Stay informed about COVID-19 and the latest health and safety guidance for higher education.

Stay informed about COVID-19 and the latest health and safety guidance for higher education.

Financial Aid

Below are financial aid programs that are reserved only for students who choose to Go Higher! at a community college, state university or UMass campus. For a full list of grants, scholarships, tuition waivers and loans, visit the Office of Student Financial Assistance website.


Grants

Cash Grant
The Cash Grant Program is a complementary program to the Need-Based Tuition Waiver Program. It helps needy students by awarding grant money to cover additional charges such as mandatory fees and non-state-supported tuition. Since its inception, the Cash Grant has been used in campus-based financial aid packaging strategies to support those individuals who would otherwise be denied the opportunity for higher education. More info >

Scholarships

Agnes M. Lindsay Scholarship
The Agnes M. Lindsay Scholarship provides scholarships for students with demonstrated financial need who are from rural areas of Massachusetts and attend public institutions of higher education within the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. More info >

John and Abigail Adams Scholarship
The John and Abigail Adams Scholarship is a merit-based program that provides a tuition waiver for up to eight semesters of undergraduate education at a Massachusetts state college or university. For this scholarship, merit is based on student scores on the 10th grade Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) test. More info >

Paul Tsongas Scholarship
The Paul Tsongas Scholarship is a merit-based program that rewards Massachusetts students with a grade point average (G.P.A.) of 3.75 and highly competitive Scholastic Aptitude Test (S.A.T.) scores (or the American College Testing [A.C.T.] equivalent). Eligible students receive a waiver of tuition and mandatory fees at a Massachusetts state university. More info >

Shorelight Global Scholarship Program
Massachusetts community college students are invited to apply for the Shorelight Global Scholarship created by Shorelight Education, a Massachusetts based funder and manager of global education partnerships. Scholarship recipients will be provided with a full two-year scholarship, inclusive of tuition, housing, and airfare, to complete a bachelor's degree at the undergraduate School of Business and Entrepreneurship at Bath Spa University in Bath, England. More info >

Tuition Waivers

Categorical Tuition Waiver
The Categorical Tuition Waiver is a component of the Single Tuition Waiver Program and has the same purpose of maintaining access to the Commonwealth's public colleges and universities. The Categorical Tuition Waiver is designed to provide financial support to individuals who might not have the opportunity to achieve higher education without such assistance. More info >

Need-based Tuition Waiver
The Need Based Tuition Waiver Program was created in 1981to offset increases in tuition. A principle of the program is the belief that the benefits of higher education must be available to all citizens. An underlying goal of the program is that future public sector tuition increases would be matched with an increase in the maximum award for the financially neediest students. Over the years, tuition waivers have been utilized as supplemental scholarships in campus-based financial aid packaging strategies. More info >

Commonwealth September 11, 2001 Tragedy Tuition Waiver
The Commonwealth September 11, 2001 Tragedy Tuition Waiver recognizes the challenge that children or spouses of victims of the national tragedy may face in their attempt to pay for a college education. The program provides a 100% tuition waiver to Massachusetts children and widowed spouses who are directly affected by the September 11 events for any state-supported course or program offered by a Massachusetts public college or university. More info >

Stanley Z. Koplik Certificate of Mastery Tuition Waiver Program
The Stanley Z. Koplik Certificate of Mastery Tuition Waiver awards non-need-based state-supported undergraduate tuition waivers. The purposes of the Certificate of Mastery are to:

More info >

UMass Exchange Tuition Waiver Program
The University of Massachusetts Exchange Tuition Waiver Program encourages the University to enter into cooperative learning contracts with other institutions, allowing students to receive comparable waivers for cross-institution registration. Under such an agreement, University of Massachusetts students attend exchange institutions without tuition charge and exchange students attend the University without tuition charge, or with payment at in-state rates to the home institution. These exchange programs are limited and involve only institutions with which the University has signed a cooperative learning contract and where the University feels the experience of the exchange program significantly enhances the learning experience of the students who participate. More info >

Valedictorian Program Tuition Waiver
The Valedictorian Program Tuition Waiver is designed to attract and enroll Massachusetts high school students who have been designated as valedictorians. The program allows high school valedictorians to receive tuition waivers at any public higher education institution in Massachusetts. Since it opened, the program has predominantly supported the University of Massachusetts University Scholars Program. More info >

Washington Center Program Tuition Waiver Program
The Washington Center for Internships and Academic Seminar provides experiential education opportunities to students of the Massachusetts public college and university system. The program uses the resources of the nation's capital to provide high-quality learning experiences to enhance student's academic, civic and professional development. The purpose of the Washington Center is to promote future leadership for the public, private and non-profit sectors of society. Internship placements include positions in government offices, communication organizations, law firms, trade and professional associations, human right groups and a variety of companies and other organizations. Internships are coupled with required academic courses. More info >

Did you Know?
screenshot from the CDEP video