Financial Aid
	Cost of attendance
	Student payment & parent payment
	What financial aid is available
	How to apply for financial aid
	How to apply for the Cal Grant
	How to apply for a student loan
	Deadlines for applying for aid
	FAQ
	Guidelines for international students seeking financial aid
	Financial Aid Forms
	Tax credits for higher education
	Refund policy, parental notification, privacy policy and other consumer information
	How to contact the financial aid office

Recommended Lender List

What You Must Do

To borrow a Stafford Student Loan, you must complete a loan application on-line. You can complete a Stafford Student Loan application on-line by visiting the website of any participating lender.

This is a partial list of lenders who participate in the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) program. To make the process of selecting a lender easier for you, Thomas Aquinas College has chosen four lenders to be on our recommended lender list. In creating this list, we have considered pricing and service.

Pricing: Our recommended lenders offer competitive benefits, such as interest rate reductions for borrowers who sign up for electronic payments.

Service: These lenders have all agreed to work within our processing system to ensure a quick turnaround time. In our selection process we also take into consideration any feedback from our students regarding the level of service they have received. The lenders on our recommended lender list have a history of providing excellent customer service.

You are welcome to use a lender who is not on this list.

If you received a Stafford Student Loan in a prior year, we recommend you stay with the same lender to avoid multiple monthly payments when you enter repayment after college. If you are not eligible for a Stafford Student Loan, there are many other resources available, such as alternative student loan products provided by many banks. If you have any questions about these loan products or our student loan procedures in general, please call the Financial Aid Office at 800-634-9797, extension 5936.

The Basics About Stafford Loans

To be eligible for a Stafford Student Loan, you must be in good standing with your school, be making satisfactory academic progress, be a U.S. citizen or eligible noncitizen, be working toward a degree or certificate at least half-time, and have no unresolved defaults or overpayments owed on Title IV educational loans or grants.

• Repayment is not required until six months after you leave school or drop below half-time status.
• The interest rate is a fixed 6.0% for subsidized loans, 6.8% for unsubsidized loans, less any lender-specific interest reductions.
• Prepayment may be made at any time without penalty.
• Payments may be deferred, extended, or reduced in cases of economic hardship.

Stafford loans can have an origination fee of up to 1.0% that is paid to the lender to offset program costs and a default fee of up to 1.0% that is paid to the agency that insures the loan. As a consequence, total loan fees may be as high as 2.0%. Thomas Aquinas College's primary guarantor for new borrowers, TGSLC, is offering to pay the student's default fee for the 2008-09 school year, so that will reduce aggregate loan fees on Stafford Student Loans to 1% for the 2008-09 school year.

Subsidized Stafford loan eligibility is based on financial need as determined by the federal need analysis (Thomas Aquinas College uses a different need analysis to determine your eligibility for institutional aid). If you qualify for a subsidized loan, the federal government will pay the interest until you begin repayment. With an unsubsidized loan, interest begins to accrue while you are in school. Interest on an unsubsidized loan may be paid quarterly, or accrued until the borrower enters repayment.

If you have limited eligibility for the subsidized Stafford loan, you may apply for the unsubsidized Stafford loan. It is possible to receive both a subsidized and an unsubsidized Stafford loan for the same period. The total of your combined Stafford loans may not exceed the annual loan limits for your year in school.

Disbursements are made by check, usually in two installments, one each semester. The College will notify you when funds are received.

The Master Promissory Note, or MPN, is a contract between you and the lender. It's a promise to repay the loan and an agreement to the terms and conditions of the loan. Before signing, be sure to read the MPN carefully, along with the instructions and your rights and responsibilities as a borrower. You only need to complete the MPN the first time you borrow. The MPN remains active for 10 years. You will need to complete a new MPN, however, if you change lenders, and you may need to complete a new MPN if you transfer to a different school. Each year you must complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) so that the College may determine your eligibility for a Stafford loan.

Your loan amount each year is determined by the loan amount agreed upon in the award letter that you sign and return to Thomas Aquinas College (the "Payment Plan & Promissory Note"). You may request additional loan amounts, if you are eligible, by completing a "Loan Adjustment Form" which is available from the Financial Aid Office.

1. Student completes the Master Promissory Note (MPN) on-line through the lender's website.
2. The College is notified by the lender that the student has completed his application on-line and the College certifies the loan amount with the lender.
3. Lender processes the loan amount requested.
4. Lender deducts fees, if any, and sends check to Thomas Aquinas College (half each semester).
5. The College verifies student's status and asks student to endorse the check for loan proceeds.
6. The loan check is posted to the student's account for tuition, room and board.

Students are required to begin repaying their Federal Stafford Loan six months after they graduate, leave school or drop below half-time attendance. Borrowers generally have 10 years to repay these loans. Under a level repayment plan, the monthly payment would be at least $50. For example, the monthly payment on $15,000 in Stafford loans with an interest rate of 6.0% would be $167 under a 10-year level repayment plan. A 6.8% interest rate on an unsubsidized Stafford Loan would render a monthly payment of $173 if the interest is paid while the student is in school.

There are other repayment options: Many lenders offer flexible repayment options that allow student borrowers to increase their payments gradually over time or tie the size of their monthly payments to their income. Students can learn more about these options by contacting their lender.

If borrowers experience economic hardship or other circumstances that limit their ability to repay their loan, they might qualify for a deferment or a forbearance. A deferment allows eligible borrowers to postpone payments for certain reasons for as long as they are enrolled on at least a half-time basis in a postsecondary school, graduate fellowship, or rehabilitation training program. Deferments of up to three years also are available if borrowers are unemployed.

Borrowers who do not qualify for a government-approved deferment can request a forbearance from their lender. A forbearance can delay or reduce monthly payments. Usually, however, borrowers must still pay the interest on their loan during a forbearance period.

Please note: Borrowers who fail to repay their loan will be considered in default. If this occurs, their credit rating will be damaged, and they may not be able to borrow in the future to pay for a car, a home, or even continue their education. Their wages may be garnished, and their federal and state income tax refunds may be withheld. Their loan may be sent to a collection agency, and they will be liable for collection fees.

If you have any questions, please call the Financial Aid Office at 800-634-9797, extension 5936. We would be happy to help you.