Finances

Program Fees

This guide will help you find important information about program fees and finances located in your CalCentral account. In addition to per unit course fees for OOMPH students, OOMPH students also pay several other types of fees each term, including the campus fee. All fees are automatically billed to your account and will be reflected on monthly electronic bills. All fees are subject to change.
For the 2023-2024 academic year (Fall 2023, Spring 2024, and Summer 2024), program fees are as follows:

The fees displayed here are estimates based on currently approved amounts. These figures may not be final. Actual tuition, fees, and charges are subject to change by the Regents of the University of California.

For fees and other costs for Online Program applicants and students, please visit: https://publichealth.berkeley.edu/admissions/fees-and-financial-aid/online-program/

Student Finances and Billing

You can view and access your financial information under the My Finances tab in CalCentral, including an up-to-date view of financial awards and billings.  You can also accept or reduce accepted loans, apply for short term emergency loans, and more.

To access My Finances, log into your Calcentral account >> look for tab My Finances (next to tabs My Dashboard, My Academics, etc. on the top of the page). My Finances page offers four main features: Billing Summary, Cal 1 Card, Financial Aid and Scholarships and Financial Resources.

Located on the left hand corner of the My Finances page, the billing summary provides up-to-date billing information. This section provides your official monthly billing statement, outstanding balance due, and allows access to pay balance on “Make payment” button located in this section.

For more specific questions/or concerns not found in Cal Central, please follow the steps provided in the following link: https://studentcentral.berkeley.edu/info-graduate-students Or contact the Cal Student Central office at (510)-664-9181, phone hours are from 9 a.m. – noon and 1-4 p.m.

Financial Aid Information

Please visit the Financial Aid & Scholarship webpage for helpful information on common financial aid topics. Have a question not covered by the website?  Tell the Financial Aid Office how they can help, and their staff will work to resolve your issue as quickly as possible. Contact Financial Aid Office at studentcentral.berkeley.edu/open-case. Telephone: (510) 664-9181, Monday – Friday 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 4 p.m.

If you are a student sponsored by a government entity (FAFSA) or a private grant, you are responsible for ensuring that fee payments are made and credited properly.

See http://studentbilling.berkeley.edu/ for more information.

All students must be properly registered, which means:

• At least 20% of fees have been paid
• No registration blocks
• Enrolled in at least one class

It is your responsibility to keep tabs on your CARS accounts and your MyFinAid account, so that you know when your fees have been paid and if your loans are disbursed.

Summer Financial Aid:

To receive financial aid for Summer, visit https://myfinaid.berkeley.edu, then go to the current academic year and accept your financial aid package.

For example, if you are requesting Summer financial aid for 2023-24 academic year, select 2023-2024 to request your financial aid. An academic year runs from Fall through Summer.

Cal Student Central is your first contact for financial aid related questions. Please visit their web site at http://studentcentral.berkeley.edu/. Many fee related questions are answered there.

• Students will receive Summer federal loans only if they are enrolled in a minimum of 6 units. If they are enrolled in less than 6 units, they will see a summer budget, aka cost of attendance, in CalCentral but they will not see any loan offers.
• Summer financial aid will begin disbursing no earlier than 10 days before the start of the student’s first enrolled session. So if a student is only enrolled in Summer 2, their loans will not be disbursed until late June. This is based on the Summer Session calendar, not the OOMPH instruction start dates.
• Summer fees and financial aid are triggered by enrollment. If students are not yet enrolled in summer courses, they will not see anything in CalCentral.
• Students can open a case in Cal Student Central if they have further questions.

OOMPH Refund Policy

Academic Year refunds (i.e. Fall and Spring terms) are issued to students when they either drop a course or withdraw from a term (i.e. drop all courses for the term and are no longer enrolled).

When OOMPH students drop a course but remain enrolled in at least one unit, they receive a refund of 100% of the program fees (i.e. the per unit course fees) from that course up until the drop deadline.  Campus fees are not refunded in this case because the student is still enrolled.

When students withdraw from a term (i.e. drop all courses for the term and are no longer enrolled), 100% of the program fees from the courses are refunded.  However, the refund of campus fees following withdrawal are subject to the campus refund policy and is prorated depending on the date of withdrawal.  Please see the tables in the campus refund policy for more details and note that the following campus fees are nonrefundable as of the 1st day of instruction of each term (please note this is the UC Berkeley first day of instruction, and may differ from the first day of the OOMPH course):

• Late fees
• Health Insurance/SHIP
• Class Pass 
• Document Management

Please view the full OOMPH Refund Policy for more information, including Financial Aid Implications and Summer term refunds.

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)

Your academic record will be evaluated after each academic year to determine if you are meeting the SAP requirements to maintain financial aid eligibility for the next academic year. While you are expected to meet minimum academic progress requirements to maintain your financial aid eligibility, we understand that extenuating circumstances sometimes prevent students from making satisfactory progress towards their degree.

If you are ineligible for financial aid because you are not meeting SAP requirements before the beginning of the academic year, and extenuating circumstances have hindered your academic performance, you may submit a SAP Appeal to have your eligibility reconsidered.

You can find more information about fee refunds on the OOMPH Refund Policy.

Cancel for Non-Payment Policy

All students are required to pay 20 percent or more of their tuition and fees (including nonresident tuition) by the end of the first week of the UC Berkeley semester. Students who have not done this will have their enrollment in all classes, including those waitlisted, canceled.

• Graduate students’ enrollment will be canceled five weeks after the first day of instruction.
• The canceled students will be allowed to re-enroll in classes; however, there is no guarantee that they will be able to enroll in classes from which they have been dropped.
• Students can monitor aid disbursements in the My Finances LINK section of CalCentral. If sufficient aid is ready to disburse and will cover at least 20 percent of their tuition and fees by the payment deadline, they will not be subject to Cancel for Non-Payment. If they are still at risk for Cancel for Non-Payment, CalCentral will alert them.
• There will be exceptions to the Cancel for Non-Payment policy in specific situations, such as students anticipating to receive outside aid or pending financial aid verification reviews. Students granted an exception will see a corresponding alert in CalCentral.

What to Expect

If you are enrolled in classes, you will be billed for tuition and fees. You may view and pay tuition and fees in the My Finances section of CalCentral. If you are subject to Cancel for Non-Payment, you will receive alerts in CalCentral as well as email communications.

FAQs

If I drop a course before the first day of campus instruction for the semester, will I receive a full refund? You will receive a refund on the OOMPH tuition only. Late fees are not refundable.

What if I drop a fall 2 course after the first week of class? If you drop after the first week of class you may be eligible for prorated fees from 40% – 60%. Please check the refund policy for specific dates and percentages. 

What if I drop my fall 2 course before the fall course starts? If you drop a course before the start of instruction for the fall semester you will be eligible for a full refund.

What if I am enrolled in a course and swap for another course within the same semester? What impact will this have on my refund? If you do not want your financial aid to be impacted, you are advised to drop and add a course on the same day, this is considered a swap. If you drop and/or add a course fees may be applied.

Scholarships and Resources

OOMPH Emergency Aid Awards

The On-Campus/Online MPH Emergency Aid Award is a resource to assist graduate students who experience a financial emergency or unanticipated expenses causing financial hardship. Approved student awards are subject to the availability of the Emergency Aid Funds.

For more information on eligibility and instructions for how to apply, please see this document.

Association for Schools and Programs for Public Health (ASPHH) Resources

The Association for Schools and Programs for Public Health (ASPPH) has developed a page to assist students from member schools, including UC Berkeley, in finding scholarships and external financial aid sources. Information is categorized by the different funding sources by qualifying criteria and also provides tips on how to find funding. Please let us know if this is helpful and if you have any suggestions that we can pass along to ASPPH.

MPH Scholarship Sites

Richard A. Herbert Memorial Scholarship – Graduate students are awarded this scholarship based on academic and/or research performance. Students are selected by the American Water Resources Association’s Student Activities Committee.

Udall Scholarship – Students with an interest in environmental policy, engineering, science, education, health or other related fields are eligible for this scholarship.

Albert W. Dent Graduate Student Scholarship – Minority students in their final year of full-time health care management study are eligible for this award.

Foster G. McGaw Graduate Student Scholarship – Established in honor of Foster G. McGaw, the founder of the American Hospital Supply Corporation, this scholarship gives financial support to students in health care management graduate programs. Students must be in their final year of a graduate program. Preference is given to student associates of ACHE.

Richard J. Stull Student Essay Competition in Healthcare Management – The Richard J. Stull Student Essay Competition was named in honor of its namesake, ACHE president from 1965-1978. It is designed for future leaders in health care management to describe important issues and developments in their profession.

UC Berkeley Support Programs for Undocumented Graduate Students

The Office for Graduate Diversity (OGD) serves the needs of Undocumented Graduate Students at UC Berkeley with resources offered both on- and off- campus.

Birgeneau Perleman Fund for Undocumented Students