<p>Hey guys!</p>
<p>I'm attending Cal State Fullerton this coming Fall, and I had a quick question that I haven't been able to find the answer to anywhere online.</p>
<p>When the Stafford loan gets disbursed, it's done in two installments, one in the fall and one in the spring. Each disbursement is equal. Is there any way that you can ask for more of the money in fall and less in the spring? I'm probably going to need around 70% of the loan for the fall and only 30% in the spring, but the default installments are 50/50. Has anybody done this before? Or know if it's possible to do?</p>
<p>Thank you so much for your help</p>
<p>Whatever amount you have received is divided into equal installments per semester. I don’t believe you can take more in the fall than in the spring. </p>
<p>No, you cannot. if you take none in the fall, you can take it all in the spring, the whole year’s worth, through some quirk of the way the rules are, but you cannot get more than half in the fall. It’s a bummer for those finishing early and could say, use the full allotment in the fall as they have no spring. Better they take off the fall and then they can get the full amount in the spring.</p>
<p>Ah, bumber. Thanks for the help guys</p>
<p>My D’s fall semester payment is due in August (she’ll be a Freshman). I plan to pay the full amount (after her merit aid) out of pocket. The spring semester payment is due sometime in December. Can she take the full amount ($5,500) out for the spring semester even though the tuition is due in December 2014?</p>
<p>Yes, she can. Be aware however, that if the tuition by certain due dates, there can be late charges. That’s something you have to take up with the Bursar’s office–sometimes if the loan app is in the system but the money is not yet in, they’ll extend the deadline, but that’s up to that office’s procedures. </p>
<p>You can pay for the whole year and get reimbursed at the very last minute with the full Direct Loan (student and/or parent) as long as COA rules are observed. You can get the whole year’s amount at the end of second semester. I want to caveat this, however, with a warning that you had better check with your school fin aid office if THEY permit this administratively. The federal government doesn’t care–I think June is the deadline for getting the prior year moneys, but a school might have their own administrative rules and processes and you do need their cooperation in doing this, though not much, IMO. But it is possible that they don’t want to be bothered and have their own rules on timing and deadlines.</p>
<p>^^Thank you. So let’s say the tuition is due for the Spring semester on 12/15/14, and go into the FASFA site and complete the necessary steps for the unsubsidized loan on 12/01/14, would that provide enough time for the loan to process and be disbursed? But you’re right…probably best to contact schools FA office and let them know what I’m trying to do.</p>
<p>I have done this personally, and for my son’s school, it takes about about a week, even less if you catch the date and time that the computer info is dumped–the govt does NOT just process YOU, nor does the school, so when the info gets transmitted after you do your end, and the school get gets that day’s info dump does comes into play. You already have your FAFSA submitted–nothing you have to do with that as it would be the FAFSA for the fall 2014-spring 2015 school year and you already have it on file. You go and apply for the loan and your student has to undergo the online info and "counseling’ session, check that off and fill out the MPN and push the send button. It only takes about 3 days max, in my experience for the feds to send the info over to the school, and then the fin aid office has to process it. How long that takes is up to that office. You can call and find out when they have it and when they expect to shoot the ok to the bursar’s office. It’s not like actual money is moved around, unless your son is looking for a cash disbursement, which even then just comes from the funds the college has on hand. Until the MPN is on file, nothing even going to move–that is Master Promissory Note with electronic signature that is need.</p>
<p>Does the student has to go into gov. site and apply for the stafford loans or its automatically comes since School already assigned it on the FA pkg. If they have to apply then do they have to Complete MPN and Counseling?</p>
<p>For Parent PLUS Loans does Parent has to complete Counselling and MPN also ?</p>
<p>For the Direct Loan, YES, the student is required to complete a MPN, and the loan counseling. </p>