How does financial aid for international students work at the University of Chicago?

At the University of Chicago, international students can receive need-based financial aid, but you should expect the admissions process to work differently than it does for U.S. applicants. UChicago is need-aware for international applicants, which means your ability to pay can be considered in the admission decision.

To be considered for aid, international students generally need to apply for financial aid at the time they apply for admission. UChicago typically uses its own financial aid application process for international students rather than requiring only the FAFSA, which international students usually cannot file anyway. You should be prepared to submit family income and asset information, often through the CSS Profile and other school-specific documents.

One important point is that the aid is mostly need-based, not merit-based in the sense of large automatic awards for international students. UChicago does have merit scholarships, and international students can be considered for them, but those are separate from need-based aid and are not guaranteed.

In practical terms, that means UChicago can be a strong option for an international student who needs aid, because it does fund admitted students’ full demonstrated need, but it is also more selective because requesting aid may make admission harder.