<p>hi guys, i was wondering if anyone's got any experience/opinion on this. i guess i'm more interested in hearing about private loans, as opposed to the schools' own institutional loans.</p>
<p>are loans a feasible option for someone like me whose parent contribution is quite a bit more than what my family can actually afford to pay (looking at around $3000+ a year)?</p>
<p>would taking out a private loan of such an amount affect my visa application?</p>
<p>Taking out a loan will not affect your visa application. For the visa you will only have to demonstrate that you can afford to attend a college in the US - if you get that money from savings or from relatives or from a bank does not matter to the American government.</p>
<p>There are two more questions to consider:</p>
<p>Firstly, can you handle a loan in that order of magnitude? That mostly depends on your plans after graduation. How much are $3,000 where you intend to live? I know that having $20,000 in loans is not that big of a deal in the US or Western Europe, but it might be in countries where the currency is a lot weaker.</p>
<p>Secondly, can you get such a loan? To get a loan in the US as an international student you will most likely need an American cosigner. Do you know somebody who might be willing to cosign your loan? Is getting a loan from your home country an option?</p>
<p>YAY b@r!um! i'll go post at your appreciation thread when i've got time :)</p>
<p>honestly i'm not too sure about my post-grad plans. i might go to grad school, but i'm definitely working for a few years before that. where i intend to live remains to be seen. i hope i can stay in the US, but given the whole competition for visas and stuff (as i've read in your other posts), i'm not sure how it's gonna turn out for me. my home country's currency is pretty weak compared to the US dollar, but i don't think i'll be staying there. again, i have to emphasize that i have hardly any idea what's really going to happen after i graduate from college.</p>
<p>i think i'll be able to get an American co-signer. not that much of a problem for me. OH and i hadn't thought about getting a loan from my own country, i'll certainly look into that, thanks! can you tell me some of the advantages of getting it from my home country as opposed to the US?</p>
<p>have you got loans in your aid package, btw, b@r!um?</p>
<p>Yes, I do have loans in my fin aid package (though they come directly from the college). </p>
<p>You could think about where the real interest rates (nominal interest rate minus rate of inflation) are lower and get a loan from that country, however future developments in currency exchange rates might ruin that deal. If you don't want exchange rates to be an issue, it is safer to get the loan in the country you intend to live afterwards. You could also think about where your loan would be more flexible. Do you get a fixed repayment schedule at the time you sign up for the loan, or do you have the option to repay your loan over whatever long or short period you want to?</p>
<p>I can't think of any great advantages that getting a loan from your home country might have, so I getting the loan in the US seems the better option taking exchange rates into account.</p>
<p>limitedvocab, have you negotiated your fin aid package with your colleges?</p>
<p>b@r!um: Thanks for the advice. I think I read somewhere that you'll be getting your green card soon, so I don't know if you can help me out too much with this, but what are your thoughts on non-residents incurring a debt of around $20000 after graduation? Have you ever heard of people who have struggled/are struggling to keep up with repayments?</p>
<p>YOU: I've emailed the fin aid people and they told me I can ask for a reconsideration if any of these circumstances apply to me:</p>
<p>-Loss of employment or change of employment status for student, student’s spouse, or parents </p>
<p>-Divorce or separation of spouse or parent </p>
<p>-Death of spouse or parent </p>
<p>-Loss of untaxed income (social security, pension, etc.) </p>
<p>-Expenses associated with care of elderly parent </p>
<p>-Unusual medical or dental bills or handicapped-related expenses </p>
<p>-One-time payment that over- inflated your annual income </p>
<p>-Elementary or secondary school tuition for learning-disabled or handicapped child </p>
<p>-Sibling of student entering college at considerable cost (unknown at the time of application) </p>
<p>-Incorrect financial information noted on aid application</p>
<p>As far as I know, all of them don't apply to my family, but I've asked my parents to check again. It doesn't seem to me that I'll be able to negotiate my aid package though.</p>
<p>Hmm..after thinking twice.. there's also the factor of the declined US currency since last December.. so sending similar financial documents and asking for reconsideration may not be the best thing to do.. Sorry for saying contradicting things..</p>
<p>YOU, that's a good point - the declined US currency makes it not a good deal to have to (re)apply for aid right now.</p>
<p>limitedvocab, my thoughts on nonresidents incurring debt: if your ability to repay the loans does not depend on being able to work in the States after college, go ahead. Otherwise you should be extremely careful.</p>
<p>All right. I shall certainly keep that in mind.</p>
<p>Thanks for all your help b@r!um (and YOU as well, lol)</p>
<p>limitedvocab ...where did u get into?? I forgot and I am too lazy :D</p>
<p>lol, Mount Holyoke.</p>
<p>waitlisted at Conncoll.</p>