Insurance - Walla Walla University covers all registered undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral students with excess accident insurance with a $5,000 limit. Students injured while on a WWU campus, in campus-owned housing, or participating in off-campus University-sponsored activities (excluding intercollegiate athletic accidents) may complete a Non-Work-Related Accident/Incident Report form and the A-G Excess Student Accident Claim Form and provide them to Risk & Safety Management for authorization prior to filing a claim and submitting to A-G Administrators.
Books - Full-time students should budget about $280 to $550 per quarter for textbooks.
Payment Plans
You may choose to make one payment at the beginning of the quarter or three equal payments during the quarter. WWU accepts cash, checks and Discover, MasterCard and Visa credit cards for payment of accounts. These payments may be made in person, by telephone, by mail or online.
An Introduction to Financial Aid
By applying for financial aid, you may qualify for a variety of financial awards to help you meet you graduate program expenses.
Upon receiving your aid forms, Student Financial Services (SFS) determines your eligibility for need-based aid by using the federal government’s standard analysis of need (an objective calculation that indicates how much you can afford to pay for school). Your eligibility for non-need-based scholarships is evaluated by the School of Social Work and Sociology.
Note: If you register for fewer than 12 hours per quarter, your aid will be prorated.
Grants are need-based awards you don’t have to repay.
WWU MSW Need Grant—$2,600 awarded to students who show need through the financial aid application process; $650 is disbursed each quarter of full-time enrollment (fall, winter, spring and summer).
Scholarships are not awarded on the basis of need, and you never have to pay them back.
WWU MSW Departmental Scholarship—$1,360 awarded to each student who holds a bachelor’s degree from WWU has a cumulative GPA of at least 3.00; one fourth is disbursed each quarter of full-time enrollment your first year in the program.
WWU MSW Merit Scholarship—awarded for an outstanding undergraduate GPA; one fourth is disbursed each quarter of full-time enrollment your first year in the program.
| Undergraduate GPA | Award |
|---|---|
| 3.90 - 4.00 | $1,000 ($250 per quarter) |
| 3.80 - 3.89 | $750 ($187 per quarter) |
| 3.70 - 3.79 | $600 ($150 per quarter) |
| 3.50 - 3.69 | $500 ($125 per quarter) |
WORK-STUDY PROGRAM FUNDING is provided by the government to reimburse employers for a portion of the student employee’s wages. Both the student and the job must meet the program’s eligibility requirements.
UNSUBSIDIZED FEDERAL DIRECT LOANS—awarded to those who qualify through the financial aid application process. If you qualify, you may borrow a total of $20,500 over every three-quarter period of enrollment.
The following conditions apply the Unsubsidized Federal Direct Loan:
- The annual percentage rate is fixed at 4.30%.
- You are responsible for interest on the unsubsidized loan. While you are in school you may either make payments on the interest or have it added to the principal.
- Repayment of the principal need not begin until six months after you cease to be enrolled at least half-time.
- The government charges fees of 1.059%.
GRADUATE PLUS LOANS allow you to borrow up to 100% of your total cost of education (minus other financial aid awarded). Interest accrues while you’re in school, but payments may be deferred upon request (as long as you are enrolled at least half-time). The interest rate is fixed at 5.30%. The processing fee is 4.236%. (Note: Negative information reported to a credit bureau may disqualify a borrower.)
PRIVATE LOANS. Several banks offer education loans. Each lender determines the terms of the loan and may require the borrower to have a co-signer. For more information, email student.loans@und-ich.com.
Find out what other funding you may be eligible to receive. Searchable databases at finaid.org cover more than 180,000 private-sector fellowships, grants, scholarships and loans.
In order to receive the maximum financial award, fill out all required paperwork completely, sign it where required, and mail it promptly. Use this checklist to track your progress:
- Apply for government aid by submitting the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), available after October 1 at studentaid.gov (school code: 003799). To sign your FAFSA electronically, get an FSA ID.
- Apply for institutional aid by submitting your WWU Graduate Financial Aid Application, available at sfs.und-ich.com/application.
- If you are eligible to apply for a Federal Direct Loan, you will be sent the application instructions (StudentAid.gov).
- After you have submitted all the required documents, SFS sends you a Financial Aid Award Portfolio detailing the amounts and types of aid awards you qualify to receive.
For more information, contact Cari Butler at cari.butler@und-ich.com
Note: Your financial award is valid only for the upcoming school year and is nontransferable. It is your responsibility to inform SFS of charges in your financial circumstances or in information submitted. Graduate financial aid is contingent upon acceptance into the graduate program.