Upon receipt of your student aid report and completion of verification, if needed, you are immediately eligible for student loans. These are guaranteed loans, regardless of your credit rating. That’s right! Unlike any other loan you’ll ever apply for, student loans are made available to you, by the government, regardless of how good or bad your credit rating is. The only reason you would not be able to receive a student loan is if you’ve ever defaulted, or not made continuous payments on a previous student loan.
Now these are funds which must be repaid, financed through a bank or credit union. So, remember that though you are receiving money from the government for school, you are also incurring debt. However, there is good news. These student loans do not have to be repaid until after graduation, or until you become less than a half-time student. Even after that point, you will have a six month period, called a grace period, before you receive your first statement requesting a monthly payment.
The process of applying for these loans is simple. There is a standard form asking for your demographic information and two references. Of these two references, they ask that one be a relative. As I mentioned before, there is no credit check, so you may be wondering what the reason is behind asking for references. Well, the references serve as locators for you in case your lender ever loses contact with you.
Finally, prior to receiving any loan money, you will be required to go through a meeting called an entrance interview. Some schools will design group meetings for the entrance interview. Other schools will direct you to a website where you can read information similar to this, and then answer questions about what you have read.
There are two types of loans: Stafford, and Perkins. Under the category of Stafford loans, there are two subheadings – subsidized and unsubsidized, and one type of parent loan, called the Parent PLUS loan. Think of the word, subsidize, as interest being paid. With that in mind, a subsidized loan is one in which the government pays your interest while you are in school at least half time.
An unsubsidized loan is one in which your interest accumulates while you are in school; though you do have the option of paying that interest. A subsidized loan is also one that is based on need, as determined by your EFC; while an unsubsidized loan is strictly based on your student budget. As a dependent student, you are immediately eligible for the subsidized loan.
A little more work is required for a dependent student to receive the unsubsidized loan, which will be described in the next slide. On the other hand, an independent student is immediately eligible for both the subsidized and unsubsidized loans. Below are the maximum amounts of each loan as determined by your academic level, or year. These amounts have remained constant for more than ten years, and as of February 2006, there has been no action to increase or decrease them.
You will need to speak to your respective school to find out how many credits need to be completed to reach each successive level of school. You can also ask for a copy of your student budget, so that you can be sure you are receiving the maximum amount of student loans for which you are eligible.
John Nowly
http://www.articlesbase.com/finance-articles/basics-of-student-loans-94426.html
March 2nd, 2009 at 4:30 am
Anyone that has taken out student loans can you give me the basics?
Never had to take one out before(been going part time for a year and half) but my husband and I make more money now just enough where grants only cover one class instead of two. Just some basic info on getting myself into a student loan, I am a mom or I would go full time. Can you take out student loans for university of phoenix online? I have been thinking of transferring so I can get done quicker.
March 2nd, 2009 at 9:32 am
Yes you can get loans to go to the UoP. However, you can get a degree at Harvard for less than what you will be paying UoPhoenix.
And the semester or two in time you will save will not earn you any more money from any future employer. Univ of Phoenix grads stand out in the workforce because they have proven they are incredibly bad at math and comparative shopping. To attend you will not only have to take the max out in federal loans, you will have to take out substandard Private loans as well. (Federal loans have limits on them for a reason. To keep people from borrowing more than what they can afford to pay back.) There is nothing worse than talking to a recent "on line" grad with 160,000 worth of student loans who is now qualified to be a kindergarden teacher. (With loan payments of 1,600 a month!!)
You can take many classes on line at regular schools, and you can take a lot more classes a semester than what it sounds like you are doing. Usually, Up to 21 hours a semester (that is 7 classes) without special permission. A few long semesters of these and you'll be done in no time.
Just my opinion, If you have decided (no matter what) to take out loans, I would go FULL time and get it over with. Otherwise you'll probably reach your lifetime max loan amounts before you actually graduate. This is a good book about loans and the terms and rates and the max amounts you can borrow going full time so you can make a good decision.
References :
http://studentaid.ed.gov/students/attachments/siteresources/FundingEduBeyondHighSchool_0809.pdf
March 2nd, 2009 at 9:34 am
I wouldnt suggest Univer of Phx, it is very expensive, but I know going full time and "getting it over with" is probably not an option or you would have already been going full time. But I would try and add one or two more online classes if you can then that way you may get done a little quicker. Here is a link to the federal student loan program, it will answer all your questions, I wouldnt take out a personal student loan to save my life especially since you already get some financial aid the Stafford loan should cover the rest. Good luck!
References :
http://www.staffordloan.com/