Federal GRAD Plus Loans
Federal Grad PLUS loans are available to help graduate/professional students finance any remaining educational costs not covered by other forms of student financial aid. The Grad PLUS is similar to the Parent PLUS program, as the terms and conditions include:
- A determination that the applicant does not have an adverse credit history.
- Repayment beginning on the date of the last disbursement of the loan.
- A fixed interest rate, determined on an annual basis from the Department of Education.
- An origination fee, from the Department of Education, that deducts a percentage of the loan amount each time a disbursement is made.
A significant difference between the Grad PLUS and Parent PLUS program is that the student is the borrower of a Federal Grad PLUS loan. The parent is not eligible to borrow this loan on their student's behalf at the graduate course level.
HOW TO APPLY
Graduate PLUS borrowers can apply for PLUS Loans for the upcoming year after mid-April.
-
File
the
required
Free
Application
for
Federal
Student
Aid
(FAFSA)
online.
You
will
need
your
FSA
ID
to
complete
this
process.
-
Download
and
complete
the
enrollment
worksheet
for
independent
students
on
the
financial
aid
forms
page
and
email
it
to
finaid@cslshb.com.
-
Determine
the
amount
of
PLUS
loan
needed
to
cover
the
cost
of
tuition
and
living
expenses.
-
Apply
for
the
Grad
PLUS
loan:
- Visit the FSA website.
- Click on the "log in" button.
- Sign in with your FSA ID.
-
Follow
instructions
to
submit
the
application.
-
Complete
the
entrance
counseling
requirement
as
a
graduate
student:
- Complete entrance counseling here.
- Click on the "log in" button.
- Sign in with your FSA ID.
-
Click
on
"complete
counseling"
and
follow
the
instructions.
-
Complete
the
Master
Promissory
Note
(MPN)
for
a
PLUS
loan,
if
approved:
- Visit the FSA website.
- Click on the "log in" button.
- Sign in with your FSA ID.
-
Follow
instructions
to
submit
the
MPN.
-
The
Department
of
Education
will
transmit
loan
application
information
to
BW.
- BW will finalize the loan through the Department of Education.
Federal Direct Grad PLUS Change Request Form
The Federal Direct Grad PLUS change request form should only be used to submit Federal Direct PLUS Loan change requests. When changing the amount of your Federal Direct PLUS Loan, please keep the following in mind:
-
Maximum
annual
loan
limit
- Cost of education less any other financial aid received by the student.
-
Borrowers
are
encouraged
to
budget
their
costs
for
the
entire
academic
year
when
determining
the
amount
of
PLUS
loan
needed.
-
Fees
- There is a loan origination fee from the Department of Education.
MORE INFORMATION
Federal Direct Graduate/Professional PLUS loans from the Department of Education - Detailed information on the loan program.
Federal loan consolidation - Information for Graduate/Professional PLUS borrowers who have PLUS loans with different lenders/servicers and wish to combine their PLUS loans into one new consolidation loan.
Federal ID Code
BW's
Federal
ID
Code:
003014