Federal Direct (Stafford) Loans
This is a federal long-term loan designed to help students who have difficulty meeting college expenses. These loans are administered by the William D. Ford Direct Loan program. Federal regulations, enrolled eligible credit hours, institutional cost of attendance budgets, and student lifetime borrowing may limit the amount that a student may borrow.
Subsidized Loans are need-based, meaning that your Student Aid Index (SAI) is taken into consideration when awarding this loan. Unsubsidized loans are non-need-based, meaning they can be awarded to any student as long as other eligibility requirements are met.
Students are encouraged to contact the Texarkana College Financial Aid Office for budgeting assistance if they have questions related to loan borrowing.
Terms of the loan:
Monthly payments begin 6 months after the student is no longer enrolled in college at least half-time.
The Direct Loan Program offers several different repayment options. You can find out more by visiting https://studentaid.gov.
Loan Borrowing Process
Federal Direct Loans are not automatically packaged or awarded to financial aid students by the college. However, Direct Loan funds are available for eligible students upon request.
Interested students should complete the following steps in order (unless otherwise noted) before a student loan may be awarded:
Complete a current-year FAFSA application
If their FAFSA is selected for verification, submit all required documents and allow the FAFSA verification process to finish
Complete Loan Entrance Counseling and a Master Promissory Note (MPN) online
Enroll in at least 6 financial aid eligible credit hours (this step may be done at any point prior to filling out a Student Loan Request Form)
Complete a “Student Loan Request Form” and submit it to the Financial Aid Office
If needed, accept their Direct Loan offer on the Financial Aid Portal
More details on several of these steps are outlined below.
Entrance Counseling for Student Loan Borrowers (Online) and Master Promissory Note (MPN)
First-time borrowers of Federal Direct Loans at Texarkana College must complete the online Entrance Counseling for Student Loan Borrowers and a Master Promissory Note (MPN) after logging in at https://studentaid.gov. Please wait to receive confirmation from Texarkana College that we have received your current-year FAFSA before completing these online requirements to ensure a successful match.
Loan Entrance Counseling will provide comprehensive information of the borrower’s rights and responsibilities. The MPN is a legally binding promise to repay the funds borrowed under the Federal Direct Loan Program at Texarkana College. The MPN also contains the fees, interest rates, terms, and conditions of your student loan.
After completing these requirements and choosing our college to be notified, an electronic file confirming the completion of the Loan Entrance Counseling and MPN requirements will be sent to Texarkana College. The average time for the electronic confirmation file to process, be sent, and downloaded into the student information system at the college is 7-14 business days, excluding holidays. Students will be able to confirm the college’s receipt of the loan counseling and MPN confirmation files by checking the documents tab of their Financial Aid Portal.
Student Loan Request Form and Loan Acceptance
After completing the previously-outlined steps and enrolling in at least 6 financial aid eligible credit hours, students wishing to borrow loans should fill out a Loan Request Form in the Texarkana College Financial Aid Office. This form will be used as an active confirmation of the exact amount the student is requesting. Provided that the student’s financial aid file has been processed and the student is eligible for the amounts requested, the loan(s) will be added to his/her financial aid award. If the requested amount cannot be awarded, the Financial Aid Office will award an amount as close to the request as possible and inform the student if there is a difference of more than $500.
Because Texarkana College will never process a loan amount larger than the student’s original request, and their Loan Request Form is an active confirmation they wish to take out the loan, students who have already accepted terms and conditions online for other Title IV aid will simply have their loan added to their existing financial aid package. Students who have no other Title IV aid and have never accepted terms and conditions will be prompted via email to log in and accept those terms and conditions and the student loan.
Exit Counseling for Student Loan Borrowers
Whenever a student graduates, leaves Texarkana College, or drops below half-time enrollment (6 credit hours), they must complete the online Exit Counseling for Student Loan Borrowers at https://studentaid.gov. The online counseling will provide comprehensive information on repayment options, repayment plans, loan deferments, loan forbearances, and debt management strategies.
Once completed, an electronic file confirming the completion of the Loan Exit Counseling requirement will be sent to Texarkana College. Not completing exit counseling requirements would mean you would not have the critical information in the management and repayment of your federal educational loans. Because this is a federally-mandated requirement, Texarkana College may withhold a student’s transcript until exit counseling is completed.
Financial Aid Recalculations and Eligibility Changes
If a student has not enrolled at the time they are originally offered financial aid, their financial aid offer may be made on the assumption of full-time enrollment. Once the student enrolls in a specific number of financial aid eligible credit hours, their aid offer may adjust or prorate accordingly.
Beyond this initial adjustment, a student’s initial financial aid award may be subject to later recalculation or changes due to a variety of factors, which could include (but are not limited to) the following:
The student making changes to their class schedule or major after the initial financial aid offer
The student not beginning attendance in a scheduled course
For Direct Loans, ceasing to be currently enrolled in 6 financial aid eligible credit hours prior to a loan fully disbursing
The arrival of a new FAFSA transaction with a different Student Aid Index (SAI)
Reaching the lifetime limit for Pell Grant or Direct Loans within the school year
Completely withdrawing from the semester and triggering a return of funds, described under Return to Title IV below
Losing federal financial aid eligibility by going into default on a student loan or exceeding allowable limits for federal loan borrowing
Losing financial aid eligibility by failing to maintain satisfactory academic progress