Undergraduate Cost and Financial Aid

Undergraduate students attending the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University should be aware of three Types of Aid that can be used to fund their education:

1. Gift Aid
2. Self-Help Aid

Self-Help Aid generally consists of Loans and/or Student Employment. While select offices within the Shepherd School offer student employment opportunities, most of this aid is available through other on-campus student employment (including Federal Work-Study) as well as loans distributed by Rice's Office of Financial Aid. 

Gift Aid can come to students in the form of Grants, The Rice Investment, and/or Merit Scholarships.

Merit Scholarships

The Shepherd School of Music awards merit scholarships to music majors in recognition of exceptional musical accomplishment and potential. 

*Please see below for eligibility requirements.

Domestic Applicants

Read and complete the steps below for merit scholarship consideration:

All domestic applicants who which to be considered for merit scholarship from the Shepherd School of Music are required to complete all neccessary steps required in order to be considered for financial aid from Rice University. These requirements are listed below:

1. Complete the Shepherd School Financial Assistance Application. A fillable Google form (to be provided during your completion of the preliminary submission) that is required if you wish to be considered for SSM merit scholarship or Rice University financial aid (where applicable). Your answers from the form will be emailed to you. Please save the answers as a .pdf and then upload to your preliminary submission.
2. Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) by February 1. Use 003604 for the school code.
3. Complete the CSS PROFILE form by February 1. Use 6609 for the CSS Profile Code.
4. Submit income tax and other required materials through the College Board's IDOC by February 1.

International Applicants

Read and complete the steps below for merit scholarship consideration:

Rice considers international applicants on a need-aware basis and offers need-based financial aid to a limited number of international first-year applicants. Understanding that need-based funding is limited for international applicants, the Shepherd School of Music will not require the CSS Profile to be completed by international applicants in order to be considered for merit scholarship from the Shepherd School. Instead, you must complete the following steps.

1. Complete the Shepherd School Financial Assistance Application. A fillable Google form (to be provided during your completion of the preliminary submission) that is required if you wish to be considered for SSM merit scholarship. Your answers from the form will be emailed to you. Please save the answers as a .pdf and then upload to your preliminary submission.
2. Complete the International Student Financial Statement. The ISFS can be found on the Rice Admission Student Portal once the application is submitted. Applicants will be required to complete the following:
   1. Indicate if they will or will not be requesting financial aid.
   2. Submit all bank statements or affidavits supporting total funds available to go towards the total cost of attendance. Tax documents and proof of income are not accepted as supporting documentation.
   3. Submit all award letters or documentation supporting any scholarship funds available to go towards the total cost of attendance.
   4. Provide an explanation of how the applicant plans to cover the cost of attendance if the total sum of available funds is below $101,634.

All supporting financial documentation must be in English and converted to U.S. dollars.