Loans

Federal Direct Loans include student Direct Loans (subsidized and unsubsidized) and graduate and parent PLUS Loans. All federal loans require that you and your parent (dependent students) complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). 

Direct Loans
PLUS Loan
Perkins Loan*

Additional federal loan requirements:

• You must be enrolled at least half-time (six credits).
• You must be making satisfactory academic progress.
• New borrowers must complete entrance counseling and a Master Promissory Note (MPN) at the Federal Student Aid website. You will use your FSA ID to complete the counseling and sign your MPN.
• Your loan must be certified before the end of the enrollment period.

When you borrow a federal loan, the U.S. Department of Education assigns your loan to a federal loan servicer. Your servicer will contact you (email or U.S. mail) when your loan funds are disbursed. You can find your loan servicer on the Federal Student Aid dashboard (requires log in with your FSA ID) under "My Aid." While the majority of St. Cloud State students successfully repay their federal student loans, some do not which results in the loan being declared in default. St. Cloud State’s three-year cohort default rate for 2018, the most recent year available, was 4.6 percent. For information about the national average Cohort Default rate, as well as specifics by institution type, visit Federal Student Aid's default management site.

Once you drop below half-time (six credits), withdraw from school, or graduate, you will be required to complete loan exit counseling (login with your FSA ID required). Review the Next Steps for Loan Borrowers (PDF) checklist for information on loan forgiveness, repayment plans, and loan consolidation.

*The federal Perkins Loan program ended Sept. 30, 2017 with final disbursements through June 30, 2018.

Student Debt Relief

The U.S. Department of Education has announced plans for loan forgiveness of $10,000 up to 20,000 for Pell Grant recipients on federal loans that had an outstanding balance as of June 30, 2022. Eligibility for this relief requires 2020 or 2021 individual income (AGI) be less than $125,000 or $250,000 for households. An application will be available prior to the end of the student loan pause of Dec. 31.

Borrowers can view their loan balances and check their Pell Grant status by logging into their Federal Student Aid account online at Studentaid.gov.

Please visit Studentaid.gov/debt-relief for more information pertaining to student debt relief. 

To be notified by the U.S. Department of Education when the application is open, please sign up at Ed.gov/subscriptions and check the box marked “Federal Student Loan Borrower Updates”.

After considering your federal loan options, you may need additional funds to pay your educational expenses.  Some banks, credit unions, and states provide educational loan options, commonly known as private loans. Private loans may have higher interest rates than federal loans. Eligibility for private loans is based on the credit-worthiness of the borrower and/or co-signer.

St. Cloud State University does not endorse any one lender. We provide an online loan comparison tool, FASTChoice, as a way for you to compare private loan options. The choice of lender is yours; you are also not required to select one from this list of lenders. Check the borrower requirements of the private lenders before you borrow.

Due to the number of steps involved in the private loan application process, allow a minimum of 3 weeks for processing.

Some private loans allow payment for previous term charges, allow for less than half-time (6 credits) enrollment, or do not require that you are making satisfactory academic progress. 

This short-term loan provides financial assistance to St. Cloud State University students who have unexpected, temporary emergency expenses. Allowable expenses include auto repairs, emergency travel, medical expenses, and textbook purchases.

• Students must be enrolled at least half-time (6 credits) with no past due balance owed to the University.
• Current students must be in good academic standing with a minimum 2.00 GPA.
• Students must have at least one earned St. Cloud State credit. New entering freshmen and transfer students are not eligible for this loan during the first term of their enrollment at St. Cloud State.
• If a student wishes to borrow funds during semester break, the student must be pre-registered for the following semester.
• Students may borrow up to $600. There is an origination/processing fee for all loans included in the loan amount - $10 processing fee for loans up to $400 and $25 processing fee for loans up to $600. This fee is deducted from the loan proceeds before disbursement. Example: If you borrow $600 your loan check will be $575.
• Students may not have more than one outstanding emergency loan at any one time.  There is a 28 day waiting period from the payoff date before another emergency loan will be processed.
• Loans are due within 60 days, including weekends and holidays. Any loan not paid by the due date will be subject to a $30 late fee.
• If the loan check is not picked up from the Business Services Office (AS Building, Room 123) within five (5) business days of the check issue date, the check will be canceled. The processing fee will still be assessed.
• Funds are disbursed and repayment is managed by the St. Cloud State Business Services Office.

Students and parents have the right to cancel loans, all or in part, if they borrowed more than needed. Loan cancellation options include the federal Direct Loan Programs, the Minnesota SELF Loan Program, the Private Educational Loan Program, and the federal TEACH Grant any time prior to disbursement or within 14 days of notification of disbursement of the loan. 

Cancellation of Loan Funds (PDF)

If it has been more than 14 days since your loan was disbursed and you wish to cancel or return loan funds, you must contact your loan servicer to make a payment.

St. Cloud State values integrity in its employees and expects them to comply with laws, regulations and University policies while performing their duties.

The Student Loan Code of Conduct applies to Financial Aid Office employees and University employees involved with education loans.