William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan

The Federal Direct Loan is a loan in the student’s name and must be repaid. Federal Direct loans may be subsidized or unsubsidized. The Federal Direct Loan is awarded as part of the student’s award package from Concordia College. A Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is required annually.

Direct Subsidized Loan
A Federal Direct Subsidized loan is for students with demonstrated financial need. This loan will not accrue interest until six months after a student graduates or drops to less than half time attendance (5 credits or fewer per term). This means that the Subsidized loan is interest free while a student is enrolled at least 1/2 time.

Direct Unsubsidized Loan
A Federal Direct Unsubsidized loan is a non-need based loan. The Direct Unsubsidized loan will accrue interest while a student is in school and during repayment. You can choose to pay the interest while in school or let it accrue. Any unpaid interest will be capitalized at repayment.

Eligibility:
• Completed FAFSA (must be done each year)
• U.S. citizen or permanent resident
• Not have previous defaults on a federal loan,
• Be enrolled or plan to enroll at least half-time (6 or more credits)
• Maintain satisfactory academic progress.

Repayment:
Repayment begins 6 months after student graduates, withdraws, or enrolls less than half-time (5 credits or less). Standard repayment is 10 years. There is a minimum $40 per month payment.

Interest Rates:
Direct Loan rates are fixed and are set by Congress. However, the rate changes each year for Direct Subsidized loans. The interest rate for the Direct Subsidized loan will correspond with the rate the year in which the loan originated. Therefore, a student may have Federal loans at different interest rates. The Direct Unsubsidized loan interest rate is fixed at 6.8% and does not change annually. All Federal Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized loan(s) for Graduate students are fixed at 6.8%.

INTEREST RATES-Undergraduate
Academic year Subsidized Interest Rate Unsubsidized Interest Rate
2008-09 6.0% 6.8%
2009-10 5.6% 6.8%
2010-11 4.5% 6.8%
2011-12 3.4% 6.8%
2012-13 6.8% 6.8%


INTEREST RATES-Graduate
Academic year Subsidized Interest Rate Unsubsidized Interest Rate
All 6.8% 6.8%



Loan Fees:
Both the subsidized and the unsubsidized Direct Stafford Loans have a 1% origination fee. Direct Stafford Loans do, however, have an up-front rebate* of .5%, resulting in a net origination fee of .5%. This means that .5% will be deducted from the loan at the time of disbursement. (Example: On a $1000.00 loan the student will receive a loan disbursement of $995.00)

* The rebate is an up-front benefit the student receives from the US Department of Education. This rebate reduces the amount of loan fees that are deducted from the borrower’s loan disbursement. This means that the borrower sees more money upfront. By receiving this rebate up front it reduced the 1% fee that would be deducted from a borrower’s loan disbursement and now the fee is reduced to .5%. This rebate is given up front to borrowers, but does require that the borrower make their first 12 monthly payments on time. If the borrower fails to meet the twelve on-time payments, the rebate fee is capitalized into the principal of the outstanding loan balance. This means that the rebate fee will be added on back on to the total amount of the loan.

Loan Limits:
Loan limits and amounts can vary for borrowers based on several factors.
1) Borrower's grade level
2) Dependency status
3) Type of loan (subsidized or unsubsidized)
4) Undergraduate or Graduate student status
5) Was the student borrower's parent denied a Federal Direct PLUS Loan?

The unsubsidized loan limits shown in the charts below are based on the student borrower receiving the maximum amount of Direct Stafford loan. Note: All forms of financial aid including grants, scholarships, loans, and work study cannot exceed the Cost of Attendance; therefore, it is possible that not all students may qualify for the maximum annual amounts.

Dependent Undergraduate Annual Loan Limit Chart
Dependent Undergraduate With Denied Parent Plus Annual Loan Limit Chart
Independent Undergraduate Annual Loan Limit Chart
Graduate Annual Loan Limit Chart

How to apply




FAFSA Code: 002346

Information For:

current students
faculty and staff		 parents
alumni		 high school students
admitted students