There is no financial aid deadline for entering 1Ls and all information is strictly confidential.
There are four types of financial aid for which you may qualify: outright grants, need-based grants, competing grants, and loans.
Admitted students are automatically considered for merit-based scholarship decisions, and no separate application is required. We begin processing the bulk of our merit scholarships in mid-January; by late January, we are caught up with awards for offers made through the end of the year, and from that point through the end of the season, a merit award, if any, is made within about two weeks of an admissions offer.
Need-based grant decisions are made by the Financial Aid Office. To determine if you might qualify for need-based grants, admitted students must complete our simple online questionnaire, available in late January, on the Admitted Students website. Click on Financial Aid and Need-Based Application to access the questionnaire.
Please note that if you were admitted from the waitlist, need was considered at the time of your admissions offer, and you are not eligible to apply for need-based funding.
Information for Admitted Students
In cases where no merit scholarships or need-based grants have been offered, the Financial Aid Office is occasionally able to take financial aid offers from competing schools into account. Please contact us for further information.
The Financial Aid Office will begin processing federal loan eligibility in late April.
To Apply for Direct Unsubsidized Loans
- Complete and submit a 2026-2027 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Your (and, if applicable, your spouse’s) information must be recorded on the FAFSA. Please note that you do not need to provide parental information.
- Request that a copy of the FAFSA report be released to the University of Michigan Law School, code #E00506. (Note that other schools and colleges at the University of Michigan uses different numbers.) Be sure to retain a copy of the completed form for your records.
- You may wish to apply separately for a private loan in addition to Direct Unsubsidized loans, depending on your budget and assets. (For advice about that, please feel free to contact us.) Please check your credit score as soon as possible, and be sure to apply for a pre-approval in April or May to be sure you will qualify. Final private loan applications should not be submitted until after you receive an official financial aid package in July.
- Enrolling students with Direct Unsubsidized loans must complete entrance counseling as well as complete the Master Promissory Note, both available on the StudentAid.gov website.