<p>Alright so I'm on my mom's FAFSA account on studentloans.gov trying to fill out the "Request Direct PLUS Loan" forms. It says that I can't receive a Direct PLUS Loan (which is the same thing as the Federal PLUS Loan, right?) if I have a Federal Perkins Loan. Yet, on my financial aid summary from NYU, it says that I'm receiving $2,400 from a Federal Perkins Loan as well as $19,000+ for a Federal PLUS Loan 1. But apparently that's not allowed...? I can't fill out this direct plus loan form until I check the box that confirms that I'm not "in default on any loan received under the Direct Loan Program, the Federal Family Education Loan Program, or the Federal Perkins Loan Program". If they're both not allowed, why is NYU giving me those loans together...?</p>
<p>Kalifornia,</p>
<p>are you sure you understood everything correctly? What they are asking you to confirm that your mom is not “in default” on any of the listed loans, which means that she did not fail meeting financial obligations on any of those loans. This is different from her having the loans.</p>
<p>“in default” means you (or your Mom in this case) have an outstanding loan that is not being repaid as it should be - i.e. is late or is not being paid at all. If your Mom is in default in any federal loan program, she won’t be able to borrow a PLUS loan. It has nothing to do with the Perkins loan that has been offered to you, the student.</p>
<p>Why are you filling out the PLUS loan application? It should be your Mom doing that. PLUS is a parent loan that will be your Mom’s responsibility to pay. I can’t imagine letting one of my kids do my loan application, especially for such a large loan.</p>
<p>You’re misunderstanding. You can have Perkins while your mom gets Plus.</p>
<p>However, is your mom fully aware that SHE’S responsible to pay back those huge Plus loans?</p>
<p>Is your mom going to pay back $80k in Plus loans? That’s a crazy amount of debt.</p>
<p>" I only got loans, LOL. Like 3,000 for work study and the rest is loans. I was expecting so much more because my mom’s single and she has no income."</p>
<p>Oh my…you only got loans for NYU? This is really a bad idea.</p>
<p>You were not given a DIrect PLUS loan. NYU was offering that as an option for your PARENT to explore in getting that money, not YOU. So your mom or dad have to apply for that loan and undergo and credit check to qualify. It is not an automatic “Get” like your PERKINS, and like the Stafford loan you most likely got. If your parent is turned down for the PLUS, you are allowed to get an additional $4K in Stafford loans. </p>
<p>You absolutely should not be filling out the PLUS application unless your mother is sitting right there with you. THat is fraud. She needs to complete the loan and the MPN certifying it. It will go on HER credit record, and SHE is responsible for paying it, not you. </p>
<p>I disagree vehemently and despise those schools that package financial aid so that it looks like the student is getting something when they are not. NYU should have made it clear that the PLUS loans are out there for ALL parents who qualify to borrow money up to COA less any other loans, aid and scholarships. Yes, any parent of a student can borrow from PLUS even if the students do not qualify for financial aid (I should say, especially if their students do not qualify for financial aid). But the parents have to qualify via credit check in order to get the loan.</p>
<p>If your mother does not make it through the credit check, then she does not qualify for that loan. But it is not part of the financial aid package and it was deceptive of NYU to package it that way.</p>
<p>How much are you borrowing? It sounds like way too much debt, especially if your Mom is low income. It does not sound like you can afford this school.</p>
<p>Sorry, I understood that the PLUS Loan is for my mom and not me. I just didn’t word it correctly. I know my mom is supposed to be filling it out; I just did it because she tells me to do everything and understands everything much less than I do. But I’ll ask her to help me out tonight, since I’m a bit confused by what it’s saying anyway. Thank you for clearing everything up for me, everyone! </p>
<p>Mom2collegekids - $80K? What do you mean? And yeah, only loans… I don’t know why they didn’t give us more money (but then again NYU is known for their lack of generosity with financial aid -__-), but my mom seems to not worry about it for some reason. </p>
<p>For this school year, we’re borrowing around $30K. It used to be $62K but my mom is using all the money from the 529 plan for this year.</p>
<p>Edit - Another question… I’m trying to complete the MPN, but I’m not sure what I have to click on. It says “Select the type of Direct Loan you would like to receive” and then the options are “Subsidized/Unsubsidized”, “Graduate PLUS”, and “Parent PLUS”. I choose the subsidized/unsubsidized option and fill out the MPN, and then my mom has to sign in and fill out her own MPN for the Parent PLUS/Direct PLUS Loan option, right?</p>
<p>So your mom is going to borrow in excess of 200k for a NYU degree (over 4 year period)? And she understands less about everything less than her teen-age daughter? Of course she is not concerned about borrowing this much!</p>
<p>Since she trusts you, you need to explain to your mom that what she is doing is very unwise. Then you need to figure out a more affordable plan, which will probably include taking a gap year and finding more affordable school.</p>
<p>Have you talked to your mother? This sounds like a very bad plan and one that might not be sustainable for four years. But yes, the Parent PLUS is your mother’s loan so she would need to complete the information.</p>
<p>Mom2collegekids - $80K? What do you mean? A</p>
<p>the fact that you have to ask this is proof that you have no idea of what you’re doing. If your mom has to borrow $19k for your freshman year, then how much will she have to borrow for your 4 years??? And, now that you’ve added that she would have had to borrow MORE, but she used money from a 529, then the situation is even WORSE!!</p>
