Degree Programs

The Bard Graduate Center: Decorative Arts, Design History, Material Culture is committed to assisting students whose personal resources would not otherwise allow them to continue their education at the graduate level. In recent years the BGC has demonstrated this commitment by awarding scholarships and fellowships to more than half of the incoming class. Financial aid is awarded on the basis of achievement and promise and on the basis of financial need, as determined annually by the Office of Financial Aid at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York.

Types of Assistance

Students may qualify for financial assistance in the form of institutional fellowships (merit based) and/or institutional scholarships (need and merit based); campus employment; and federal, state, and private loans and grants. Students may apply for Federal Stafford Loans, and those who are New York State residents may apply to the New York State Tuition Assistance Program. Applicants may wish to investigate other sources for financial assistance. The federal GradPlus Loan program can be used to cover the remaining cost of education, including living expenses, not covered by any other aid. Grant monies are available from a number of national organizations and private corporations that support independent research in the arts and humanities at the graduate level.

Eligibility for institutional fellowships and scholarships is determined based on merit and financial need. The BGC does not administer an institutional loan program. Full-time students in the Master of Arts Program enrolling for classes in a third academic year are no longer eligible to receive institutional financial aid.

Awards are made without regard to gender, sexual orientation, race, color, age, marital status, religion, ethnic or national origin, or handicapping conditions. International students, although not eligible for financial assistance from the U.S. government, may qualify for aid administered by the BGC.