Does anyone know about student loan limits

hopefully · Mar 28, 2004

I am starting nursing school in the fall after 3.5 years of doing prereqs and getting my GPA up to 3.0. Today I found out I can't get any loans b/c I already borrowed 38k from the Direct loan system. The school I will be going to in the Fall will be Federal Guranteed Student loan program. Will I be able to borrow fed. loans from my nursing school in the fall. The school that sent me the letter saying I could not get any more loans is my current school. My soon to be nursing school sent me an award letter two weeks ago with no mention of maxed out loans. Did they make a mistake? I hope not b/c I will have to drop out of school altogether. Does anyone know of any alternatives. I may have to move in with my mother would they reclassify me as dependent then so I could get a parent loan. I have three kids and I can't beleive I have came this far to be stopped by money. My stomach is all in knots right now.

It is best to talk with the school's financial aid office to be sure where you are.

kimhaw · Mar 28, 2004

I will on Mon. I am just looking for any info. or tips I can get. Its always better to be informed.

francine79 · Mar 28, 2004

You can always get student loans. The only difference is that they might accrue interest while you are in school. However, the interest rates aren't that bad and you can either choose to pay the interest while you go through school or you can let it build up. Although that isn't very fun, it's better than not continuing your education. You definitely need to talk to FA aid about your options, but don't worry... you can ALWAYS get loans for school.

CaterpillarGirl · Mar 28, 2004

I think the loan limit for stafford loans is $46,000 for an independant student (that includes subsideized and unsubsidized). Do you make too much to qualify for grants? With three children, I would think that you would have a pretty low EFC (I have one child, made $18,500 last year and have an EFC of $296).

One thing that's confusing though, is that I don't understand how you have 38k already after 3.5 years. They have a limit of $6,250 your first year, $7,500 your sophomore year, and $10,500 when you have junior or senior status. Do you have more than just stafford loans?

kimhaw · Mar 28, 2004

I am a sr. Family and Consumer Sciences major and I only have direct student loans. I do qualify for a pell. The tuition at my school costs 1k higher than the pell. Honestly I never kept up w/ how much I was borrowing and my school never really told us about limits, only the satisfactory academic progress thing. I only know b/c I looked at my credit report today.

Kora0880, BSN, RN · Mar 28, 2004

It also depends on the number of credit hrs, if you are above 185 or so you can't count on any federal loans for the BA/BS. There are always bank student loans, but have a high interest rate

Look into scholarships, internships, there are many options, ex: military nursing grants/scholarships

SCmomof3, RN · Mar 28, 2004

The FA officers at my school told me you can generally get FA for 150% of the course time, meaning that if the degree generally takes 2 years to receive, you can get FA for up to three years assuming full time status. If you are part time, they figure it by credit hours (how many credit hours the full degree requires). HTH

kimhaw · Mar 29, 2004

I have 92 credit hours at my current school. The nursing school is transferring only 72 of them. I wonder will they still give me FA.

AnnaN5 · Mar 29, 2004

I have 92 credit hours at my current school. The nursing school is transferring only 72 of them. I wonder will they still give me FA.

Here is info about student loans limits published by http://www.finaid.org

Stafford Loans allow dependent undergraduates to borrow up to $2,625 their freshman year, $3,500 their sophomore year and $5,500 for each remaining year (independent students and students whose parents have been turned down for a PLUS loan can borrow an additional unsubsidized $4,000 the first two years and $5,000 the remaining years). Graduate students can borrow $18,500 per year, although only $8,500 of that is subsidized. There are also cumulative limits of $23,000 for an undergraduate education and a $65,500 combined limit for undergraduate and graduate. (For independent students and for students whose parents were denied a PLUS loan the cumulative limits are $46,000 and $138,500, respectively.)

The amount of Perkins Loan you receive is determined by your school's financial aid office. The program limits are $4,000 per year for undergraduate students and $6,000 per year for graduate students, with cumulative limits of $20,000 for undergraduate loans and $40,000 for undergraduate and graduate loans combined.

Institutions participating in the Expanded Lending Option (ELO) may offer higher loan limits for the Perkins Loan. To participate in the ELO, a school must have a default rate no higher than 15%. The annual loan limits are increased by $1,000 each and the cumulative limits increased by $5,000 and $10,000, respectively.

So that covers the federal student loans, I am pretty sure that student loans from private organizations do not have limits, or if they do they are pretty high. Hope this info helps.