Grants and Loans

Federal Pell Grants
These grants are awarded to undergraduate students who have not yet earned a bachelor's degree. The amount of a Federal Pell Grant is determined by the EFC. Pell Grants provide a foundation to which other aid may be added. Graduate level courses that do not meet bachelor's degree completion requirement are not eligible for Pell grant or any Title IV undergraduate financial aid. 

Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants
These grants, which usually range from $200 to $4,000 per academic year, are awarded to students with the greatest need. They are funded by both federal sources and Cooper Union.

Federal Direct Loan Program
This program includes subsidized and unsubsidized Federal Stafford Loans. During the first year of undergraduate study, an eligible student may borrow up to $5,500; $6,500 in the second year; and $7,500 in subsequent years. Students who meet the federal requirements for independent student status and dependent students whose parents are not able to secure a Federal PLUS Loan may be eligible to receive additional funds through the unsubsidized Federal Stafford Loan Program.

Graduate students may borrow unsubsidized Stafford loans up to a maximum of $20,500. Students who receive Federal Direct Loans will have their loan information submitted to the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) and that information will be accessible by guarantee agencies, lenders and schools that are authorized to access your information.

Also available under this program is the Federal PLUS Loan. Parents and graduate students with good credit histories may borrow up to the cost of education, not covered by financial aid.

For loans first disbursed on or after July 1, 2021 and before July 1, 2022, Federal Subsidized and Unsubsidized Stafford Loans will carry a fixed interest rate of 3.73% and Federal PLUS Loans 6.28%. Federal Unsubsidized Stafford Loans for Graduate and Professional Students will carry a fixed interest rate of 5.28% and Federal PLUS Loans of 6.28%. The origination fees for the Federal Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loan disbursed on or after October 1, 2020 and before October 1, 2022 is 1.057% and Federal PLUS Loans (Parent and Graduate/Professional Student) is 4.228%. Please visit studentaid.gov for more information.

Students and parents should always exhaust federal student loan options before considering private loans.

The Carroll and Milton Petrie Student Emergency Grant Fund
This grant was created to provide quick-response emergency grants to matriculated students in good standing with short-term financial emergencies. This grant is administered through the Office of Student Affairs. More details can be found here.

Cooper Union Grants
The Cooper Union has funds available from which awards are made to qualified students in need of aid. The Cooper Union grants are made possible through the income of The Cooper Union endowment and the generosity of our alumni and friends who contribute to special funds. 

All merit scholarships and institutional grants require full-time attendance and the maintenance of a minimum 2.0 cumulative grade point average. Please refer to the Satisfactory Academic Progress eligibility for more details.

 

  • Founded by inventor, industrialist and philanthropist Peter Cooper in 1859, The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art offers education in art, architecture and engineering, as well as courses in the humanities and social sciences.

  • “My feelings, my desires, my hopes, embrace humanity throughout the world,” Peter Cooper proclaimed in a speech in 1853. He looked forward to a time when, “knowledge shall cover the earth as waters cover the great deep.”

  • From its beginnings, Cooper Union was a unique institution, dedicated to founder Peter Cooper's proposition that education is the key not only to personal prosperity but to civic virtue and harmony.

  • Peter Cooper wanted his graduates to acquire the technical mastery and entrepreneurial skills, enrich their intellects and spark their creativity, and develop a sense of social justice that would translate into action.