Chapter 08. Graduate and Professional Scholarship Program
Regulation .01 Purpose.LinkCopy Citation
The purpose of the Graduate and Professional Scholarship Program is to provide financial assistance to full-time and part-time graduate/professional students in the fields of medicine, dentistry, law, pharmacy, nursing, social work, and veterinary medicine to individuals who have demonstrated financial need.
Regulation .02 Student and Institutional Eligibility.LinkCopy Citation
A.
To be eligible for the Graduate and Professional Scholarship Program an individual shall:
(1)
Be a Maryland resident;
(2)
Demonstrate financial need; and
(3)
Be enrolled as a degree-seeking student, either part-time or full-time, and attend one of the schools in §B of this regulation.
B.
An applicant shall be enrolled in one of the following programs:
(1)
University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) Schools of Medicine, Dentistry, Law, Pharmacy, or Social Work;
(2)
University of Baltimore School of Law;
(3)
The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine;
(4)
The Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine;
(5)
Any institution in the State offering a master’s degree in nursing or social work; or
(6)
Any institution in the State offering a first professional degree in pharmacy.
Regulation .03 Institutional Allocations.LinkCopy Citation
A.
The Office of Student Financial Assistance (OSFA) shall allocate to each eligible institution a share of the total funds provided for the program in proportion to its share of Maryland graduate and professional students who are enrolled in the eligible programs.
B.
The allocation shall be based on the average of the enrollments for the preceding 2 years. An institution that becomes eligible to participate in the scholarship program due to a recent addition of an eligible graduate or professional program at their institution shall have its enrollments calculated using an estimated fall enrollment projection for that year. After 2 years of enrollments, the institution’s allocation shall be calculated based on the average of the enrollments for the preceding 2 years.
C.
OSFA shall notify institutions of the amount of their allocation and shall distribute funds to each institution no later than August 30.
D.
In the event the institution fails to submit all required information under Regulation .06 of this chapter, funding allocated to the institution within that year will be subject to one of the following:
(1)
Reduction of subsequent years funding according to the preceding years allocated amount; or
(2)
A 1-year lapse of funding in the subsequent year.
Regulation .04 Student Awards.LinkCopy Citation
A.
The institutional financial aid office will identify students who are eligible for an award.
B.
The minimum award is $1,000 per academic year and the maximum award is $5,000 per academic year.
C.
A student may not receive an award for longer than eight semesters regardless of enrollment status.
D.
Awards shall be based on the financial need of the student. Students are required to file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Each institution may determine an appropriate methodology for determining financial need; however, this methodology shall include consideration of the information provided on the FAFSA.
E.
The award may be used toward the costs of tuition and mandatory fees, room and board, and other educational expenses.
Regulation .05 Renewal Conditions.LinkCopy Citation
To maintain eligibility for a Graduate and Professional Scholarship, the recipient must continue to demonstrate financial need for each year that the award is sought and meet all other eligibility criteria in Regulation .02 of this chapter.
Regulation .06 Audit.LinkCopy Citation
A.
Each participating institution must submit to the Office of Student Financial Assistance by August 15 each year the following information:
(1)
The amount of funds and number of recipients awarded a Graduate and Professional Scholarship;
(2)
The allocation of awards and funds by each degree program;
(3)
The total number of eligible students with financial need; and
(4)
The methodology used to determine the financial need of the students receiving awards under the Program.
B.
All financial books, records, and documents pertaining to this program shall, at all reasonable times, be opened to inspection, review, and audit by the Office of Student Financial Assistance, the State Auditor, or their authorized representatives. The institution shall retain such financial books, records, and documents for 5 years after the close of a fiscal year.
C.
Institutions shall include this program in any independent audit conducted for the institution on financial aid programs.
Chapter annotations
Authority: Education Article, §§11-105(u), 18-204(c), and 18-2601, Annotated Code of Maryland
History: Effective date: July 18, 2016 (43:14 Md R. 780)