Private/Alternative Loans
In addition to the Direct Subsidized, Unsubsidized and Plus loan programs, several private lenders offer private student and/or parent loans. These loans are usually more expensive than the federal loans and the costs vary widely between programs. All of these lenders will review the borrower's credit history and most of them will require a loan cosigner. Students/Parents may borrow up to the Student's Cost of Attendance minus any other aid the student is receiving (including other student/parent loans).
Should you borrow a Private Loan?
Federal Direct, Subsidized, Unsubsidized and Plus loan programs will almost always offer lower borrowing costs than any private educational loan program. Due to higher borrowing cost, most students and families should not consider borrowing private student loans until they have exhausted their maximum federal student and parent loan eligibility.
You should consider a private loan if any of the following situations applies:
- The student or parent is unable to borrow federal student/parent loans because they do not meet the Federal Eligibility Requirements.
- The parents are willing to pay higher borrowing costs for the opportunity to borrow a parent loan that can be deferred while the student is in school.
- The student is responsible for financing his or her education, and he or she needs to borrow additional funds.
- The student or parent has exhausted their federal loan options and needs to borrow additional funds to meet the student's cost of education.
Deciding which lender you want to borrow from can be overwhelming. To help guide you, the link below will provide information to help you make an informed decision. This link will provide a list of participating lenders who offer alternative/private student loans for our students. We encourage you to look at each lender's website and research the funding opportunities that each offers. While you may choose any lender, our goal is to simplify the process and offer lenders with the best products, technology, and pricing available. If student chooses a lender other than what is offered in the FASTChoice link, processing by the school will not be denied or delayed.
If you have any questions about this process, please contact your financial aid office. The lenders provided through the FASTChoice link have a proven track record of providing good service and reasonable terms to our students. They also provide efficient online processing. All students are counseled to maximize their eligibility for federal student loans before considering any other student loan programs as those programs often provide the best terms, benefits and rights to students. Our financial aid staff is here to assist students in identifying financial assistance programs that work best for each individual.
Please be aware that when viewing FASTChoice, the alternative lender web pages, that you will be leaving the 十大正规平台 web site.