US Federal Loans
Applying for a Title IV Direct Loan
Heriot-Watt University is an approved Title IV institution for the purpose of administering the U.S. Department of Education's federal student loan program, which is the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) Program . The loans are provided by the US Government to eligible students on eligible programmes of study.
Heriot-Watt University is permitted to provide Direct Loans for the following:
- Bachelors degree programs
- Masters degree and doctoral programs
Please note that some of our courses are not eligible for Federal Student Aid. We will advise you if this is the case when we assess your FAFSA.
The following is a list of the types of courses that are not eligible for Federal Student Aid:
- Certificate and diploma programs
- Distance learning courses
- Low Residency courses
Please note that students applying for Federal Student Aid and who intend to complete a Study Abroad period or their chosen program includes a mandatory work placement or professional placement while at Heriot-Watt University must check with the Student Funding Officers prior to accepting a place as this may affect your eligibility for federal funding.
Programs that do not qualify for Federal Student Aid may still qualify for Private Student Loans.
Cost of attendance at Heriot-Watt University
Each academic year, the Global Student Office establishes standard student budgets that use cost of attendance (COA) estimates for awarding financial aid funds.
The cost of attendance (COA) consists of two basic components:
- Tuition fees
- Maintenance costs - accommodation, utilities, food, travel and miscellaneous personal expenses
While costs may vary depending on where students live in Edinburgh we expect students' cost of attendance to be roughly in line with our estimates and the university is required to issue a standard cost of attendance spreadsheet to all students on the same programme of study. Requests for variation to the standard cost of attendance spreadsheet will be considered only exceptionally on a case by case basis by the Student Funding Officer, up to four weeks prior to the end of the loan period.
Each academic year the university uses a theoretical exchange rate to calculate the cost of attendance. For academic year 2022/23 the theoretical exchange rate of 1.4 was used. The actual exchange rate used when processing disbursements will be dependent on the market rate on the day the funds are processed.
Costs relating to spouses or dependents will not be considered apart from the cost of formal childcare for dependents during class time, study time and commuting time e.g. nursery/child-minder/after school club costs.
The most commonly used Undergraduate and Postgraduate Cost of Attendance budgets for 2022/23 are below. Some students will require slightly different Cost of Attendance calculations based on type and length of programme. For further information please contact us at usastudentaid@hw.ac.uk.
Please note that you are not able to borrow more than your total estimated costs of attendance (COA).
Undergraduate courses typically have a 36-week academic year.
| Items | Weekly Costs | Weeks | Total Costs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Room (inc. Utilities) | £245 | 36 | £8,820 |
| Food | £70 | 36 | £2,520 |
| Books | £15 | 36 | £540 |
| Travel | £17 | 36 | £612 |
| Personal | £60 | 36 | £2,160 |
| Sub Total | £14,652 | ||
| Flights (2 round trips) | £2,000 | ||
| Total (excludes tuition fees*) | £16,652 |
*Tuition Fees can be found in the fees and funding tab of your chosen programme