Undergraduate Cost and Financial Aid

Undergraduate students attending 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
3. Summer Aid*

*Since the classes within the Shepherd School of Music are not in session over the summer, music students can expect to fund their education through either Gift Aid or 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. Students who wish to be considered for a merit scholarship are expected to apply for need-based assistance and complete the Shepherd School Financial Assistance Application. Rice will award need-based funds through the Office of Financial Aid if eligible.

Applicants must complete all four steps for consideration.

1. Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)* by February 1. Use 003604 for the school code.
2. Complete the CSS PROFILE form by February 1. Use 6609 for the CSS Profile Code.
3. Submit income tax and other required materials through the College Board's IDOC* by February 1.
4. The Shepherd School Financial Assistance Application is a fillable Google form 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.

*FAFSA & IDOC are only available for domestic students. International applicants, please review the next section below. 

International Applicants

Rice considers international applicants on a need-aware basis and offers need-based financial aid to a limited number of international first-year applicants. This means when the Admission Committee evaluates international applications, the amount of financial aid a family might need is taken into consideration. Students who wish to be considered for financial aid must indicate their intention to apply for financial aid on the admission application. International students admitted without a request for financial aid cannot apply for financial aid in subsequent years. For more information and information on how to submit income tax documents, please visit the Regular Decision section on the Office of Financial Aid's International Students page.