Charleston School of Law

Additional information

Applying for financial aid
Cost of attendance
Forms
Privacy information
Other helpful links
Academic Progress Standards
Visit our office
Our mission

Charleston School of Law Foundation

The Charleston School of Law Foundation, Inc., is a non-profit, tax-exempt organization. Its purpose is to receive bequests and donations to help students by funding scholarships. If you are interested in learning about the scholarship program, please contact the Office of Admissions.

Learn more about admissions to the Charleston School of Law
Visit the Charleston School of Law Foundation's Web site.

Financial Aid

Funding a legal education can be a daunting task, especially when students are responsible for financing their law school education and living expenses themselves. Need-based scholarships and merit scholarships are awarded by Charleston School of Law to selected students, but the largest forms of financial aid for law students are educational loans. Even if a student receives a sizable scholarship, he or she may not be able to avoid substantial loan debt before graduation, especially if the student has already accumulated student loans during undergraduate or graduate education.

Attaining a legal education is a significant investment of a student's time and financial resources. Students should be aware of all of their financial responsibilities and make wise financial decisions before, during and after they attend the Charleston School of Law. Students should realize they are investing in their futures by attending law school and that type of investment is the best one they can make. The investment can be considerable, so it is highly recommended that students borrow conservatively at all times and be diligent to budget money wisely.

Simply put: the amount of loan money students borrow now may affect their career and lifestyle choices when they finish their education here. The popular adage says, "If you live like a lawyer while a student, you will live like a student when a lawyer." The Office of Financial Aid is ready to help students become aware and make informed financial decisions in all areas of student life: budgeting, loan comparisons, notifications of expected refund disbursements, explanation of the consequences of defaulting on student loans, and debt management and consolidation after graduation.

Applying For Financial Aid

Students are able to receive aid (scholarships, loans, Veteran’s benefits, etc.) up to their established cost of attendance budget. Each student’s cost of attendance budget accounts for tuition/fees plus a reasonable amount for living expenses for the academic year. The maximum amount allocated for living expenses is $17,450. Review specific information on student cost of attendance budgets below.

For the 2008-2009 school year, per semester tuition is $16,010 for full-time students and $12,759 for students in the part-time program. Fees are $475 per semester. Incoming students pay a one-time matriculation/graduation fee of $160.

Forms

Students are provided a cost of attendance (COA) budget that governs the amount of total aid (loans, scholarships, veteran's benefits, etc.) available to them for the nine month academic year. There are also COA budgets for Maymester and summer session, including externships if students are enrolled in an externship course. Students are not allowed to exceed their cost of attendance budget. Student budgets are reviewed annually to make adjustments to reflect possible changes in living expenses or school-related expenses.

The Office of Financial Aid realizes that students come to the Law School from various backgrounds, experiences, and lifestyles; however, the student cost of attendance budget allows for a simple lifestyle-that of a graduate student. Federal regulations dictate that only education-related expenses are allowed in the cost of attendance budgets. Items such as tuition and fees, lodging and food, books and supplies, transportation, and personal/miscellaneous are expenses allowed to create a student's budget. Students who want to request a budget adjustment must complete a Request for Budget Increase Form and provide all necessary documentation required for the Office of Financial Aid to render its decision. The required Form and all supporting documentation will become part of the student's financial aid file.

Items the government will NOT allow in the cost of attendance budgets include moving expenses, prior loan debt, credit card debt, car payments, and expenses incurred outside of the student's actual period of enrollment. Budgets may be increased for the following allowable adjustments: students with disabilities to accommodate reasonable needs to attend classes; students paying dependent care or adult care expenses directly related to the student's attendance (not for job purposes); students who have medical/dental expenses not covered by insurance while enrolled; and a student's one time computer/printer purchase expense. All documentation and receipts are required with a student's Request for Budget Increase Form for the appeal to be reviewed. The maximum amount that a student's budget can be increased for computer and printer expenses is $2,000. If approved, a student's budget will be increased by the documented cost of the computer equipment which will allow the student greater loan eligibility for a semester.

Per the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA), the student has the sole right to their educational records UNLESS the parents submit verification that they claimed the student as a dependent on their most recent Federal Tax Return OR the student submits written authorization to release information to their parents by completing paperwork through the Office of Academic Affairs at Charleston School of Law.

A student may complete a Student Authorization to Release Information Form in order for the School of Law to discuss the student's specific information with their parents, spouse, or other person as indicated on their form. By law, Charleston School of Law may release the following "Directory Information" without written consent by the student: name, address, telephone number, email address, photograph, date and place of birth, dates of attendance, enrollment status, degrees, or honors and awards. A student has the option of completing a Student Authorization to Release Information Form and requesting in writing that their Directory Information not be released.

(If a student does not authorize Directory Information to be released, the student will not be included in news releases in area and home newspapers, on radio and TV broadcasts regarding honors and awards, and participation in campus activities. Student would also not be eligible to be included in campus programs, publications, campus directories, CSOL graduation composite, and on the CSOL website and campus brochures).

Please contact the Office of Financial Aid to discuss federal and private loan options, and directions on how to secure loans with a chosen lender:

Students who are eligible for Veteran’s benefits should contact Mike Parrish to begin the process of establishing benefits through the Department of Veteran Affairs.

Academic Progress Standards

Information on the law school's academic standards is available from the Office of Admissions. You can also go online to review more information.

Office information

The physical address of the Office of Financial Aid is 394 Meeting Street, but the mailing address is 81 Mary Street PO Box 535 Charleston, SC 29402-0535. We are located in the Business Office along with the Accounting Office. We are on one of the corners of Meeting and Mary Streets and we are diagonal from the AT&T building. We are open from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. Drop-ins are welcome, but students with appointments are guaranteed to meet with a financial aid counselor.

Our mission

The Office of Financial Aid wants to help students understand the process of applying for financial aid so they can make wise financial decisions and explore all resource options for funding their legal education. To that end, the Office of Financial Aid will help students understand how to best utilize their resources: scholarships (private and also institutional); private loans; federal loans (Stafford loan and Graduate PLUS loan); and Veterans Benefits. We assist students by helping to answer financial questions so students are informed before, during, and after their education at the Charleston School of Law.