• You must be a Graduate/Professional student enrolled at least half-time in a matriculated program.
• You must complete a 2006-07 FAFSA.
• You must first apply for your maximum loan eligibility in Subsidized and Unsubsidized Stafford loan before the PLUS can be awarded.
• Parents of Graduate students will not be eligible to borrow the loan.
  

• 90 days or more delinquent on repayment of any debt
• debt discharged in bankruptcy during the past 5 years
• default, foreclosure, tax lien, repossession, wage garnishment, or write-off of debt during the past 5 years

Interest Rate: The interest rate will be fixed at 8.5%, but some of our preferred lenders offer loans with a lower interest rate once you begin repayment.

To compare the Federal PLUS Loan to the other loan programs offered to graduate students, please see our loan comparison chart.


How Soon Can I Borrow a PLUS Loan?

The loan program is now available for the 2006-07 academic year.

How Do I Apply?

Main Campus students – You must begin the PLUS application process through our office.

Step 1 - Request PLUS loan through SU and complete Pre-Screen Credit Check -
You will be able to request a PLUS Loan via the Graduate Financial Aid Application, which will become available to you once you have completed your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). You must complete your 2006-07 FAFSA, and then apply for your Federal Stafford Loans and Federal PLUS Loan through the SU Graduate Financial Aid Application that will be e-mailed to you.

We strongly recommend that you also complete a Graduate PLUS pre-screen credit check with the lender you selected on your SU Graduate Application to confirm that you are creditworthy for this loan. These credit checks are usually instantaneous and can be performed either online or via the phone. Click for more information on credit checks.

Step 2 - Financial Aid Eligibility -
Once your Stafford and PLUS loans are awarded, you will receive a Financial Aid Award Notice.

Step 3 - Complete the Master Promissory Note -
You should receive a PLUS MPN in the mail from New York State HESC shortly after you receive your Financial Aid Notice. Once you have completed the PLUS MPN, retain your copy and mail the form back to New York State HESC in the envelope they provide you. This promissory note will be valid throughout your graduate career and should only be completed once.

You will receive a disclosure statement from HESC once they receive your MPN.

Step 4 - Loan Credit Check and Disbursement -
Once you have submitted your MPN to HESC, your lender will perform a credit check on your application (if you did not perform a pre-screen credit check already). You should receive a credit confirmation in the mail from your lender once they have approved your loan. The first disbursement of your PLUS Loan will be electronically transmitted to Syracuse University. If you receive notification that your PLUS Loan was denied for credit reasons, please contact our office for further borrowing options.

Distance Education Students (also called Independent Study Degree Programs) –

You must apply for a Graduate PLUS through the University College of Syracuse University Financial Aid Office by completing a UC Graduate PLUS request form.

Steps 2 - 4 above apply to Distance Education students.

We will update this page as we receive further information from the Department of Education. Please check this page often for updates (last updated 8/25/06).