Financial Aid and Scholarship Opportunities

If you have any questions about scholarships, please email Kevin McCarthy, PhD, at [email protected]. Please include "PCOP Scholarship" in your email subject line.

Patricia Claffie Fund

Each year, annual tuition grants of up to $3,500 are available to Clinical Social Workers enrolled in any of the psychoanalytic or psychotherapy programs. Students may reapply for this grant but may only receive the grant twice.

Foundation Scholarships

The Foundation Scholarships are intended to facilitate the enrollment and attendance of an applicant who otherwise would not enroll in the program. Amounts available may vary and are based on the amount of unrestricted funds available to the Foundation at the end of a given fiscal year. The amounts may be shared among multiple qualified applicants. Students can reapply for these scholarships every year.

Henri Parens Hope Scholarship

This scholarship has been established to assist financially challenged students who plan to apply psychoanalytic knowledge to the understanding of social problems with the intention to improve the life of humans, especially children. Up to $1,400 will be awarded each year. Applicants may receive this scholarship more than once, but they must re-apply each year.

Edward L. Hicks, MD, Scholarship Fund

This scholarship has been established to assist students with a demonstrated financial need and desire to train. 

Newell Fischer Scholarship Fund

The Newell Fischer Scholarship Fund was established to honor the memory of Newell Fischer, MD. A distinguished psychiatrist and psychoanalyst, Newell served in numerous local, national, and international leadership positions, including President of the American Psychoanalytic Association. As a faculty member of the University of Pennsylvania Department of Psychiatry and the Psychoanalytic Center of Philadelphia, he was a highly valued teacher, supervisor, mentor, and colleague. This scholarship helps clinicians train in psychoanalytic psychotherapy and psychoanalysis in order to further Newell's lifelong commitment to psychoanalytic practice, education, and leadership.

Criteria for the Above Scholarships (Claffie, Foundation, Parens, Hicks, Fischer)

1. Enrollment in a PCOP training program (FOPT, psychotherapy program, psychoanalytic program, or child integrated program).
2. Demonstration of how participation in the named training program will support your planned career development.
3. Demonstration of financial need through description of current income level (1040 or similar financial document to be attached). Significant savings (investments, trust funds, etc.) will be taken into account.  

The Biddle Loan

The Biddle Loan Fund is available for tuition support for psychoanalytic and psychotherapy students. The interest is based on the prime rate currently in effect at the time of application less 1%.

Psychoanalytic Candidates:

The maximum available to each candidate is $15,000. Candidates can receive yearly installments of up to $5,000, with monthly repayment of principal to begin no later than the end of the fourth year of candidacy.

Psychotherapy Students:

The maximum available to each student is $4,000. Students can receive yearly installments of up to $2,000, with monthly repayment of principal to begin no later than the end of the second year of enrollment in the program.

APsA's Psychoanalytic Social Work Tuition Support Award

The Candidate Assistance Fund of the American Psychoanalytic Association

Loans up to $5,000 are provided to candidates training to be psychoanalysts. The loans are to be repaid within a maximum of six years. There are two criteria considered in approving a loan: the need as evidenced by an applicant’s financial need and the ability to repay the loan as evidenced by the applicant’s overall financial health. Eligibility is based on APsA Affiliate Membership in good standing, the completion of one year of training, and demonstrated financial need.

Application: Email Tom Newman, APsaA’s Executive Director, for an application form at [email protected]. See APsA website for application deadline.

Scholarship Application for Current Students* - 2025 Application Coming Soon

Important Information

• If someone is in financial need at the beginning of a training program and continues to be in need as he/she continues in the training program, the Scholarship Committee will take the person’s ongoing need into account as he/she continues in the training program. Therefore, if he/she applies a second time for a scholarship, the Committee will consider the ongoing need and recognizes the importance of the applicant’s being able to complete the training program in which he/she is enrolled. However, all applicants must recognize that the Committee will give equal weight to new applicants, who may rely on scholarships to begin their training.
• The Scholarship Committee will work to ensure that applicants who are in need are funded during their whole training program experience (although this cannot be guaranteed), especially if opportunities to increase their income won’t expand until later in their career development. The Resident Education Fund is the only scholarship that will fund an applicant for as long as he/she is in the program (one, two, or three years).

 *Please note that FOPT Applicants may use the scholarship application attached to their FOPT application.