United States Direct Loan Programme And Private Loans

Please read this web page carefully.

Loans and Eligibility

From 1st July 2010 all federal loans will be Direct Lending, there are no Title IV or FFELP loans and no lenders providing federal backed loans. The University of Sheffield participates in the new Direct Loan Program, our current School code is G08398. Please make sure Direct Loans know you intend to study at a UK School. The School will confirm student eligibility and determine their loan award. We will report student registration status and loan period (Students must be studying Full-time or at least Half-time). Students studying off campus i.e. attending City College in Thessalonica, Sofia and Tirana or Distance Learning students will not be eligible for Federal Loans but they can apply for a PRIVATE LOAN (see Private Loans below).

Please Note if you intend to study in the School of Medicine you should be aware that our current participation agreement does not include medical courses. Students should also be aware that the University does not participate in the Veterans Affairs (VA) programme.

Loans available are:

SUBSIDISED - Fixed max value, No interest charged while in School - Origination Fee 0.5% deducted at Disbursement
UNSUBSIDISED - Fixed max value, Interest charged while in School - Origination Fee 0.5% deducted at Disbursement
PLUS LOAN - Max value set by School (Cost of Attendance), Interest charged while in School - Origination Fee 4% deducted at Disbursement

For information about interest and the origination fee which is deducted at disbursements please see the link below:

http://www.direct.ed.gov/student.html

How much can you borrow - Cost of Attendance

You may borrow up to the Cost of Attendance and no more. To calculate your loan amount we add your tuition fee and estimated living cost together then deduct any scholarships/fee reductions etc; and any EFC from your SAR. We estimate that students will need approx £7200 for living cost per year which includes accommodation and £4800 per year for each dependant (spouse or child). We advice students to have funds available to cover the first couple of weeks in Sheffield.

EXAMPLE: Your COA spreadsheet indicates that you are in need of $42,000 after taking into account any scholarships/fee waivers and any EFC. You borrow $8,500.00 subsidised and 12,000.00 unsubsidised and the remaining amount of $21,500 can be taken on a PLUS Loan making a total loan amount of $42,000.

How to Apply

Most of the work is completed on-line by the student. The school will not know you are making a genuine application, nor know how much you wish to borrow until you send us the information we need. You must download the Guidance Notes and Loan Flowchart along with the Cost of Attendance Spreadsheet. Follow the instructions in the flowchart and complete the spreadsheet Cost of Attendance page and the Checklist page (SEE DOWNLOAD BOX ON RIGHT). Then send an email to usloans@sheffield.ac.uk with all the documents attached. YOU MUST USE THE SPEADSHEET & CHECKLIST IF ANY DOCUMENTS ARE MISSING FROM YOUR EMAIL WE CANNOT PROCESS YOUR APPLICATION. We will mail you a Notification of Loan Letter showing the amount of Loan you will be receiving for the academic year. This letter can be used to apply for your Visa application and will be mailed around the 4th July 2011 providing the documents you supplied are correct and in order. You must have officially accepted your offer of a place at the University in order for us to deal with your application in the first instance.

To assist students when completing the COA spreadsheet see Tuition Fee links below:

Postgraduate Taught Tuition Fees

Postgraduate Research Tuition Fees

To complete Entrance Counselling and more information on the Direct Loan Scheme please see the link below:

Direct Loans

Opening a bank account & How the funds will be paid to you

Funds will be paid to the University where our Finance Department will take out the Tuition & Accommodation Fees (if applicable) and arrange a cheque for the remaining balance to be paid to you. With this cheque it is advisable that you open a UK bank account once you arrive in the UK. You can open a student account at any high street bank. For more details on the payment procedure please contact Louise Ford in the Income Office, Finance Department Louise.Ford@sheffield.ac.uk

Private Loans

The only private loans currently available to students at foreign schools is the Smart Loan from Sallie Mae. To apply for a Smart Loan, you must apply on-line and then send a copy of your e-signed Promissory Note to usloans@sheffield.ac.uk

NOTE: IF YOU FORGET TO EMAIL YOUR PROMISSORY NOTE WE WILL NOT BE ABLE TO CERTIFY YOUR SMART LOAN.

Please see the following link below:

Sallie Mae

Students who are not eligible for Federal Stafford Loans may wish to view the following web page for alternative sources of funding. Smart Loan Link:

myglobaled.com/StudentLoan/studentLoans_uscitizen.html

Students wishing to defer previous loans should hand or mail their loan deferment form to Mrs Marie Hezseltine, The University of Sheffield, Level 6, University House, Western Bank, Sheffield, S10 2TN.

For information about visas and immigration, please go to the link below: