Find Online Radiation Therapy Programs with Financial Aid

Inside Online Radiation Therapy Degrees with Financial Aid

There are plenty of factors to consider when choosing your online radiation therapy program. As you sift through options, it is important to consider affordability; this means considering the tuition and the types of financial aid the school has to offer.

Schools that accept aid must meet certain educational standards to be a recipient of federal student loans and other funding, as well as accepting outside scholarships and grants. Institutions may also offer their own internal aid, either as scholarships, grants, work study, or other tuition assistance so that students can afford to attend. Many students find it helpful to select a program that both accepts and offers some form of aid.

In this section, we’ll highlight some radiation therapy programs that stand out in both categories. One of these schools may be right for you, but if not, you can still use these programs as benchmarks for other options.

Financial Aid Eligibility & Application Checklist

As you’re rallying money for school, it is important to start early and stay organized. While each opportunity will have its own application process and requirements, this checklist should keep you on the right track and set you up for success.

Complete the FAFSA Early

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is your first and best option for financial aid. When you submit your application, you’ll automatically be considered for hundreds of grants and scholarships. Potential programs will use your FAFSA information to put together a financial aid offer, and you’ll learn how much money you can take out in federal loans. If you’re applying for schools, fill out your application as soon as possible. There is only so much money to go around, and many opportunities are first-come, first-served.

Review Eligibility Criteria and Requirements

Searching for schools and scholarships can really eat into your free time, so don’t make more work for yourself by applying for opportunities you’ll never get. Carefully read all scholarship and grant information and make sure that you check all the boxes before you start putting your application together. If you’re not sure you meet the mark, don’t be afraid to reach out to the organization for clarification.

Check Deadlines and Apply Early

Other than FAFSA opportunities, most scholarship applications aren’t reviewed until after the submission deadline. But there are still good reasons to submit early. It’ll feel good to check the task off your to-do list and get onto something more interesting. More importantly, you don’t want to miss out on an award because you rushed the application process. Starting early gives you a chance to polish your application materials, check for errors, and correct any issues that might come up.

Gather All Necessary Documents

There will be plenty of paperwork to wrangle when you’re applying for grants and scholarships. Some documents, like application essays or statements of purpose, should be customized for each opportunity. But other ones, like your transcripts and CV, shouldn’t change that much between applications. You can save yourself a headache by making sure you have all your application materials organized and easy to access.

Receive Feedback on Supplemental Materials

Whether you’re confident in your writing or suffering from imposter syndrome, it can be helpful to get an outside opinion on your work. After you’ve completed your statement of purpose, application essays, or any other original work, take the time to seek feedback from someone you trust. If you are currently a student, you can get support from your school’s writing center or advisor. Alternatively, you can seek feedback from a strong writer in your life or even hire an editor to look at your work.

Review Award Letters

Once you’ve submitted all your applications and start hearing back, it is important to carefully review the terms of all the funding you are offered. The most important letters will come from FAFSA and your future school, since these sources will likely make up the bulk of your funding. Make sure you are clear on how much you are being offered, where you can use the funds (scholarships that pay for living expenses or just tuition), and what strings are attached (recipients maintaining a certain course load or GPA). Also note that some scholarships and grants, particularly those from outside your institution, might require you to submit a project or attend an event as part of the award.

Common Funding Options for Radiation Therapy Students

Not all financial aid options are created equal. Each opportunity comes with different requirements and obligations. Below, we walk you through these most common types of financial aid and share a few great opportunities to get you started on your funding search.

Federal Student Aid

Although student loans are sometimes misunderstood, they can be an important piece of the puzzle when it comes to making your budget work. After you’ve exhausted scholarship and grant opportunities, you may look to loans to cover any gaps. After your FAFSA has been processed, you should receive an offer for a set amount of federal loans. These are a great first option since they have lower, fixed rates and more flexible repayment plans. Some radiation therapists will even qualify for a loan forgiveness program, but this largely depends on your work setting after graduation.

Institutional Aid

Typically, your institution will have internal scholarships or funding sources, and you’ll be considered for some based on the FAFSA. Institutional aid looks to make it possible for highly desirable students to be able to afford to attend by filling in gaps of financial need between federal student aid, scholarships, grants, and other tuition support (like military aid). This may also include programs like work study or working as a teaching assistant to subsidize the cost of your tuition.

Payment Plans

After all other sources of financial aid, most students will still owe some money directly towards their tuition. Many schools and programs will offer a way to divide up tuition payments across several months or a semester to avoid a lump payment that can leave your finances strained for months on end. Payment plans can make it more manageable to pay tuition without having to use excessive savings or stretching yourself too thin.

Scholarships & Grants

Scholarships refer to funding that is awarded based on your achievements, identity, or background. For example, you might earn a scholarship if you earned a stellar high school GPA, are a first-generation student, or are a part of a minority group.

Grants, like scholarships, don’t require paying back any money you receive. Although sometimes the terms “grant” and “scholarship” are used interchangeably, grants are typically awarded based on financial need rather than merit. Also note that the term “grant” can refer to funding for specific research projects rather than funding for individual students.

Since there is currently a national shortage of qualified radiation therapists, you’ll find there are plenty of private and government grant programs looking to support students in these programs.

ASRT Foundation Scholarships

• Amount: $500-5,000
• The American Society of Radiologic Technologists (ASRT) hosts an array of scholarships (over 20) for prospective radiation therapists to support the costs of their studies.

Elekta Funds Educational Scholarships for the Training of Radiation Therapists

• Amount: $5,000
• Six students annually are selected to be Elekta’s Radiation Therapy Scholarship to help the best and brightest afford their radiation therapy programs by providing financial support during their studies.