Applications for Federal Direct PLUS and Graduate PLUS loans are
processed online through the US Department of Education
Student Loan web site.
- The parent or graduate student borrower must sign in to the
website using their Federal Student Aid PIN (the same PIN that was
used to sign the student’s FAFSA) in order to apply. If the
borrower does not already have a PIN or has forgotten it, they can
obtain a new one by following visiting www.pin.ed.gov.
- Once signed in, the borrower must click on “Request a PLUS
Loan” to begin.
PLUS PROCESS CONSISTS OF FOUR EASY
STEPS:
Step 1: Personal Information: Personal
information of the parent or graduate student borrower.
Step 2: Student & Loan Info:
- Select 2011-2012 as the Award Year.
- Parent-borrowers only (not graduate students), enter the
information of the student for whom the loan is for.
- Select “NEW YORK” as the School State and “SAINT JOHN’S
UNIVERSITY” as the school name.
- Enter a requested loan amount.
- The borrower can choose to enter a specific amount they would
like to borrow or to borrow the maximum amount for which they are
eligible as determined by St. John’s University (this amount is
indicated in your Financial Aid award letter).
- If the borrower later determines that they do not need the
entire amount for which they applied, they may cancel or reduce an
un-disbursed loan at any time and may cancel or reduce a disbursed
loan within thirty days of the date of disbursement. St.
John’s Loan Change Form is available online at www.stjohns.edu/services/financial.
- The amount the borrower chooses to apply for will not affect
the result of the application.
- When choosing an amount, the borrower should borrow only what
is really needed and remember that loans must be repaid.
Step 3: Review Application
Step 4: Credit Check & Submit: Authorize the review of
credit history and submit the application.
Additional Step for New GradPLUS Borrowers
:
All new Direct Grad PLUS Loan borrowers must complete a separate
Grad PLUS Entrance Interview at www.StudentLoans.gov.
When will the borrower be notified of the
result of the application?
- The borrower will be notified immediately of the result.
- If approved, the borrower will be directed to complete a Master
Promissory Note (MPN) if they have not previously completed a PLUS
MPN.
What can the borrower do if PLUS loan is
not approved?
- If not approved, the borrower may choose not to pursue a
Federal Direct PLUS Loan. If the not approved borrower is the
parent of an undergraduate student, that student may be eligible
for additional unsubsidized Stafford Loan funds based on the result
of the application.
- If not approved, the borrower may elect to provide
documentation of extenuating circumstances and appeal the
decision. In this case, the borrower must provide contact
information and a representative of the Department of Education
will contact the borrowerwith further instructions.
- If not approved, the borrower can choose to obtain an endorser
with a more favorable credit history to act as a co-signer.
The endorser must complete a process, similar to the original
application, either online or through the mail. The online
process requires that the endorser have a Federal Student Aid
PIN. The not approved borrower will automatically be mailed a
paper Endorser Package. Both processes require that the
endorser know the Loan Reference ID which will be provided to the
not approved borrower via email or can be viewed by the not
approved borrower when they sign in to www.StudentLoans.gov.
How will the student receive the loan
funds?
- Once an application has been approved and a MPN has been
properly completed, the student will be given credit for the amount
approved for disbursement less all applicable fees.
- The approved amount will automatically be split equally between
the fall and spring semesters.
- Funds will be disbursed to the student’s account at the
beginning of each semester according to the disbursement schedule
of St. John’s University.
What fees, if any, are associated with
these loans?
For GradPLUS/PLUS loans, an origination fee of 4.0% will be
assessed and an up-front rebate of 1.5% will automatically be
awarded. To keep this up-front rebate, the borrower must make
their first twelve payments on time once entering repayment. The
net disbursement will reflect these fees; therefore, the amount
credited to the student’s account will be less than the loan
amount. This fee is determined by the U.S. Department of
Education.
Where can I learn about the various federal student loan
programs?
For more information, please visit the following websites:
For more information on debt management please visit the
following websites: