William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan

The Federal Direct Loan is a loan in the student’s name and must be repaid. Federal Direct loans may be subsidized or unsubsidized. The Federal Direct Loan is awarded as part of the student’s award package from Concordia College. A Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is required annually.

Direct Subsidized Loan
A Federal Direct Subsidized loan is for students with demonstrated financial need. This loan will not accrue interest until a student graduates or drops to less than half time attendance (5 credits or fewer per term). This means that the Subsidized loan is interest free while a student is enrolled at least 1/2 time. For students who borrowed and received their Federal Subsidized loan funds prior to July, 1st, 2012 those loans may be eligible to also receive the interest subsidy during their 6 month grace period.

Beginning July 1st, 2012 graduate students are no longer eligible for Federal Subsidized loan. 

For new borrowers after July, 1st, 2013, Federal Subsidized loan eligibilty will be limited to 150% of the published time it takes to complete the students academic program (6 years for a 4 year program of study).

Direct Unsubsidized Loan
A Federal Direct Unsubsidized loan is a non-need based loan. The Direct Unsubsidized loan will accrue interest while a student is in school and during repayment. You can choose to pay the interest while in school or let it accrue. Any unpaid interest will be capitalized at repayment.

Eligibility:
• Completed FAFSA (must be done each year)
• U.S. citizen or permanent resident
• Not have previous defaults on a federal loan,
• Be enrolled or plan to enroll at least half-time (6 or more credits)
• Maintain satisfactory academic progress.

Repayment:
Repayment begins 6 months after student graduates, withdraws, or enrolls less than half-time (5 credits or less). Standard repayment is 10 years. There is a minimum $40 per month payment.

Interest Rates:
Direct Loan rates are fixed and are set by Congress.

INTEREST RATES
Academic year Subsidized Interest Rate Unsubsidized Interest Rate
2013-14 6.8% 6.8%

Loan Fees:
Both the subsidized and the unsubsidized Direct Stafford Loans have a 1.0% origination fee that will be deducted from the loan at the time of disbursement. (Example: On a $1000.00 loan the student will receive a loan disbursement of $990.00)

On August 2, 2011, Congress passed the Budget Control Act (BCA) of 2011, which put into place an automatic process of “across-the-board” Federal budget cuts, known as the sequester, to take effect if Congress failed to enact legislation to reduce the Federal deficit. Unless Congress acted by March 1, 2013, these budget cuts go into effect.

Since the sequester has gone into effect, as of March 1, 2013, the Department of Education indicates for Direct Subsidized and Direct Unsubsidized Loans where the first disbursement of the loan is after the sequester has taken effect, the current loan fee of 1.0% will increase. The Department of Education presently anticipates that the rate will increase to approximately 1.05%. We will update this information as soon as the official loan fee increase percentage becomes available. (Example of change: On a $1000.00 loan with a 1.05% loan fee the student will receive a loan disbursement of $989.50)


Loan Limits:
Loan limits and amounts can vary for borrowers based on several factors.
1) Borrower's grade level
2) Dependency status
3) Type of loan (subsidized or unsubsidized)
4) Undergraduate or Graduate student status
5) Was the student borrower's parent denied a Federal Direct PLUS Loan?

The unsubsidized loan limits shown in the charts below are based on the student borrower receiving the maximum amount of Direct Stafford loan. Note: All forms of financial aid including grants, scholarships, loans, and work study cannot exceed the Cost of Attendance; therefore, it is possible that not all students may qualify for the maximum annual amounts.

Dependent Undergraduate Annual Loan Limit Chart
Dependent Undergraduate With Denied Parent Plus Annual Loan Limit Chart
Independent Undergraduate Annual Loan Limit Chart
Graduate Annual Loan Limit Chart

How to apply






FAFSA Code: 002346

Information For:

current students
faculty and staff		 parents
alumni		 high school students
admitted students