Obtaining a Loan

Paying for College
1

<p>How does one go about obtaining a loan, and from whom? Also, can one obtain a loan if one isn’t an American citizen (i.e., no Green Card)?</p>

2

<p>If you are a citizen or resident alien, you can qualify for the federal loan programs (Stafford, possibly Perkins) by completing the FAFSA.</p>

<p>Otherwise you will have to go to the banks, SallieMae, NelNet, TeriLoan, or other similar institution to apply for standard education loans.</p>

3

<p>If there’s no way you could qualify for need-based aid (i.e. annual bonus in excess of 4 yrs tuition for example) – but you still want the student to ‘own’ his education and pay for some of it via loans – what direction would you go in to look for a student loan?</p>

4

<p>Start with the FAFSA. Virtually everyone who fills out the FAFSA will get the unsubsidized (no payments in school, but interest accumulates) Stafford loan. It will be the cheapest money the student can get their hands on.</p>

<p>After that, I would check with SallieMae or Nelnet, the two largest student loan providers. They both have websites where you can apply.</p>

<p>It has been my experience that Nelnet has better customer service.</p>

<p>You will need to have a credit-worthy co-signer on the non-federal loans. The loan rates and terms are set by the credit-worthiness of the cosigner, since most students have no credit history.</p>

5

<p>Thank you very much.</p>