Tuition assistance includes need-based grants (for students in kindergarten-12th grade). A need-based grant is determined solely by your family's demonstrated financial need.

Tuition assistance is not a loan and does not need to be repaid.

Financial need is demonstrated through a tuition assistance application, where families provide information about your income, household expenses, and other financial details. If awarded, the amount you receive directly reduces the cost of your tuition.

Tuition assistance, plus a payment plan, means smaller payments. By combining your reduced tuition with one of our available payment plans, you can turn an annual tuition into monthly installments, similar to your other recurring bills.

No. Financial decisions are made only after an admission decision is made. We commit to keeping a need-blind application process for admission and will not allow financial need to influence an admission decision.

Yes. Each year you will complete a Clarity application to confirm your level of need. This notification comes to you in the early fall, and we ask families to complete the application before winter break.

As long as your financial situation remains consistent, we try to be consistent with our grants for a family. We are sure to consider the tuition increases that occur when moving from one grade level to the next, as well.

No. Families interested in enrolling multiple children are strongly encouraged to apply for tuition assistance, as having multiple children can impact your level of financial need.

You are strongly encouraged to apply. Many families do not think they will qualify for need-based tuition, but we consider many factors, including grade level, number of children, etc.

Yes. While tuition covers the majority of a student's experience at USM, some fees are not included. These include, but are not limited to, transportation, books, supplies, uniforms, and travel.

No. Applications for admission and applications for tuition assistance are independent of one another, and a family's request for tuition assistance does not impact an admissions decision. All information from Clarity is confidential, as is all information pertaining to a family's tuition assistance request. The committee determining acceptance to USM does not base their decision on tuition assistance in any way.

The tuition assistance committee allocates funds after careful consideration of a family’s financial need and to the extent that tuition assistance funds are available. To be considered for tuition assistance, families are required to file an application through Clarity Financial, an independent agency that provides a need-based financial analysis service. This ensures that our process for establishing financial need adheres to nationally established standards of best practice.

All financial information and grants are kept strictly confidential. Families are required to reapply each year for tuition assistance. Unless there is a significant change in the financial capability of the family, the committee strives to maintain a consistent level of support. USM expects recipients of aid, like all students, to work hard, be good citizens, and contribute to the life of the school.

USM provides tuition assistance to families with demonstrated need, or the difference between the cost of tuition and the financial contribution a family is able to afford. A family’s calculated contribution is determined by information presented on their tuition assistance application, tax returns, and other supporting documents. USM's tuition assistance program cannot be used to solve a family’s financial difficulties. Exceptionally high living expenses, credit card debt, or other consumer debt may not be considered as allowable expenses when calculating a family’s demonstrated need.

For more information, please email admissions@usm.org or call 414.540.3320.

In order to ensure our process for establishing financial need adheres to national standards of best practice, University School of Milwaukee utilizes the services of Clarity Financial as our tuition assistance management program. Families seeking financial support are required to complete an online financial analysis application with Clarity while moving through the admissions process.

USM utilizes Clarity because it is designed to be accurate, efficient, and highly responsive to our prospective and current families. Clarity is also flexible in terms of the information it will accommodate, thus allowing to represent their own particular circumstances most accurately. To make the online application process as simple as possible, Clarity provides outstanding customer service in a timely manner.

Please direct questions to Mike Sweet, associate director of enrollment management, at 414.540.3323 or email admissions@usm.org.