Schoolcraft College Financial Aid

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Financial Aid

Student Loans

All About Student Loans - PRINT, READ & KEEP FOR YOUR RECORDS

General Information
Loan deadlines
Loan counseling
Enrollment requirements
Loan periods
Loan amounts
Promissory note
Cancel or reduce your loan
Loan disbursement
Loan request form
Additional loan information

1. General Information

Student loans are a type of financial aid and require that you complete the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid). Stafford Loans are low-interest federal loans made by lenders to students attending at least half-time to help pay for their college education. These loans are borrowed money and must be repaid with interest after the student graduates or drops below half-time enrollment.

There are two types of Stafford Loans:

Subsidized - If you meet certain financial need (results of the FAFSA) criteria, the federal government will pay the interest on your loan while you attend school at least half-time and during the times when you qualify for an authorized deferment.
Unsubsidized - If you do not meet the financial need criteria to qualify for a subsidized loan, you may be eligible for the unsubsidized loan. For this loan, the federal government does not pay the interest on your loan. You are responsible for paying the interest. If you cannot make the interest payments, the interest can be added to your principal balance through a process called capitalization.

Failure to repay a student loan jeopardizes your future eligibility for financial aid and also impacts your credit worthiness for any future borrowing, including car loans, home mortgages or other consumer loans.

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2. Loan deadlines

Apply for financial aid using the FAFSA. Check the priority dates for award notification. Once the award process is completed, you may submit a loan request. Processing loan requests takes about 3 to 4 weeks. In order to have loan funds available for registration, start the financial aid process early. Loan funds may not be available if you submit your loan request within the 4 weeks prior to the start of the semester. Loans submitted on or after the first day of classes will be processed after semester balancing (about the 3rd week of class) and will not be available for registration.

The last day to submit a loan request (financial aid file must be complete and awarded):

Loans for	Submit by
Summer 2010	July 12, 2010
Fall 2010	September 30, 2010
Winter 2011	January 28, 2011
Spring 2011	May 20, 2011

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3. Loan counseling

Entrance counseling: You may complete online entrance counseling at StudentLoans.gov

If you have previously completed online entrance counseling at this website and indicated Schoolcraft College, you do not need to do it again.

Entrance counseling may be done from any computer with Internet access. You may use the computers at the Schoolcraft College Bradner library on the Livonia campus, at the Radcliff Center Library in Garden City or in the Office of Financial Aid. If you are a current student you may use the campus computer labs.

Exit counseling: At the end of the semester in which you graduate or when you stop attending at least half-time, you must complete an exit interview as required by federal regulation at StudentLoans.gov

To be eligible for a student loan at Schoolcraft College, you must be making satisfactory academic progress toward a degree or certificate program as defined by the Office of Financial Aid.

In general, you are required to 1) maintain a cumulative grade point average of 2.0, 2) successfully complete at least 67% of all Schoolcraft College credit hours attempted and 3) attempt no more than 150% of your official Schoolcraft College academic program credit requirement. These requirements are the main components of the policy. Detail here for the complete Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy.

If you have withdrawn, not completed, walked away and/or dropped your classes you may not meet the satisfactory academic progress criteria. Your financial aid eligibility may be terminated or you may be placed on probation. In either of these situations, you will not be eligible for a student loan.

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4. Enrollment requirements

You must enroll in at least 6 credit hours to be eligible to receive a student loan. If you take less than 6 credit hours, your loan must be cancelled and you will owe the college for the full amount of your unpaid tuition and fees (and any books/supplies charged to your account).

Your enrollment is checked at the time of application, at the time of disbursement to your student account and again when any unused balance is issued to you. You must be enrolled in at least 6 credit hours at each of these checks to be eligible for your student loan.

Please note: After your loan has been guaranteed and you have signed your promissory note, you will receive an award letter from Schoolcraft. The award letter lists the net Federal Stafford amounts awarded for each semester. You may register for classes upon receipt of the award email or when funds appear in your WebAdvisor account. The award letter serves as a temporary payment until your loan funds are received by the college and applied to your student account.

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5. Loan period

The following semester combinations are available for loan processing:

Summer 2010
Fall 2010
Fall 2010 and Winter 2011
Winter 2011
Spring 2011

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6. Loan amounts

Because we are concerned with the increasing debt level of our students, we encourage you to monitor your loan debt throughout your education and to borrow the minimum needed to cover your educational costs and therefore, reduce your loan payments later.

Your declared academic program and your earned credits in that program determine the maximum loan amount you can request per academic year.

All One-Year Certificate Programs (regardless of credits earned) and Associate Degree Programs with 1-25 earned credits. $5,500 for two semesters ($2,750 for one semester)
Associate Degree Programs with 26 or more earned credits. $6,500 for two semesters ($3,250 for one semester)

The final approved loan amount is determined by your financial need (as determined by the Office of Financial Aid), other financial aid and outside resources, program limits and loan amount requested. The school determines student eligibility for a federal student loan. If reasons are documented and explained to students in writing, the Office of Financial Aid may decline to certify an otherwise eligible loan application. In addition, a loan may be certified for an amount less than that for which the student would otherwise be eligible.

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7. Promissory note

All student loans require you to sign a promissory note which is the legal document saying you promise to pay back your loan. You must complete a Direct Loan Master Promissory Note in order for your loan application to be processed. The completion of your promissory note allows us to activate your student loan information and make it available for you to use during the registration period. This process is secure, easy and quick.

Students who elect not to complete an electronic Direct Loan Master Promissory note will have the option of completing a paper Master Promissory Note here in the Office of Financial Aid.

Please be advises that by completing a paper version of the Direct Loan Master Promissory Note, processing of your loan application may be delayed.

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8. Loan cancellation or reduction

You may decline your student loan at any time before the college receives the loan proceeds and incur no cost. If the loan proceeds are applied to your student account, the origination and default fees are non-refundable. Contact the Office of Financial Aid to reduce or cancel your loan.

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9. Loan disbursement and refund

All loans are issued in one disbursement per semester per the federal regulations. For the fall/winter loan, you will receive the first disbursement in the fall semester and the second disbursement in the winter semester. The loan fees that are charged by the Department of Education will be automatically deducted at the time of disbursement.

The college receives your loan proceeds by electronic funds transfer and applies them directly to your student account. The earliest the college will receive your semester loan funds from the Department of Education is 30 days after the first day of classes of each semester.

If you are still enrolled in at least 6 credits hours and are attending your classes, any remaining balance after payment of all charges on your student account will be mailed to you within 14 days after the college receives the proceeds. This means you will not receive your loan balance check until the 6th-7th week of classes each semester.

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