Grad Plus Information Page

Graduate or professional students are now eligible to borrow under the PLUS Loan Program up to their cost of attendance minus other estimated financial assistance in both the FFEL and Direct Loan Program. The terms and conditions applicable to Parent PLUS Loans also apply to Graduate/Professional PLUS loans. These requirements include a determination that the applicant does not have an adverse credit history, repayment beginning on the date of the last disbursement of the loan, and a fixed interest rate of 8.5 percent in the FFEL program and 7.9 percent in the Direct Loan program. Applicants for these loans are required to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). They also must have applied for their annual loan maximum eligibility under the Federal Subsidized and Unsubsidized Stafford Loan Program before applying for a Graduate/Professional PLUS loan.

There are credit requirements for the graduate student loan, but no debt-to-income ratios or credit scoring are used. If you are denied based on adverse credit, you may obtain a creditworthy endorser who is secondarily responsible for the loan. The endorser must be a creditworthy U.S. citizen, permanent resident, or other eligible non-citizen.

The graduate student PLUS loan interest rate is a fixed rate of 8.5 percent, and some lenders offer discounts on the rate. With high approval rates and a low, fixed student loan interest rate, this new Federal PLUS loan option gives graduate students and professional students an alternative to private student loans. Since private student loans often have variable interest rates, the fixed rate of the Grad PLUS loan allows for better debt management and can result in significant savings.