Georgia Highlands College - Financial Aid Loans

Students who complete the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) application will automatically be offered a Stafford student loan as part of their financial aid award package. Students who would like to receive a student loan at GHC must accept the loan in their Banner/SCORE account. Steps for accepting student loans are below.

1. Log into your Banner/SCORE account.

2. Click on Financial Aid.

3. Click on Award.

4. Click on Award for Aid Year and select the current aid year from the drop down menu then select continue.

5. Click on the Accept Award Offer tab found across the top of the page.

6. Complete the three steps listed on this page. Be sure to read each step carefully and follow all instructions. No loan funds will be disbursed until ALL three steps have been completed and we have been notified of such by the Department of Education.

Students must be enrolled at least halftime (6 credit hours) to be eligible for a student loan. Should a student fall below halftime enrollment, any disbursed loan funds will be returned to the Department of Education according to federal regulations.

As of Fall 2010, Georgia Highlands College will be participating in the Direct Lending program. For more information about the transition, please visit our Frequently Asked Questions – Direct Lending page.

Direct Loans

Subsidized Stafford Loan: Subsidized loans are offered to students who demonstrate unmet need based on a student’s EFC (Estimated Family Contribution) number and a school’s cost of attendance. Subsidized loans do not accrue any interest while a student is enrolled at least halftime, and students do not have to make any payments on the loan while they are enrolled. Once a student is no longer enrolled or falls below halftime for a period of 6 months, the loan will enter repayment and begin accruing interest from that point. Interest rates are fixed but subject to change on an annual basis.

Unsubsidized Stafford Loan: Unsubsidized loans begin accruing interest from the first disbursement. Students do not have to make payments on the loan while in school; however, they are encouraged to make at least interest-only payments on their Unsubsidized loan. If a student does not make interest only payments, the loan will enter repayment after a 6 month period of non-enrollment or less-than-halftime status and all accrued interest will be capitalized and added to the principle of the loan. Interest rates are fixed but are subject to change on an annual basis.

Students have the option of requesting additional loan funds in an Unsubsidized Stafford loan. The awarding of additional funds is based on a student’s dependency status (Dependent/Independent) and their cost of attendance. Students wishing to receive additional loan funds must complete an Additional Unsubsidized Loan Request Form .

The Parent PLUS loan is a loan for parents of dependent undergraduate students. PLUS loan eligibility is based on a credit check performed on the parent borrower. PLUS repayment begins within 60 days after all loan funds are disbursed on the student’s account. PLUS borrowers can borrow up to the student’s cost of attendance less any other financial aid the student is receiving. PLUS interest rates vary and are subject to change on an annual basis. Parent borrowers must complete a Parent PLUS application for review. Please make sure that you fill out the Parent PLUS application and not the Graduate PLUS application which is for students pursuing a graduate's degree.

Loan Amounts & Interest Rates

The Stafford loan amount students are offered is based on their earned credit hours. As a two year school, GHC cannot award above the sophomore level for Stafford loans. Loan amounts are automatically split between terms.

Students under 30 earned credit hours (Freshman) = $3500 per year in Subsidized loan funds

Students at 30 earned credit hours or more (Sophomore) = $4500 per year in Subsidized loan funds

Direct Subsidized Loans for undergraduates:

6.8%

Direct Subsidized Loans for graduate students and Direct Unsubsidized Loans for all students:

3.4%

Direct PLUS Loans:

7.9%

For more information regarding loan amounts, loan limits, and interest rates please go to www.studentloans.gov.

Exit Counseling

All students must complete exit counseling for their Stafford loans. Students are required to complete the exit counseling when their credit hours fall below halftime; when they withdraw from all classes; and/or upon graduation. The exit counseling can be completed online at the National Student Loan Data System website via this link.

https://studentloans.gov

You will choose “Exit Counseling” on the home page and then use your personal information and FAFSA pin number to sign into the site to begin the counseling session.

Student Access Loan

The state of Georgia is offering a new loan program beginning with the 2011-12 school year. Students must meet the following criteria:

Eligible students must have a graduated from an eligible high school with a 2.5 or 75 GPA in core subjects.
Students must be attending an eligible postsecondary institution.
Students must be Georgia Residents.
Borrower must be U.S. citizen, national or permanent resident of U.S. as defined by Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 as amended.

Click HERE for answers to some of the frequently asked questions about the program.

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