Estimated Fees and Financial Aid

Tuition & Fees

All students enrolled in the joint MTM program are students at both the UC Berkeley and UCSF campuses, but each student is assigned to, and pays tuition and fees directly to, one home campus. Berkeley-based students pay tuition and fees in two installments (fall and spring semesters), while UCSF-based students pay in three installments (fall, winter, and spring quarters).

For the most up-to-date tuition and fees at the two campuses, visit the following Office of the Registrar websites:

• UCB – Translational Medicine (under Graduate: Professional – College of Engineering)
• UCSF – Translational Medicine (Joint UCSF/UCB program) – MTM

Total tuition and fees for the 2020-21 academic year for the MTM program was $54,129 for California residents and approximately $66,374 for Nonresidents, including international students. This include Professional Degree Supplemental Tuition (PDST). Though tuition and fees are slightly higher at UC Berkeley, the program issues an award at the beginning of the year to Berkeley-based students to cover the difference in UCSF and UC Berkeley rates. Please note that tuition and fee estimates do not include cost of living and other associated expenses. Continue to the section below for more information on budgeting for other expenses.

Disclaimer from the Office of the Registrar: Note that fees in the links above are for current the academic year only, and estimates are subject to change. Accordingly, final approved levels (and thus a student’s final balance due) may differ from the amounts shown. Some or all instruction for all or part of the Academic Year may be delivered remotely. Tuition and fees have been set regardless of the method of instruction and will not be refunded in the event instruction occurs remotely for any part of the Academic Year. Figures for tuition and fees represent currently approved or proposed amounts and may not be final.  Actual tuition and fees are subject to change by the University of California as determined to be necessary or appropriate. Final approved tuition and fee levels may differ from the amounts presented.

Other Costs

Both UC Berkeley and UCSF provide estimates of the cost of housing and other necessities, which can be found at the following links:

• Estimated Graduate Student Budget – UC Berkeley
• Estimated Graduate Student Budget – UCSF

Here are some additional resources for graduate students planning for their time in the Bay Area:

• UC Berkeley Graduate Division – Tuition Costs & Fees
• UCSF Graduate Division – Financial Support

Financial Aid & Scholarships

The University of California is committed to efforts to make quality education as affordable and accessible as possible. The MTM program helps to implement this commitment through the issuance of two different types of awards:

• Merit-based. The MTM admissions committee offers merit-based awards to attract students with specialized skills and excellent academic performance. Merit-based awards are announced in early-mid March when admissions decisions are released. These are determined from the information in your admissions application and do not require a separate process or any additional materials.
• Need-based. Domestic students (US citizens and permanent residents) can apply for a need-based financial award. To apply, you’ll need to fill out the FAFSA and the UCSF application for aid (instructions in the How to Apply for Financial Aid section below). Using the information you provide in your FAFSA and application, the UCSF financial aid office makes a determination of how much need-based funds you’ll be awarded. Need-based awards are announced around late March, a couple of weeks before the deadline to accept the offer of admission. The program provides prompts and more information on when and how to do this to applicants later on in the admissions process. 

In addition to the merit- and need-based awards described above, the MTM nominates one candidate for the Graduate Opportunity Program (GOP) Master’s Fellowship each year. This award provides financial assistance for an entering student whose background, interests, or goals serve to enhance the level of diversity within the graduate community. The GOP award is based on financial need, academic promise, diversity contribution and is available to US citizens, permanent residents, and AB540 applicants who are entering a terminal master’s or professional degree program. The award consists of a $10,000 stipend ($5,000 per semester) and in-state tuition and fees for one academic year. All applicants who are eligible are automatically considered for the GOP fellowship through the normal MTM admissions process, and the finalist is notified of their nomination in February or March and whether or not they received the fellowship in early April.

Financial assistance and student loans are available through the Offices of Financial Aid at both campuses. We recommend connecting with the staff in each of these offices to learn about options for financing your masters degree and to get a picture of the full cost of attendance:

• UC Berkeley – Financial Aid and Scholarships
• UCSF – Student Financial Aid

How to Apply for Financial Aid

When you apply to the MTM program, the program administration will prompt you when in the admissions cycle you should begin the process of applying for financial aid. This typically occurs around late February. Below is an overview of that process.

Step 1: Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) application: https://fafsa.ed.gov.

• Select academic year.
• Include both UCSF and UC Berkeley school codes: 001319 and 001312.
• Students must report most recent tax information.
• Students who wish to be considered for need-based scholarships must also complete the Parental Data section of the FAFSA form. The federal instructions will indicate parental data is not needed for federal loans.  However, in order to assess relative financial need for institutional scholarships, parental data will be analyzed. For students under the age of 30, parents’ information must be submitted on the FAFSA to be considered for Full Funding.

Step 2: Complete the UCSF Financial Aid / Cost Of Living Supplement (COLS) application: https://netpartner.ucsf.edu/NetPartnerStudent. 

• Note that you must wait to be partially onboarded to complete this step. The program will prompt you when/how to do this during the admissions process.
• Select the program/year: GA Masters in Translational Medicine.
• Select a funding option:

1. 1. Basic Funding – If you select this option, you will not be considered for an MTM need-based award.  Select this if you want be considered for for Direct Unsubsidized Loan and Graduate PLUS Loan.
   2. Full Funding – Includes consideration for all need-based scholarships, Direct Unsubsidized Loan and Graduate PLUS Loan.
      1. Students under the age of 30 will need to provide parental tax information on the FAFSA.
      2. If you do not submit parental information, you will not be considered for this type of award.
   3. Cost of Living Supplement (COLS) only – Students will need to be living in the Bay Area in order to be eligible.  Students under the age of 30 will need to provide parental tax information on the FAFSA. For more information please visit: https://finaid.ucsf.edu/cols.

Extramural Scholarships

The MTM program has limited funds available for financial awards. Other scholarships and opportunities may also be available, and we encourage applicants to independently seek out scholarships and funding sources as needed. We’ve put together this Guide to Financing your MTM Degree, which contains several scholarship/funding hubs for you to explore. There is also information in that guide about the work-study program and other campus jobs.