Information about Loans
Students must be enrolled in and attending at least six (6) credit hours per semester at Cowley College to receive a Stafford loan. (Summer hours are calculated the same as any other semester. You still will have to have 6 hours to be eligible for a loan.)
How To Apply for a Direct Stafford Student Loan
- Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
- Complete financial aid file, returning all requested documentation to the Financial Aid Office (if selected for verification).
- Sign and return your Award Letter to the Financial Aid Office. Be sure to Accept or Decline all aid offered and complete the Student Responsibility Form on the back of it.
- Complete the online loan steps for Direct Stafford Loans. You must complete the Entrance Counseling (Undergraduate) and the Master Promissory Note (for subsidized/unsubsidized Stafford loans).
- For Additional Unsubsidized Stafford Loan funds, please check your Financial Aid portal for an application that you can fill out and submit online through your portal.
Once all of the above steps have been completed, the Department of Education (DOE) will send CCCC notification of a loan to certify for that student. The Financial Aid Office will process the loan. The Department of Education will send the first disbursement of the Direct Stafford loan to the college via EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer) according to the disbursement dates requested by the school. The DOE will notify the student of the loan details by mailing them a Disclosure Statement. Funds will be credited to the students’ accounts and will pay unpaid charges in the following order: tuition, fees, books, dorm and any other remaining charges. Any excess loan funds due to the student after the account is paid in full will be disbursed via paper check. (Students should maintain a current mailing address through TigerConnect.)
All student loans are processed in two disbursements. If the student is borrowing
for only one semester, the loan will be disbursed in two checks within that one semester,
with the second disbursement being at midterm. If the student is borrowing for the
academic year (two semesters) the loan will be disbursed in one check each semester.
Each disbursement will have an origination fee and a guarantee fee deducted by the
DOE.
A disbursement schedule will be provided in your Award Letter packet. The dates listed on the disbursement schedule are the dates the refunds will be mailed via papercheck. (The disbursement dates listed on the disclosure statement are the dates funds are made available to the school for processing) No refund will be released prior to the disbursement schedule dates. Loans processed after the initial disbursement schedule date will be disbursed every Friday thereafter.
All student loan borrowers are subject to the Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy established by Cowley. A copy is included with your Award Letter. Students who drop below 6 credit hours before a loan is disbursed, will not receive that disbursement. The loan will be returned to the lender and canceled.
Cowley policy on loan limits per academic year (two semesters): Freshman (1-30 completed hours) $3500 year. Sophomore (31-or more completed hours) $4500 year. If a student applies for a loan for a single semester, the maximum allowed will be ½ of the yearly limit.
If a student wishes to borrow less on a Stafford Loan than the amount offered on the Award Letter, simply write in the amount desired.
Additional Unsubsidized Direct Stafford Loan funds are available to “Dependent” and “Independent” students. To request Additional Unsubsidized Direct Stafford funds, complete the request form (step #5)and submit it to the Financial Aid Office. This can be done at the same time you return your original Award Letter. Maximum limit on Additional Unsubsidized Funds is $2000 per academic year for dependent students and $6000 per academic year for independent students. Eligibility for additional unsubsidized Stafford funds is determined on the students cost of attendance minus all other aid. Some students may not qualify for the full amount requested.