<p>Hello everyone! This is my first time posting on here, Ive tried before but my laptop doesnt like this site I guess, lol.</p>
<p>Anywho I need some info/advice on my situation. Im 21 and want to go to college. My parents are unable to help and within the past few years I have been able to build my credit to around 600-650, I know this because I have a car loan. I want to take out a one time loan of $10,000 to cover all my costs and living expenses (off campus in an apartment with my fiancee, which also goes to a cincinnati area college) while having a part time job and going to the University of Cincinnati, and yes I am in state. I have completed my FAFSA's and am eligible because of my parents for the full amount on my pell grant and an ohio grant. I really want to go to college and have worked hard (midnight shift in a factory for 2 years) to put myself in a position to better myself hopefully, but as with everything, money talks.</p>
<p>So I guess what Im asking is with my credit situation, will I be able to take out a student loan of that amount? When will the school and myself see the money? I know different lenders work differently so what would be the best for me?</p>
<p>Your first step is to ask the Financial Aid dept at the university. They are experts in putting together packages and they want to make it possible for you to attend.</p>
<p>First of all, congratulations on your decision to continue your education! It sounds like you have worked hard to get to this point.</p>
<p>Are you starting school in January? If so, you may not receive some of the grants you will probably get in the fall ... Pell eligible students often also receive SEOG and work study. Even if you don't get those this year (the pool of funding may be gone already), you will probably have some extra in your financial aid package in the fall. That will help for the long term.</p>
<p>As for now, you can borrow $5500 in Stafford loans (I assume you are a freshman). Because you are Pell eligible, I am pretty sure your eligibility will be for $3500 subsidized and $2000 unsubsidized Stafford (interest doesn't accumulate while you are in school for sub, but it does for unsub - you can roll it into the loan & pay interest on the interest). You only get one half of your annual eligibility each semester, though.</p>
<p>Your COA (financial aid budget set by the school) minus your aid (Pell, Ohio grant, Stafford loans, and any other aid the school awards you) is your eligibility for an alternative loan. You can't borrow more than that amount in an alt loan. The school has to certify the amount. Alt loans are REALLY hard to get right now, and the interest is usually pretty high. If you can get your parents to borrow a PLUS loan, the terms are better (you could always pay them back). If your parents apply for a PLUS and their credit is denied (which is happening a lot lately), you can borrow another $4000 unsubsidized Stafford.</p>
<p>A couple points to keep in mind: You must carry a full time credit load to get your full Pell grant eligibility (it is prorated if you are 3/4 time or 1/2 time by the school's definition). The Ohio grant may also have some kind of minimum credit requirement. Also, you must be at least 1/2 time (credit hours) to get your loans. If you are going to school for only one semester this award year, you can probably request a one-term only loan (they usually are disbursed 1/2 each term). This can sometimes result in a lower loan eligibility, though, due to the recalculations involved, so ask the financial aid office what they recommend in your case. Some schools will actually begin your aid year when you begin school, so this point may be irrelevant for you.</p>
<p>Im going next fall hopefully. Parents cant and will not help at all, so im on my own. They may be able to fly with the PLUS loan, since my credit score is better than theres it should be a guaranteed denial. On UC's site, a year at one of their off campuses Ill be going to the tuition is less than $5000 a year, not counting in books and such.</p>
<p>Yes. The financial aid office has a budget it uses to award aid. The budget includes amounts for living expenses. Your eligibility for aid is determined using the budget and your expected family contribution (computed from the FAFSA). Any money you are awarded in aid over & above what you owe the school for direct expenses is returned to you to be used for school-related expenses. These expenses include off campus room & board as well as personal expenses. You don't have to document those costs; it is assumed that students will use their aid to pay for these necessities.</p>
<p>So basically you tell them, well its going to cost me $500/mo to live, and they will figure out what to give you? If so thats cool. Kelsmom im still a little confused over the whole PLUS loan thing. Say I borrow the full $5500 in stafford loans, both subsidized and unsubsidized and my parents are denied the plus. I can borrow another $4000 unsubsidized on top of the $5500?</p>
<p>Each college sets a cost of attendance (COA) budget, based on average costs. Some schools use one budget for everyone, but others use different budgets based on whether a student lives on campus, with parents, or away from home/not on campus. You can find out the budget by looking on the school's financial aid website.</p>
<p>Yes, a denied PLUS allows you to borrow an extra $4000 as freshman & sophomore, and an extra $5000 as junior & senior - but your parents must apply & be denied each year. Basically, the denial allows a dependent student to borrow the amount of subsidized loans that an independent student can borrow. The extra awarded due PLUS denial does not count toward the dependent student aggregate borrowing limits (which will be important by the time senior year rolls around, if you are borrowing a lot).</p>
<p>If the total COA is only $10,500, you probably will not be able to take out a one time alternative education loan for $10,000. Total aid (pell, federal loans and most private educational loans) cannot equal more than the total COA for the year. Taking full pell and the student portion of the loan into consideration, you may not have any eigibility left. In fact, if you are eligible for full pell, you most likely will not qualify for the full $7500 in student loans either. If this is the case, then you would have to get a private, non-educational loan to help out. This type of loan wuld come from your loan bank or other lending institution and would not be based on your educational enrollment.</p>
<p>gcline06, you have a low COA compared to most on CC! NikkiiL is right ... you won't have your full loan eligibility if you have full Pell. The amount of your Pell grant is dependent on your COA (it's a sliding scale). Basically, the way it works is: COA - Pell - EFC = Remaining need for financial aid. If you have any other aid besides loans, that will be deducted before figuring out your loan eligibility. This amount will be your subsidized loan eligibility (up to $3500). If you don't have any eligibility, or if it's less than $3500, you can figure your unsubsidized loan eligibility by taking COA-Pell-all aid including sub loan (basically, leaving out EFC). Again, your total aid cannot exceed EFC. You won't get the full amount of loans for your year in school if you hit COA.</p>
<p>For example: Let's say your EFC = $1000. This year, Pell for that EFC is $3781 for the year (full time credits). COA = 10,500. 10,500-3781= 6719. You will be eligible to receive $3500 in sub loans (assuming no other aid). $6719-3500= $3219 ... but you can only get $2000 unsub in this case (max for year in school). 3219-2000=1219. $1219 would be your PLUS eligibility. If your parents were denied for PLUS, you could borrow $1219 additional unsub. This brings you to COA, so no more eligibility. Check it: 3781 Pell + $3500 sub loan + 2000 unsub loan + 1219 PLUS (or additional unsub) = 10,500=COA.</p>
<p>If EFC=0, Pell is 4731. 10,500-4731-0(EFC)=5769. You can receive $3500 sub loans. 5769-3500=2269. Your remaining loan eligibility is 2269, but you can only get $2000 unsub. You then have 2269-2000=69 remaining. You can't take out a loan for less than $200, so you have no further eligibility. You would be considered to be at COA.</p>