Financial Aid

College of Graduate Studies Financial Aid

Federal Direct Loan Program

Graduate students at Plymouth State University may be eligible for Title IV subsidized or unsubsidized Federal Direct loan funds. The annual eligibility for a graduate student is based on the average cost of attendance and the actual number of enrollment periods a student plans to attend for that year. The cost of attendance is based on the number of credits taken and number of enrollment periods. The maximum annual Federal Direct subsidized and unsubsidized loan amount available for a graduate student is $20,500 (effective July 1, 2007). No more than $8,500 of this amount may be in subsidized Federal loans.  Limits may apply based on program.

A subsidized Federal Direct loan is awarded on the basis of financial need (total cost minus estimated family contribution minus other financial aid). No interest is charged while you are in school at least half-time (three credits), during your grace period and during deferment periods.

An unsubsidized Federal Direct loan is not awarded on the basis of need. You’ll be charged interest from the time the loan is disbursed until it’s paid in full. If you allow the interest to accrue (accumulate) while you’re in school, or during other periods of nonpayment, it will be capitalized. This means the interest will be added to the principal amount of your loan at the time of repayment, and additional interest will be based on that higher amount.

An excellent source for more information on Federal graduate aid is the Department of Education’s Direct Loan Basics for Graduate and Professional Students.

DISBURSEMENTS: Graduate loan proceeds are disbursed by Student Account Services (formerly the Bursars Office) at the beginning of each enrollment period AFTER confirmation of course registration, number of credits and course start date.

More information on registration, cost per credit, refunds and billing may be found at the College of Graduate Studies webpage.

Graduate aggregate maximum Subsidized and Unsubsidized Direct Loans:  $138,500 - No more than $65,500 can be in subsidized loans.  The graduate debt limit ALSO includes federal student loans received for undergraduate study.

ACCESS TO GRADUATE LOAN PROGRAMS BEGINS THE ENROLLMENT PERIOD AFTER A STUDENT’S ACCEPTANCE INTO THE COLLEGE OF GRADUATE STUDIES. The following Steps provide guidance for processes required to access financial aid programs.  Details for each step are provided below. Be sure to contact our Financial Aid Team should you have questions.

Step 1

Apply for a Personal Identification Number (PIN) from the Department of Education, unless you have previously obtained one from a prior year’s online filing.

The PIN will then be used as an electronic signature on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Please retain your PIN in a secure place as this same number will be used throughout the remainder of your education for purposes of electronic signatures.

Step 2

Beginning January 1, complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for the upcoming academic year. PSU’s school code is 002591.

Read all instructions carefully and be sure your social security number, name (full names only), and birth date are correct. Print and save copies for your records. PSU draws in FAFSA data once a week.

NOTE: The FAFSA can be completed using estimated tax information, and updated with actual financial information once tax forms are completed. After your FAFSA has been submitted, you will receive a Student Aid Report (SAR) that will provide you with a copy of your FAFSA data. The FAFSA identifies an expected family contribution (EFC) based on Federal Methodology as established annually by the federal government.

Step 3

Paperless Process. Once PSU receives your FAFSA, if follow-up information is required, emails are sent to your PSU email account informing you of needed documentation.  Specific information needed is posted as Unsatisfied Requirement(s) in your myPlymouth account.  Aid eligibility (your award) is also identified though this process once a student is officially accepted into the College of Graduate Studies.  The Financial Aid Team’s electronic processes are our contribution to the university’s “GO GREEN” efforts.

The aid year begins with the summer quarter and ends with the spring quarter of the following year.  Please note that the award notification process will begin in May prior to the start of the academic year. Once all requested requirements have been satisfied, your application will be considered complete. Complete applications are reviewed and, if complete, awarded once a week.

Step 4

The federal government or PSU may select your FAFSA for a process called Verification.

If selected,  the PSU Financial Aid Team will post required documentation to your online myPlymouth account. Unless requested, do not forward any tax information to our office. Financial aid awards can only be determined after the verification process is complete, so be sure to return information requested as soon as possible. Requests for follow-up documentation can only be viewed through myPlymouth.

In order to be eligible for Federal Financial Aid, you must be making Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP). SAP for graduate students is defined as having successfully COMPLETED 75 percent of all graduate credits attempted.

Step 5

All graduate students are required to complete a Graduate Student Enrollment Status Form (PDF) annually stating the number of credit hours you plan to enroll during EACH enrollment period.  If your enrollment or program changes from what you originally indicate on the Graduate Student Enrollment Status Form any time during the year, you must provide written documentation of these changes to the Financial Aid Team so your Federal Direct Loan eligibility can be reviewed and adjusted, if necessary.  Failure to update this information may cause delays in delivery of loan funds or entire cancellation of loan disbursement.

Cost of Attendance (COA) – Your Federal Direct Loan eligibility is based on an average Cost of Attendance (COA), using an average of 4.0 credits per enrollment period. Please see the table below for an estimate of costs per term:  The Cost of Attendance includes billed (Tuition and Fees – College of Graduate Studies) and unbilled (books and personal living expenses) costs.

