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Few students can afford to pay for law school without some form of educational loan. Scholarships, work-study and other forms of aid typically do not cover the cost of a law school education. Many students find they must supplement their savings and scholarship assistance with educational loans. Ave Maria School of Law participates in the Federal Direct Loan Program which includes the Federal Direct Loan and the Federal Direct Grad PLUS Loan. General Loan Information
- Loans must be repaid.
- Always borrow conservatively. Develop a budget on which you can live reasonably and frugally. Make sacrifices to avoid all unnecessary expenditures. Remember, you will only be in law school for a short time. Sacrifice now while you are a student, so you do not have to when you are no longer a student.
- Generally, you will repay $3 for every $1 that you borrow. Only borrow what is absolutely necessary.
- Keep copies of all loan forms you have signed and all correspondence from your lender.
Federal Direct Loan The Federal Direct Loan Program offers unsubsidized loans to graduate students. Eligibility for the unsubsidized Loan is not based on financial need; students are responsible for interest that accrues on the loan from the time the loan funds are disbursed until the loan is repaid in full. You may choose to pay the interest while you are in school to reduce your final repayment amount. Otherwise, you may choose to capitalize the interest, which means to defer interest payments while enrolled in school and let the accrued interest be added to the loan principal, thus increasing the amount that must be repaid.
Terms
- Annual Borrowing Limit – Graduate students may borrow up to $20,500 each academic year.
- Aggregate Borrowing Limit – Graduate students may borrow up to an aggregate total of $138,500 including undergraduate loan amounts.
- Interest rates – The interest rate for the Federal Direct Loan is fixed for the life of the loan, but each July 1, the interest rate will be recalculated for new loans by the U. S. Dept. of Education based on the previous May’s auction of the 10 year Treasury bill. The interest rate on Federal Direct loans is fixed at 7.05% as of July 1, 2023. Interest starts accruing on this loan at the time of disbursement.
- Origination Fee – An Origination Fee of 1.059% will be charged. The fee goes to the federal government to help reduce the cost of the loans.
- Repayment – Federal Direct Loan repayment begins six months after you graduate, or are no longer enrolled at least half-time.
- Master Promissory Note – If you are borrowing a Federal Direct Loan for the first time, you must complete a Master Promissory Note online. The Master Promissory Note that you sign will be used for all of your subsequent Federal Direct Loans at the Law School. You will not need to sign a new promissory note for each academic year, nor will you sign a new note if you decide to change the amount of your Direct Loan.
- Disclosure Statements – The Master Promissory Note does not list the amount of your loans. When each loan is disbursed you will receive a Disclosure Statement from the U. S. Dept. of Education listing the amounts and types of your Direct Loans. You will receive a new Disclosure Statement for each new loan that you borrow, and if any changes are made to the amount of your loans. Be sure to keep your Disclosure Statements as a record of the loans you have received at the Law School.
- Entrance Counseling – If this is the first time that you have borrowed a Federal Direct Loan, you are required to complete an Entrance Counseling Session to inform you of your rights and responsibilities as a borrower. Your loan funds will not be disbursed to the Law School until you have fulfilled this requirement. The Entrance Counseling Session may be completed online.
Grad PLUS Federal Loans The Federal Direct Grad PLUS Loan is a fixed interest, non-need based loan. In order to be eligible, the student borrower must not have an adverse credit history; otherwise, the student can apply with an endorser (co-signer) whose credit history will be considered. Ave Maria School of Law bears no responsibility for the financial support of students who have been denied Federal Direct Grad PLUS Loans for reason of credit, default, bankruptcy, or other financial problems.
Terms
- Annual Borrowing Limit – Graduate students may borrow up to the cost of attendance minus all other financial aid received including Federal Direct Loans.
- Aggregate Borrowing Limit – None.
- Interest rates – The interest rate for the Federal Direct Grad PLUS Loan is fixed for the life of the loan, but each July 1, the interest rate will be recalculated for new loans by the U. S. Dept. of Education based on the previous May’s auction of the 10 year Treasury bill. The interest rate is fixed at 8.05% as of July 1, 2023. Interest starts accruing on this loan at the time of disbursement.
- Origination Fee – An Origination Fee of 4.236% will be charged. The fee goes to the federal government to help reduce the cost of the loans.
- Credit Check – Borrower cannot have an adverse credit history. Adverse credit is defined as being 90 days or more delinquent on any debt, having a credit report that shows bankruptcy, default, discharge, foreclosure, repossession, tax lien, wage garnishment or write-off of a Title IV debt during the 5 years preceding the date of the credit report. Lack of credit history or insufficient credit history is not considered adverse credit.
- Repayment – Federal Direct Grad PLUS Loan repayment can be delayed until six months after you graduate, or are no longer enrolled at least half-time.
- Master Promissory Note – If you are borrowing a Federal Direct Grad PLUS Loan for the first time, you must complete a Master Promissory Note online. The Master Promissory Note that you sign will be used for all of your subsequent Direct Grad PLUS Loans at the Law School. You will not need to sign a new promissory note for each academic year nor will you sign a new note if you decide to change the amount of your Direct Loan.
- Disclosure Statements – The Master Promissory Note does not list the amount of your loans. When each loan is disbursed you will receive a Disclosure Statement from the U. S. Dept. of Education listing the amounts and types of your Direct Loans. You will receive a new Disclosure Statement for each new loan that you borrow, and if any changes are made to the amount of your loans. Be sure to keep your Disclosure Statements as a record of the loans you have received at the Law School.
- Entrance Counseling – If this is the first time that you have borrowed Federal Direct Grad PLUS Loans, you are required to complete an Entrance Counseling Session to inform you of your rights and responsibilities as a borrower. Your loan funds will not be disbursed to the Law School until you have fulfilled this requirement. The Entrance Counseling Session may be completed online.
Private Education Loans There are a variety of private education loan programs available. These loans are also known as alternative loans. Interest rates, repayment terms, and credit criteria vary from lender to lender. We strongly encourage you to consider borrowing through the Federal Direct Loan Program (Federal Direct Loan and Federal Direct Grad PLUS Loan) before you decide to borrow a private education loan. The interest rates on the Federal Direct Loan and the Federal Direct Grad PLUS Loan are fixed. The interest rate on private education loans are variable, adjusting over the life of the loan. Although these variable interest rates may be low now, they may exceed the fixed interest rates of the federal loans over time. Private education loans cannot be consolidated with federal student loans into a Federal Consolidation Loan. Unlike federal student loans, private education loans are not eligible for loan forgiveness under the Income-Based Repayment Plan.