Columbia University Student Financial Services

The Federal Direct Graduate PLUS Loan is a credit-based supplemental loan that assists students in meeting the cost of attendance.  Unlike a private education loan, the Federal Direct Graduate PLUS Loan is borrowed through the US Department of Education.

Eligibility

To be eligible for a Federal Direct Graduate PLUS Loan, you must:

• Be a graduate or professional student
  
• Meet full federal eligibility 
  
• Complete a FAFSA 
• Must first consider the full amount for which you are eligible under the Federal Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loan
• Complete entrance counseling and a Master Promissory Note
• Pass a credit review and must not have adverse credit, which is defined as:
  -   A current 90-day or more delinquency
  -   Debt discharged in bankruptcy during the past five year
  -   Evidence of a default, foreclosure, tax lien, repossession, wage garnishment, or write-off of a Title IV debt during the past five years

Application

1. Complete entrance counseling and a Master Promissory Note:

• Go to Direct Loan website www.studentloans.gov
• Sign into Manage My Direct Loan using your Social Security Number, the last two letters of your last name, your date of birth and your FAFSA PIN. If you do not have a FAFSA Pin or cannot recall it, please visit to www.pin.ed.gov to request one. Please note that it may take up to ten business days to receive a PIN.
• Click on "Complete Entrance Counseling" (middle of the page)
• After completing entrance counseling, click on "Complete Master Promissory Note"
• Select Type of Loan and click on "Graduate PLUS"
• Once the credit check is processed, you will receive a letter indicating whether your loan has been approved or denied. 

2. Please contact your school's financial aid office for additional information and to initiate a credit check authorization on your Federal Direct Graduate PLUS Loan.

Annual and Aggregate Loan Limits

The student budget or cost of attendance represents the maximum aid you can be awarded through any combination of scholarships, fellowships, federal and private loans certified through Columbia University for the academic year. To determine the maximum amount you can borrow in this loan, take the cost of attendance and subtract any other financial aid awards (including maximum Federal Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans).

Please Note: You can apply for 2.5% more to cover the mandatory loan origination fee.

There is no aggregate loan limit for Federal Direct Graduate PLUS Loan.

Interest Rate

As of July 1, 2010, this rate is fixed at 7.9%. Interest accrues from the date of disbursement. Interest can be paid while enrolled or deferred and capitalized at the time of repayment.

Mandatory Fees

The Federal PLUS Loan has a 4.0% origination fee. However, Federal Direct Loan borrowers will receive an upfront rebate of 1.5 percent at the time of origination, based on paying your first 12 on-time monthly payments at repayment. Therefore, the actual amount deducted from the gross amount of the loan borrowed is 2.5%. The fee will be deducted proportionately each time that a loan disbursement is made.

Disbursement

Loan funds are disbursed to the student account. For more information on requesting a refund for the balance on your student account, please see Billing and Payments. 

Repayment

For more information, please see Federal Loan Repayment.

Graduate PLUS Loan vs. Private Loan (PDF)