<p>I doubt that your mom can afford to pay back over $100k in loans. and if you’re planning on paying them back (along with $30k in Direct and Perkins), then that is just nuts…you won’t be able to do it.</p>
<p>How much do you think you’ll be earning when you graduate?</p>
<p>You can’t afford this school. Period.</p>
<p>* I don’t know why they didn’t give us more money*</p>
<p>I’m guessing that it’s because your stats weren’t high for NYU. NYU is generous to those who have high stats…and generally gives nothing to the others.</p>
<p>WHY isn’t your mom concerned about this? Is she under some mistaken idea that you’re going to be earning a high 6 figure salary when you graduate?</p>
<p>I know, I’m worried too, but my mom says we can afford it. She doesn’t have a job but she has enough money from investments. I would love to transfer to another school but she refuses to pay for me if I don’t go to NYU. </p>
<p>So, I’m not sure if anyone answered my question… Does my mom and I have to fill out our own MPNs (unsubsidized loan for me and the parent plus loan for her)?</p>
<p>It does not sound like your mom has enough money from investments. If she did, she would not have to borrow this much. </p>
<p>I understand that you really are not the one making a decision here. If your mom wants to borrow this much, it is certainly her business. However, at least please make sure that YOU do not borrow more than federal direct loan limits. In other words, do not take out private loans in your name. </p>
<p>If at some time in the future your mom will ask you to get private loans, you need to be prepared to transfer to a public U to which you will have to commute.</p>
<p>kalifornya, I agree with Lerkin. If your mom is convinced this is what she is going to do and nothing will sway her then it financially doesn’t impact you as the Parent Plus loans are loans “against” the parent. However, I totally support the idea that you should NOT take out any additional loans in your name other than the Federal Direct loans. If you were awarded a Perkins loan also, then it’s possible you are already taking out slightly more loans yourself than kids who only have the Subsidized/Unsubsidized loans.</p>
<p>Something’s not adding up here. If the mother has enough investments to make her feel comfortable taking on huge debt, how can OP qualify for a Perkins loan?</p>
<p>Kali…</p>
<p>What was your FAFSA EFC???</p>
<p>This makes no sense to me either. Perkins Loans usually go to PELL eligible students. But I will go with the info the student is given.</p>
<p>The PLUS is totally your mothers, and will use her PINs and hers only. You are not even supposed to be involved in the situation other than in an advisory nature. THis is a serious amount to borrow and we are talking major federal fraud here if you do not do this properly. If I were a fin aid officer, I would shut this down right now if I got a whiff of it. If your mother doesn’t understand all of this, she needs to go to NYU financial aid and have them sit down and go through it with her.</p>
<p>The PErkins and PLUS are totally unrelated. Have to be and if there is a whiff that you are doing both, you will be shut down. If she is not competent to do this, she is not competent to take out the loan. </p>
<p>Did you not get PELL with zero income? Also with investments, there is income? Are you from NY? You are eligible for TAP if your mother is low income. Also why are you not getting Stafford? You generally will get full Staffords before getting Perkins. A lot of this is not making any sense at all.</p>
<p>Oh goodness, I’m getting extremely confused here, mainly due to the fact that I don’t understand most of this financial aid stuff… My financial aid summary says there is Federal work study, federal perkins loan, stafford loan, unsubsidized loan, and a federal plus loan. Bad, right? Please ignore anything I say about our income or investments, because I’m completely confused by all of this and I’m probably giving the wrong information about our financial situation. All I know is my mom doesn’t have a job but she does have investments.</p>
<p>Mom2collegekids - I don’t know my EFC. I remember using an EFC calculator a year ago and it was 0, but I probably put the wrong information in. </p>
<p>Cptofthehouse - Don’t worry, I haven’t even done anything with the Plus loan. My mom did everything. We’ve had bad experiences with everyone we’ve talked to on the phone though - everyone was inpatient and rude and everything’s starting to get a little bit frustrating. There is a Stafford loan and I am not from New York.</p>
<p>Perkins loans can be offered for a number of reasons. We got offered one the year i was a dislocated worker and not even close to being Pell eligible. Hopefully the mom understands now what she signed up for, because the PLUS she signed is for one year only and she will need to qualify for this in year 2,3 and 4.</p>
<p>Your FA pkg is horrible.</p>
<p>Your EFC must be over 5000 since you didn’t get a Pell Grant. Get ahold of the results from your FAFSA (your SAR report) and see what your EFC is. </p>
<p>Please, ask your mom how much income she gets each year from her investments. You should know this because that’s what will be used to make the payments on those Plus loans. I know that the Plus loans are really just your mom’s problem, but it seems that she isn’t thinking clearly. </p>
<p>Your mom will end up with nearly 200k in Plus loans at this rate. 20 + 50 + 50 + 50</p>
<p>Do you (and your mom) realize that the payments on those loans will be $2000 a month for 10 years? Or, if she pays a “lump sum” from her investments, that means quite a huge cut into her investments…then what will she live on? </p>
<p>Going to NYU is such a horrible plan. You got no REAL aid and you’re going to end up with massive debt.</p>