STUDENT LOAN - STUDENT LOANS - CONSOLIDATE STUDENT LOAN - CONSOLIDATION STUDENT LOAN

Canada

Government loans

Canadian students are normally eligible for loans provided by the federal government, in addition to loans provided by their province of residence. The loans are normally interest-free until one graduates, and are sometimes supplemented with grants, depending on need.

Students must apply for the Canadian and provincial loans through their province of residence. The rules for what determines your province of residence vary, but normally the province or territory of residence is defined as where you have most recently lived for at least 12 consecutive months, not including any time you spent as a full-time student at a post-secondary institution. In other words, the province of residence is normally the province where you lived before you were a student.

The Canada Student Loan (CSL) provides for a maximum of $165 per week of full-time study, and more money from their province of residence. All Canadian students may also be eligible for the Canadian Millennium Scholarship Foundation Bursary (CMS Grant), and other grants provided by their province of residence.

For students in British Columbia for example, they may be eligible for a maximum of $14,300 combined loan and grant funding per year.

History

From the Department of Human Resources:

The CSLP was created in 1964. Since its inception, the Program has supplemented the financial resources available to eligible students from other sources to assist in their pursuit of post-secondary education. Between 1964 and 1995, loans were provided by financial institutions to post-secondary students who were approved to receive financial assistance. The financial institutions also administered the loan repayment process. In return, the Government of Canada guaranteed each Canada Student Loan that was issued, by reimbursing the financial institution the full amount of loans that went into default.

In 1995, several important changes were made to the CSLP, reflecting the changing needs of the parties involved in the loan process. The Government of Canada developed a formalized "risk-shared" agreement with several financial institutions, whereby the institution would assume responsibility for the possible risk of defaulted loans in return for a fixed payment from the Government. During this period, the weekly federal loan amount was increased to a maximum of $165.

On July 31, 2000, the risk-shared arrangement between the Government of Canada and participating financial institutions came to an end. The Government of Canada now directly finances all new loans issued on or after August 1, 2000. The administration of Canada Student Loans has become the responsibility of the National Student Loans Service Centre (NSLSC). There are two divisions of the NSLSC, one to manage loans for students attending public institutions and the other to administer loans for students attending private institutions.

Professional students

Most charter banks in Canada have specific programs for professional students which can provide more funds than usual in the form of a line of credit, sometimes with lower interest rates as well. Students may also be eligible for government loans that are interest free while in school on top of this line of credit, as private loans do not count against government loans/grants.

United Kingdom

British undergraduate and PGCE students can apply for a loan through their local education authority (LEA) in England and Wales, the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS) or their local education and library board in Northern Ireland. The LEA, SAAS or education and library board then assesses the application and determines the amount that the student is eligible to borrow, as well as how much tuition fees, if any, the students' parents must pay. The family's income, whether the student will be living at home, away from home or in London, disabilities and other factors are taken into account. 75% of the full loan (around £3,000) is available to all students, with only the final 25% being means-tested (taking the total available up to as much as £4,000). It is paid in three instalments during each year of the student's course (one per term). Special rules apply for some courses and for part-time courses.

Loans are provided by the Student Loans Company and do not have to be repaid until students have completed their course and are earning £15,000 a year (£10,000 until April 2005). The interest rate is updated annually and is tied to inflation (currently 2.6%), making the loan interest-free in real terms. The loan is normally repaid using the PAYE system, with 9% of the graduate's gross salary over £15,000 automatically being deducted to pay back the loan. There is no particular schedule for clearing the debt, but, if it has not been cleared 25 years after repayment began, or the student turns 65 years old, the remaining debt will be cancelled.

The Higher Education Act 2004 will make significant changes to the loans system in England, Wales and Northern Ireland from 2006. Up front tuition fees will be abolished, with the fee being added to students' loans for them to pay back after their course is finished. However, instead of the tuition fee being fixed at around £1,150 for all universities (which, due to means-testing, not all have to pay), universities will be able to charge variable fees of up to £3,000. Critics claim these top-up fees will create tiers of "expensive" and "cheap" universities, and make university financially inaccessible to many students. As a result, there have been national demonstrations and protests by students' unions.

United States

Loans for Higher Education

In the United States, Federal student loans are authorized under Title IV of the Higher Education Act as amended. The loans are available to college and university students and are used to supplement personal and family resources, scholarships, grants and work-study. Subsidized student loans are guaranteed by the U. S. Department of Education either directly or through guaranty agencies. Unsubsidized loans are not guaranteed. There are two distribution channels for Federal student loans. The channels are identified by their names: Federal Direct Student Loans and Federal Family Education Loans. Federal Direct Student Loans, also known as Direct Loans, or FDLP loans are funded from public capital originating with the U. S. Treasury. FDLP loans are distributed through a channel that begins with the U. S. Treasury Department, and from there passes through the U. S. Department of Education, then to the college or university and then to the student. Federal Family Education Loan Program loans, also known as FFEL loans or FFELP loans, are funded with private capital provided by banking institutions (ie: banks, savings and loans, and credit unions). Because the FFELP loans use private capital as their source, students who use FFELP loans are able to take advantage of payment options that are similar to those available to customers who take out a home loan or a consumer loan. For example, some institutions will allow a discount for automatic payments, or a series of on-time payments. In 2005, approximately 2/3 of all federally subsidized student loans are FFELP.

The maximum amount that any student can borrow is adjusted from time-to-time as Federal policies change. Overall, the amount of borrowing that takes place for student debt seems to be increasing with some students averaging $20,000 to $30,000 upon graduation with an undergraduate degree. Debt from some professional programs like J.D., M.D. and D.O. degrees can be significantly greater. A study published in the Winter, 1996 edition of the Journal of Student Financial Aid, titled “How Much Student Loan Debt is Too Much” suggested that debt for the average undergraduate should not exceed 8% of total income after graduation. Some financial aid advisors have referred to the 8% level as “the 8% rule.” Circumstances vary for individuals, so the 8% level is an indicator, not a rule set in stone. A research report about the 8% level is available on the internet at [[2]] Follow links to --> Reports and presentations --> How Much Student Loan Debt is Too Much?

Private financial aid programs

Overview

In addition to federal assistance, private student loans can often be obtained by students to pay for costs above and beyond what the government is willing to fund. This is true for students at undergraduate public and private institutions, graduate schools, and students attending schools for which federal financial aid is not available, such as K-12 preparatory schools.

Private loans are credit-based consumer loans that can be used to cover any education-related expense.

Assistance

Many private loan programs allow students or parents to borrow up to the total cost of education minus any financial aid received. Some programs have annual or aggregate loan limits, but many offer no limits.

Rates and interest

Most private loan programs are tied to one or more financial indexes, such as the Wall Street Journal Prime rate or the BBA LIBOR rate, plus an overhead charge. Because private loans are based on the credit history of the applicant, the overhead charge will vary. Students and families with excellent credit will generally receive lower rates and smaller loan origination fees than those with less than perfect credit. Beginning a few years ago, money paid toward interest is now tax deductible.

Eligibility

Private student loan programs generally issue loans based on the credit history of the applicant and any applicable co-signer/co-endorser. This is in contrast to federal loan programs which deal primarily with need-based criteria, as defined by the EFC and the FAFSA. For many students, this is a great advantage to private loan programs, as their families may have too much income or too many assets to qualify for federal aid, but insufficient assets/income to pay for schooling without assistance.

Additionally, many international students studying in the United States can obtain private loans (they are ineligible for federal loans in many cases) with a co-signer that is a United States citizen/permanent resident.