Federal Direct GradPLUS Loan Terms

Federal Direct GradPLUS Loans

• Maximum loan limit is the difference between your student financial aid budget and all other aid. For example, if you have a student budget of $75,800 and Stafford loans of $20,500, you can borrow a maximum amount of $55,300 (plus loan fees).
• Interest rate is fixed at 7.9%
• Loan fees are 4.0% and they are deducted from the loan amount prior to disbursement. You most likely will want to increase your loan amount by the deducted fees. We will increase your budget for the fee amount and process the loan at the higher amount. For example if you decide you'd like to borrow the full $55,300 the fee would equal $2,212. You would add the $2,212 to the $55,300 for a total loan amount of $57,512.
• You will have a six month post enrollment deferment and your first payment will be due in the seventh month after the last day of class in the year you graduate or withdraw from the University.
• You must pass a credit check and not have adverse credit. You are considered to have an adverse credit history if you are 90 or more days delinquent on any debt or if, within 5 years of the date of the credit report, you have been the subject of a default determination, bankruptcy discharge, foreclosure, repossession, tax lien, wage garnishment, write-off of a Federal Student Aid debt (for example, a Federal Direct Loan), or an open collection account.
• You must complete a Direct GradPLUS Loan application via our "forms" page.
• Federal benefits such as deferment, forbearance, consolidation, and death and disability apply to this federal loan program.
  • Deferment is a postponement of payment on a loan that is allowed under certain conditions such as enrollment in a degree seeking program.  No payment would be required while in deferment.
  • Forbearance is a postponement of payment on a loan, typically if the borrower doesn't qualify for a deferment and is unable to make payments for a reason such as poor health or unemployment. Even though interest continues to accrue during forbearance, using forbearance does not adversely affect your credit history. Your loan will remain in "good standing" and avoid default using this benefit.  You are eligible for up to 36 months of forbearance.
  • Consolidation is program by which you rewrite the terms of your federal loans to a weighted average.  
  • Death and Disability is a discharge from the obligation to repay a student loan