Federal Direct Parent (PLUS) Loan

How Much Can I Borrow?

The yearly limit on a PLUS Loan is equal to your student’s cost of attendance less any other financial aid your student is eligible.

For example, if the cost of attendance is $10,000 and your student is eligible for $7,000 in other financial aid, you could borrow up to, but no more than, $3,000 in a PLUS loan.

How Will This Loan Affect My Financial Future?

The Annual Student Loan Acknowledgment is a tool to help you understand how your loans will affect your financial future. While this is not a requirement, we highly recommend that you complete the online Annual Student Loan Acknowledgement for your benefit.

Eligibility Criteria

1. The parent must pass a credit check. The credit check will be good for 180 days within the same academic year.

   If you do not pass the credit check, you might still be able to receive a loan if someone (such as a relative or friend who is able to pass the credit check) agrees to be the endorser on the loan, promising to repay it if you should fail to do so.

   In the event that the parent can't resolve the credit issue nor secure a co-signer, the student becomes eligible for additional Federal Unsubsidized Direct Loan limits up to $4,000.

2. The student must be enrolled in and attending at least six credit hours for each semester of the loan period.

3. The student must file a FAFSA and meet federal program eligibility requirements

To Apply

During the application process you will be asked how much you wish to borrow. Please budget accordingly. If the amount requested exceeds the maximum cost of attendance, we will give the maximum allowed. You do not need to take the maximum allowed.

1. To apply, visit studentaid.gov.
2. Log In using your (the PARENT’s) FSA ID from the FAFSA.
3. Under "Loans and Grants", select "PLUS Loans: Grad PLUS and Parent PLUS".
4. Select “Learn More” for the “I am a Parent of a Student” section.
5. Start the application under “I am a Parent of an Undergraduate Student”
6. Follow the four steps in the application process.

Keep in mind there are time delays depending on timing of information completed and received.

The application process is done with the Department of Education and the Servicer handles the loans.

Hawkeye Community College is responsible for receiving the money sent and applying it toward the students' account.

Disbursement

Before the loan funds can be disbursed, the parent must complete a PLUS Master Promissory Note (MPN).

Loan funds are applied first to any outstanding balances on your students' account. Any remaining balance is then credited, according to the Hawkeye refund schedule, to the designee on the application form in one disbursement per semester. If the loan is for one term, you will receive the full loan in two disbursements.

See Financial Aid Dates and Deadlines for specific disbursement dates.

If the remaining balance is refunded to the parent borrower, the student will no longer be eligible for the direct deposit option for any credit balances.

Parents may choose to cancel all or part of the loan up to 14 days after the disbursement of funds.

For additional disbursement information see Financial Aid Award Disbursement.

Repayment

The repayment period for a Federal Parent PLUS Loan begins at the time the PLUS loan is fully disbursed. The first payment is due within 60 days after the final disbursement.

Parents may request to defer repayment while the student is enrolled on at least a half-time basis (interest will accrue) by contacting the Federal Loan servicer to see if you qualify for a deferment.

Generally, parents have 10 to 25 years to repay the loan, depending on the repayment plan chosen.

Information on the servicer assigned to your parent PLUS loan can be found at Federal Student Aid.

See Federal Student Aid: Parent PLUS Loan — What types of loan repayment plans are available.