Enrollment for Academic Year 2011-2012	Non-Commuter (1)	Commuter (2)
1 Term	$8,200	$5,200
2 Terms	$16,400	$10,450
3 Terms	$24,550	$15,650
4 Terms	$32,750	$20,900

(1) A non-commuter does not live with parents, is not married or if married, is the sole wage earner in the family, and their spouse is not enrolled in college.

(2) A commuter lives with parents, is not the sole wage earner in the household or their spouse is also enrolled in an eligible college program.

Should the Cost of Attendance change, your Federal Direct Loan eligibility may increase or decrease accordingly. Information on actual per credit hour tuition charges are available through the College of Graduate Studies.  The cost of attendance for students attending PSU includes expenses related to direct (billed by PSU) and indirect (living) costs for which students should budget. The figures used to determine the living expense for College of Graduate Studies is the national average obtained from College Board for Moderate Budgets.

NOTE:  Master of Business Administration students

Aid awarding for the MBA 11-12 academic year has changed due to MBA’s decision to revise the MBA academic year.  Financial Aid will start to process MBA awards late spring since the MBA 11-12 year will not begin until September 2011.  Prior to processing, Financial Aid will update estimated 11-12 Cost of Attendance and divide loan eligibility by the number of terms a student plans to enroll – not to exceed a student’s Federal Direct ANNUAL MAXIMUM loan limit of $20,500 or their Cost of Attendance if enrollment is less than 3 terms.  Financial Aid will process aid for students who indicate their enrollment plans for each term (using the Graduate Student Enrollment Status Form) as long as they expect to enroll a minimum of 3 credit hours per term.

For an example, if a student enrolls for three terms, based on our SFA website’s budgets as a non-commuter, a student’s Cost of Attendance (COA) is $25,610. This COA is higher than the ANNUAL MAXIMUM $20,500 Federal Direct Loan limit for non-commuters; therefore, if eligible, the student would receive the ANNUAL MAXIMUM of $20,500 divided by three terms.  A commuting student’s COA is less than non-commuters.

Step 6

Financial aid awards are completed on a rolling basis beginning in June of each year. Financial Aid award information is only accessible online via myPlymouth.

All financial aid awards will be considered accepted unless the student otherwise notifies the PSU Financial Aid Team of his or her wish to decline the entire award, or a portion of the award.

Step 7

First-time PSU Federal Direct loan borrowers must complete:

A.  Entrance Loan Counseling

B.  Master Promissory Note (MPN)

Step 8

Once federal aid is determined, if you still need additional funding and you are not at your cost of attendance, you may apply for a Federal Direct Graduate PLUS Loan.   Applicants are required to complete the FAFSA and must have applied for the maximum annual Federal Direct Loan eligibility before applying for a Graduate/Professional PLUS Loan. Students are eligible for “in-school” deferment.  This means, repayment of your loan will not begin until after graduation, less than half time enrollment or withdrawal from PSU.

After receiving notification of your Federal Direct Loan eligibility, if you are interested in applying for the Federal Direct PLUS, you will need to complete the following three steps:

A: Graduate PLUS Loan Request Form:  Be sure all boxes are completed on this form before submitting it.

B:  Master Promissory Note (MPN): This can be done online and e-Signed with your federal PIN. The federal PIN is the same you used when you signed your online FAFSA. If you do not already have a PIN, you can request a new or duplicate PIN at www.pin.ed.gov.

C: Online Entrance Counseling: Please note – If you have already completed the Online Entrance Counseling for your Federal Direct student loans, you do not need to complete this additional counseling session. There is only one counseling session for graduate students and it satisfies both the Federal Direct Student loans and the Graduate PLUS loan.

Step 9

Students are required by federal guidelines to notify the PSU Financial Aid Team of all scholarships and tuition assistance received.  Additional resources may, or may not, affect your current financial aid award.

Step 10

Reviews:  The Financial Aid Team reserves the right to review and possibly revise awards based upon conflicting or inaccurate information such as number of credits taken, change in program, or aid received from other sources.

The Financial Aid Team will also consider appeals based on changes in personal financial situations which may include illness, loss of job, reemployment, or change in marital status.

Step 11

Please visit the College of Graduate Studies Web site for additional information on available scholarships, graduate assistantships, teaching fellowships and research assistantships available to students.

For information about other scholarships that may be available please see Scholarship Searches and Private Scholarships.  TIP:  Be sure the scholarship criteria indicates that Graduate Students are eligible to apply.

The Federal Student Aid Ombudsman of the Department of Education helps resolve disputes and solve other problems with federal student loans.

PSU in accordance with Federal and State laws and regulations, does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age veteran’s status, sexual preference or handicap in admission or access to, treatment of or employment in its programs or activities. Inquiries regarding this policy should be made to the Vice President for Student Affairs, PSU, Plymouth NH 03264 or Office for Civil Rights, Washington DC 20201.

*Non-degree certificate programs: Students seeking loan funding may apply for Continuing Education student loans.