Financial Aid

St. Joseph’s offers a Tuition Assistance program in both the High School and the Middle School. For families for which the tuition rates seem unaffordable, the Tuition Assistance program offers an individualized tuition rate based on documented need.  Please note that an Application for Admissions must be on file to be considered for tuition assistance, and financial aid awards will be communicated following the student’s acceptance.

In addition to the Admissions Application, prospective families are invited and encouraged to complete the Financial Aid Application (made available in November) to begin the need-based application process for the upcoming school year. Families who complete the aid application by February 12^th receive priority. Families who apply to the school after this date and are in need of financial assistance are encouraged to apply for tuition assistance when beginning the admissions process. As always, assistance is available based upon documented need and the availability of funds. For more information, contact Lisa Lawrence in the SJCS Business Office.

Students in grades 9-12 may apply for this scholarship annually.  Recipients must qualify for tuition assistance as verified by the financial aid application, maintain an 80 average in all classes, perform at least ten extra hours of community service per year, have two letters of recommendation, and submit an essay of 500 words or less. While award amounts may vary from year to year, eight students received this scholarship for the 2022-23 school year totaling close to $18,000. For more information, contact Kevin Meyer in the SJCS Development Office.

SC Educational Credit for Exceptional Needs Children (ECENC) supports students who would benefit from an independent school education because of learning or other differences.  Families may be eligible to receive tuition assistance or a tax credit to offset their St. Joseph’s tuition. It is the parent’s responsibility to submit their child’s application and all supporting documents through an online portal used by this program, as SJCS does not submit applications on behalf of students. It should also be noted that while SJCS participates in this program, this assistance is managed and funded by a third party and does not involve St. Joseph’s funding. Applications and eligibility information are available at ExceptionalSC.org.

SJCS recognizes academic excellence by naming two rising ninth grade students as St. Joseph’s Scholars. This merit based scholarship covers one-half student tuition and is renewable each year, provided that the student maintains at 3.5 cumulative GPA and an excellent disciplinary record. In order to receive this distinction, a candidate must achieve grades of 90% or above in 6^th, 7^th, and 8^th grades, must score in the 90th percentile on the SJCS Admissions Test administered in January or February, and must embody the mission of the school.

This scholarship was established in 2020 in memory of the school’s Founding Board Chair, Margaret Ann Moon.  She believed that St. Joseph’s should be accessible to all qualified students in order for the school to realize its Catholic mission.  Any 5^th grade student who currently does not attend (nor have siblings attending) an Upstate Catholic school (including SJCS) is invited and encouraged to apply.  SJCS will award up to five Middle School (half-paid tuition) scholarships to rising sixth graders based upon a combination of academic merit and need.  There is no application fee to apply for this scholarship, and it is renewable each of the remaining two years of Middle School as long as academic conditions are met while enrolled at SJCS.  Award winners are still eligible to apply for additional financial aid, if needed, during their middle school and high school years. Parents of interested applicants should complete both the

• Margaret Ann Moon Middle School Scholarship Application
• The Financial Aid Application (available in November) by no later than March 1st for the upcoming school year.

Applicants must complete the school’s Admissions Test by mid-March, and awards are announced in late April.

• Tuition due in a single lump sum by July 31
• Optional tuition insurance available

• Tuition due in two installment payments by July 31 and January 31
• Includes tuition insurance

• 10 Monthly installments July through April
• Includes tuition insurance

• 11 Monthly installments July through May
• Includes tuition insurance

Calculation based on full tuition

The Tuition Credit Program is designed to reward current St. Joseph’s families for actively recruiting new families to St. Joseph’s. When a new family applies for admission, they have the opportunity to name the St. Joseph’s family on their application who recommended SJCS. After the new student(s) attends school for one quarter, the recruiting family receives a $500 credit on their next tuition bill.

This credit is intended for current SJCS families that recruit new families to enroll at St. Joseph’s. The recruited student(s) must not be currently enrolled or have ever been enrolled at St. Joseph’s.

• The credit is not eligible for sibling enrollment of an existing or former student. Again, this is geared toward recruiting new families to St. Joseph’s.
• The tuition credit will not be awarded for recruiting a rising 6^th, 7^th or 8^th grader who is currently enrolled in a Catholic school in the Upstate.

The recruited student(s) must meet the school’s admissions criteria and remain at St. Joseph’s for at least one quarter. The tuition credit will be issued on the student billing, after the student has attended classes for one quarter.

There will be no checks issued for the credits and no payments to families without students currently at SJCS. Families will also be given the option of donating their credit back to SJCS in the form of an Annual Fund gift. Families may not request that the credit be applied to any other families.

The credit is $500 per new family enrolled, not per child enrolled, so a new family with multiple children would earn the referring family $500.

Each new family may only list one referring family. In case of dispute, the original application will be the sole source of determining the referring family, if any, eligible for credit. Once the application is submitted, the referring family cannot be changed.

If a new family decides to enroll after the school year has begun, then the recruiting family will receive a prorated credit. (Example: When the Smiths enroll their son in January, they are charged 50% of the annual tuition. The referring family receives 50% of $500, or $250 credit on their tuition bill, after the Smith child completes one quarter.) If the Smith’s son enrolls the following year, the referring family is eligible to receive the balance of the $500 credit (i.e. the remaining $250) after the start of the new school year.

Employees with children currently enrolled at St. Joseph’s are eligible to receive the credit if they help recruit a new family, but coaches are not eligible to earn credits, as this would be a violation of the SCHSL.

Please contact Jenny Starks, the Director of Admissions, with information about prospective families, or with any additional questions regarding this program.