How to Apply for Federal Direct PLUS Loan for Students. Students and parents may avail of Direct Loans to help pay for the cost of a student’s education after high school. The lender is the U.S. Department of Education (the Department), though most of the contact will be with your loan servicer. Following is a procedure on how you can apply for a Federal Direct PLUS Loan for Students which is under the Direct Loans Program.
Procedure to Apply for Federal Direct PLUS Loan for Students
Completing a FAFSA
To apply for the loan, you must first complete a FAFSA or Free Application for Federal Student Aid.
Methods to file a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA):
- Online: faster and easier than using paper – Link
- By mail: If you need a paper FAFSA, you can download a PDF FAFSA or request a paper FAFSA by calling 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243) or 319-337-5665. If you are hearing impaired, contact the TTY line at 1-800-730-8913.
- You may also ask the financial aid office at your college or career school if you can file it there. Some schools will use special software to submit your FAFSA for you.
Completing and submitting a FAFSA isnt the last step; your FAFSA has to be processed, and then you get an Expected Family Contribution (EFC), which your college or career school uses to figure out how much aid you can get.
Checking the status of your application
For applications submit online, you may check the status of your FAFSA immediately after submitting it. For paper FAFSA, you will have to wait about 7 to 10 days before you can check the status of your application after it has been processed. Heres how you may check the status of your application:
- Option 1: Visit FAFSA.gov and log-in
- Option 2: Contact the Federal Student Aid Information Center.
If your FAFSA is still being processed, it will be better if you will wait a few days before checking the status again.
Student Aid Report (SAR)
The office of Federal Student Aid at the U.S. Department of Education will send you a Student Aid Report (SAR), which is a summary of the FAFSA data you submitted. You will receive your SAR within three days to three weeks after you submit your FAFSA. Once received, check your SAR to make sure you didnt make a mistake on your FAFSA.
The SAR wont tell you how much financial aid youll get. Instead, if you applied for admission to a college or career school and have been accepted, and you listed that school on your FAFSA, the school will calculate your aid and will send you an electronic or paper aid offer, sometimes called an award letter, telling you how much aid youre eligible for at the school. The timing of the aid offer varies from school to school and could be as early as springtime (awarding for the fall) or as late as immediately before you start school. It depends on when you apply and how the school prefers to schedule awarding of aid.
Applications for verification: You might see a note on your Student Aid Report saying youve been selected for verification; or your school might contact you to inform you that youve been selected. Verification is the process your school uses to confirm that the data reported on your FAFSA is accurate. Your school has the authority to contact you for documentation that supports the information you reported.
If youre selected for verification, does not mean youre being accused of any wrong doing. Some people are selected at random; and some schools verify all students’ FAFSAs. All you need to do is provide the documentation your school asks forand be sure to do so by the schools deadline, or you wont be able to get financial aid.
Accepting a Loan
The school’s financial aid office will provide instructions about their process for requesting a Direct PLUS Loan.
Your school will be the one to notify you of the loan amounts that it is being offered, usually in an “award letter” that lists all of your proposed financial aid awards (your award package).
You should evaluate the aid offer carefully. In the case of loans, keep in mind that whatever amount you borrow must be paid back with interest. If your living expenses are not as high as the standard allowance projected by your school, you may not have to borrow as much as the amount in the award letter.
- Repayment Calculator: To give you an idea of your monthly loan payments after you graduate.
- Budget Calculator: To give an idea of your college expenses.
You may decline the loan or to request a lower loan amount. In the award letter your school will tell you how to do this.
Additional steps you must take to receive your loan
Eligible applicants will be required to sign a Master Promissory Note (MPN), agreeing to the terms of the loan. Graduate or professional students will also be required to complete entrance counseling before receiving a PLUS loan. Contact the financial aid office at the school you (or your child, in the case of parent borrowers) are planning to attend for details regarding the process at that school.
Required Documents to Apply for Federal Direct PLUS Loan for Students
- Completed FAFSA
Office Locations & Contacts
Federal Student Aid Information Center:
- information about federal student aid programs
- help with completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid
- general information about your current federal student loans
Federal Student Aid Information Center (FSAIC): 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243)
TTY (for the hearing impaired): 1-800-730-8913
Locations without access to 800 numbers: 319-337-5665
Spanish speakers are available (se habla espaol).
Email: studentaid@ed.gov
Website
Call Center Hours:
- MondayFriday: 8 a.m.11 p.m. Eastern time (ET)
- Saturday: 8 a.m.5 p.m. ET
- Sunday: Noon6 p.m. ET
Eligibility to Apply for Federal Direct PLUS Loan for Students
To receive a Direct PLUS Loan, applicants must:
- be a graduate or professional degree student enrolled at least half-time at an eligible school in a program leading to a degree or certificate, or be the parent (biological, adoptive, or in some cases, stepparent) of a dependent undergraduate student enrolled at least half-time at a participating school; and
- meet the general eligibility requirements for federal student aid. If you are borrowing on behalf of your child, your child must also meet these requirements.
Note: PLUS loan borrowers cannot have an adverse credit history (a credit check will be done).
Documents to Use to Apply for Federal Direct PLUS Loan for Students
Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) – PDF
Instructions to Apply for Federal Direct PLUS Loan for Students
With Direct Loans, you:
- Will be able to borrow directly from the federal government and have a single contactyour loan servicerfor everything related to repayment, even if you receive Direct Loans at different schools.
- Will have online access to your Direct Loan account information via your servicer’s website.
- Can choose from several repayment plans, and you can switch repayment plans if your needs change.
Applying for Direct Loans: Like any other federal student aid, you apply for Direct Loans by filling out FAFSA or the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. Most students use FAFSA on the Web to complete their applications. The information on your FAFSA is transmitted to the schools that you list on the application, and those schools use the information to assess your financial need for student aid.
Award package: Direct Loans are generally awarded as part of a larger “award package,” which may contain other types of aid as well, to help you meet the costs of going to college or career school.
Loans offered through the Direct Loan Program:
- Subsidized: for students with demonstrated financial need, as determined by federal regulations. No interest is charged while a student is in school at least half-time, during the grace period, and during deferment periods.
- Unsubsidized: not based on financial need; interest is charged during all periods, even during the time a student is in school and during grace and deferment periods.
- PLUS: unsubsidized loans for the parents of dependent students and for graduate/professional students. PLUS loans help pay for education expenses up to the cost of attendance minus all other financial assistance. Interest is charged during all periods.
- Consolidation: Eligible federal student loans can be combined into one Direct Consolidation Loan.
Once your loan is approved, you are not required to begin making payments until after you drop below half-time attendance.
Your school will tell you how much you may borrow and the types of loans you are eligible to receive. Loan Limits
Required Information to Apply for Federal Direct PLUS Loan for Students
- Complete name, as it appears on your Social Security card
- Permanent mailing address
- Social Security Number
- Date of Birth
- Telephone number
- Your drivers license number and drivers license state (if you have one)
- Email address
- Marital Status
- Gender
- Some states and colleges offer aid based on the level of schooling your parents completed
