Undergraduate Financial Aid

Summer Financial Aid

If you are taking Brown Undergraduate Summer Session courses (including Brown Global Summer Programs) you may qualify for a Brown “Summer Grant”. Please review the information below as some of it may have changed for the 2025 Summer Session.

Eligible students will be notified of their Summer Grant eligibility by email from the Office of Financial Aid in the spring.

For tuition costs for Summer Session, please see the information on the Student Financial Services website.  Please be aware that the tuition charge for Summer Session changes each year.

 

Summer Session Grant

If eligible, the Summer Grants will be offered automatically after registering, and prior to billing (if all financial aid requirements have been received).  If an aid application is complete for the upcoming year, the student should see the Summer Grant applied to their student account.

If you were on a LOA during the academic year, you may still be eligible for grant funding, however, you will need to contact the Office of Financial Aid for further information.

If you are graduating in May, the summer grant will not be available to you as you will have finished your undergraduate studies.

Students who withdraw from Summer Session will not be allowed to retain any refund created by, or associated with Summer Session aid.

Summer Session Housing and Meals

Off-campus living expenses, such as meals and housing, are not included in your Summer Grant funding.  Therefore, you should plan additional resources to cover these expenses. 

Students looking for information about housing during summer break or Summer Session should review the Residential Life website.  Dining Services will provide communication to all students about meal plan options for the summer, including a list of dining locations that will be open during the summer. 

Residential Life and Dining Services will provide information about housing and meals by the end of May.  Students requiring any housing or meals during the summer should complete the Summer Break Housing form that should be available on the Residential Life website in May. 

 Students enrolled in Summer Session who were notified of their eligibility for Summer Grant by the Office of Financial Aid , may be eligible for meals and/or housing assistance if charged by Brown for the Summer Session time-period only.  These students should refer to the email they received from the Office of Financial Aid for specific details of their eligibility.  Note that you cannot receive any aid for intersession (the times between the end of one term and the start of the next).

If a student fully withdraws at any time during the Summer Session, any support provided for meals or housing will be totally eliminated and those charges will be the responsibility of the student.

Summer Break Housing - Not Enrolled in Summer Session

The Office of Financial Aid cannot provide any aid in the summer to students who are not enrolled in summer classes, nor to cover extended stay and/or early arrival charges.

Students not enrolled in the Summer Session will have the opportunity to request emergency housing and meals through EGAP, however, support is not guaranteed.  If you feel that emergency support may be needed, it is recommended that you should schedule a financial advising meeting to discuss summer housing and meal support before May 1st.  Students will not be approved for this support without first meeting with a member of the Financial Advising team.  To schedule a meeting click here.   

Summer Need Calculation

Brown determines a summer family contribution which is consistent with the previous aid year’s family contribution.  Support will be provided to those aided Brown University students enrolled in the Undergraduate Summer Session and will be applied only to direct charges posted by Brown including tuition, on-campus Summer Session housing, on-campus Summer Session meal plan, and a portion* of the Global Housing, Meal & Activity fee charged as part of a Brown Global Summer Program.  Only charges for the Summer Session enrollment period may be covered; no extended stay, early arrival, or meal charges before or after the official Summer Session period will be covered.  No external expenses will be covered.  

The Office of Financial Aid calculates the summer family contribution by dividing the total of the full year Total Family Contribution (excluding any Campus Employment or Federal Work Study) by eight.  This represents a per class contribution a family has during non-academic year enrollment.  This figure will be multiplied by the number of classes the student is enrolled in and charged for during the Summer Session.  Most Brown direct charges remaining above this summer family contribution will be covered by Summer Grant.  Please note that Summer and Winter Session aid determination is significantly different from Brown’s academic year determination. This support is being offered through funding from the Division of Pre-College and Undergraduate Programs.

Loan Eligibility for Summer Session Expenses

Loans must be requested separately. We do not automatically offer loans, as Summer Session borrowing may impact a student's loan eligibility during the upcoming academic year.  In order to be eligible for loans in the Summer, you must be enrolled in 2 summer classes.

A Financial Aid Counselor can provide students with their loan eligibility prior to registering for Summer Session courses; however, summer loans cannot be processed until July 1st.

Note that if you have remaining loan eligibility available for the current academic year, you may want to consider borrowing loans in the spring so you have the necessary funds needed to cover your summer expenses.  Please schedule an appointment to speak with a Financial Aid Counselor, to discuss your loan options.

Book/Course Material Support (BCMS) Program

Students eligible to participate in the Book/Course Material Support (BCMS) Program will automatically receive support to cover the costs of books/course materials for Summer Session courses. The process to order your books is the same as it was in the academic year.

Students Completing Degree Requirements/Graduating in May

Summer Grants are only available for continuing undergraduate students who received Brown University Scholarship during the academic year. Students graduating in May will have finished their undergraduate studies and, therefore, are not eligible for a Summer Grant.

Students that need one or two summer session classes to complete their degree requirements, may, on exception, be allowed to take Summer Session classes to complete their degree.  If their enrollment plan is approved by the College, these students may be eligible for a Summer Grant.  Students considering this option should request approval by the College and the Office of Financial Aid prior to enrolling.

Financial Aid for Expenses Associated with Brown Global Summer Programs

Although students can use their Summer Grant eligibility toward one of the Brown Global Summer Programs, they will still have additional expenses associated with these programs (program fee, flights, meals, and other miscellaneous expenses) that should be taken into consideration before committing to the program. Students should meet with a financial aid counselor to go over funding and expenses.

*Brown Global Summer Program support will be provided to students enrolled in this program based on a maximum equivalent to the cost of one class, Summer Session meals, and Summer Session housing.  Please refer to the email you received from the Office of Financial Aid which should provide your actual Summer Grant eligibility. Any charges and other expenses above that maximum would need to be covered by the student.  No loans would be available for these students as they would only be enrolled in one class which is considered less-than half-time.