4 Ways to Pay for Graduate School

By Corey Buhay | Published on March 9, 2026

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The decision to apply for graduate school is a big one — professionally, personally, and financially.

The money you use to pay for graduate school is likely to come from a variety of sources including student loans, scholarships and grants, work-study, your own savings, and gifts from people who support your goals. Here’s how to pay for grad school using all these methods and more.

Paying for Grad School With Your Personal Savings

Generally, grad students fund part of their continuing education and associated living expenses with at least some personal savings. Maybe you spent a few years in the workforce after finishing your bachelor’s degree and built up a grad school fund in your savings account. Or maybe you still have some leftover funds earmarked for your education. Those can all go toward grad school. If you don’t have enough yet, consider these other savings strategies.

Opening a 529 Plan

If you are just starting to think about saving for grad school, you might also want to look into opening a 529 plan. When you contribute to a 529 plan, any earnings deposited are tax-deferred. That means that, if you withdraw funds for qualified educational expenses later, it won’t count toward your income. You might have had an account for your undergrad education, you can also use any leftover funds in there towards a graduate degree.

Refinance Your Undergraduate Student Loans

You can also save money for grad school by reworking your budget, which will allow you to put away money more aggressively. One of the best ways to free up money in your monthly budget is by refinancing your undergraduate student loans ¹.

Refinancing is a tool that lets you exchange your current student loan debt for a brand-new loan, often with a new term and new interest rate. If your financial situation has improved since you first took out your undergraduate loans, you might even qualify for a lower interest rate². A low rate, along with an extended loan term, could help you dramatically lower your monthly payment, helping you save even more for grad school.

Ask Your Employer About Assistance Programs

Some employers will help fund your graduate studies if you plan to continue working for them either during or after your program. If you are still employed and are considering grad school part-time or later in the future, check to see if your employer will match your 529 contributions. This can be a great perk if you have grad school in mind, but make sure to confirm the limit on your match. Also check if there are any other requirements.

Other employers offer matched student loan payments or employer-sponsored student refinancing. You can use both these tools to pay down your undergraduate student loans before you head off to grad school. If grad school is still a ways off, ask your HR department if they have any programs in place.

If grad school looms on a nearer horizon, consider asking about direct funding programs. Some employers offer tuition reimbursement or tuition assistance for employees that return to the fold after advanced training.

Apply for Graduate School Scholarships, Grants, Fellowships, and Assistantships

Many graduate programs also have specialty loans, scholarships, grants and fellowships available specifically for specific schools or degree programs.

Search for Graduate Scholarships and Grants

Scholarships and grants are great ways to finance an education because, unlike with loans, you will not need to repay the money you receive. There are both need-based and merit-based scholarships and grants.

Research Graduate Fellowships

A fellowship is a short-term opportunity to work on a research team or study in your specific field. Fellowships are awarded generally based on academic standing, but not always. These experiences can be a great resume-building tool, and they often come with at least a small stipend. That makes them a valuable income source while in grad school.

The types of fellowships available:

• Institutional Fellowships – These are fellowships offered by the school you plan to attend or are attending, and are only for students.
• Federally Funded Portable Fellowships – Fellowships that are funded by federal agencies if you’re attending a graduate program in an area that directly benefits an agency. These are not tied to a specific school and instead follow the student.
• Portable Fellowships from Independent Organizations – Fellowships not funded by a federal agency and do not require you to go to a specific school.

Apply to Graduate Assistantships

Assistantships are similar to a work-study program, where graduate students are given financial support for working as a teaching assistant and/or doing research at the institution where they are studying. These are generally specific to the institution the student attends; graduate students should reach out to their financial aid office to learn more about the programs offered at their school.

Apply for Federal Student Loans

Often scholarships and savings are not enough to cover the cost of graduate school, and students will take out a loan to cover the missing piece. Make sure you have exhausted all scholarships, grants, assistantships, and other income streams before turning to a federal loan.

Just like undergrad, grad students seeking a federal student loan will need to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, better known as FAFSA. You will need to file a new form every year you are in your graduate program, to note any changes in your financial situation.

No matter your degree, you will likely be eligible to borrow with federal loans including unsubsidized Stafford Loans and Graduate PLUS Loans. A benefit that comes with federal loans is the ability to use one of the government’s income-based repayment programs. Graduates who enter certain fields or work for certain employers may also qualify for certain federal loan forgiveness programs.

Rates on federal loans are set by the government and are adjusted each year. Every borrower receives the same rate no matter their credit profile and these loans do not ever require a cosigner.

Types of Federal Loans Available to Graduate Students

There are a couple of different loan types available to graduate students based on information included in your FAFSA:

• Direct Unsubsidized Loans – You do not need to demonstrate financial need to apply for a Direct Unsubsidized Loan. Your school will determine how much you can borrow based on the cost of attendance, factoring in any other financial aid you receive. Grad students will need to be enrolled at least part-time to receive a loan, and there is a limit to how much you can borrow in unsubsidized loans over the course of your education.
• Direct PLUS Loan – Direct PLUS Loans are based on the information provided in your FAFSA. Each school will decide on the amount of the loan based on other financial aid provided. While enrolled in school at least part-time, students will not need to make interest payments on the loan and will have a six–month grace period after finishing or leaving school. If you have adverse credit you might need an “endorser,” a type of cosigner, to sign the loan as well.

Borrow Private Loans For Grad School

If you have maxed out your federal financial aid and need additional student loans to cover your costs, you might consider private loans. For graduate students who know they have high earning prospects and have an excellent credit profile, a private loan³ could offer more competitive rates than federal loans.

Unlike federal loans, private loan rates vary and may be fixed or variable. The rates offered are determined by your credit profile. Usually, the higher your credit score, the better your offered loan rates will be. Borrowers with good credit to excellent credit tend to qualify for the best rates.

How to Choose a Private Student Loan Lender

Some schools might provide a list of recommended private lenders. If you choose to go this route, remember to weigh the various pros and cons of each lender, including:

• The interest rate you receive
• Whether the interest rate is variable or fixed
• Origination fees for taking out the loan
• Any fees that come with carrying the loan
• Terms in the fine print

Also remember that, unless you refinance your loans later, you’ll be stuck with this lender for years to come. It’s worth doing some research on your own to make sure your ultimate choice is one you’re happy with. Earnest, for example, never charges any fees or prepayment penalties, and lets borrowers choose from a range of flexible repayment options. Want to see what kind of rate you could qualify for? Head to our graduate student loan page to learn more, check your rate, and see how much you could save.

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Corey Buhay

Corey Buhay is a writer and editor based in Boulder, Colorado. She’s passionate about literature, the outdoors, and doing her taxes by hand. She has been writing about student loans and personal finance for Earnest since 2019. You’ll find her work in Outside Magazine, Backpacker Magazine, Smithsonian, and The Denver Post.