Geting a student loan for personal reasons?
Oct 6th, 2008 by admin
I currently get pell grants for school, but my personal financial situation is at a bust. I was wondering If I applied for a student loan, do I get to request how much I need? and Do I have to prove that I am using it for school? I really want to cleant up my act, pay my bills and fix my car. I am in desparate need of financial help. Any suggestions?
Yes, it has to go to school. In fact, you never see the money, the check is mailed straight to the school and you do have to prove you are enrolled full time.
Maybe you could go to the bank and apply for a personal loan. That you could use for the car and bills.
Fill out the fasfa. After your financial aid office gets the results from that, they will let you know how much you are eligible for and you can decide how much of that you want to take out. If your tuition is paid in full, the money will be refunded directly to you. “Living expenses” is built into the formula that determines how much you are eligible for.
If you get a student loan and you are enrolled in a school, they usually do not check what you used it for. After tuition was paid to the school, I received the remaining amount in my checking account. I used it for rent and whatnot. So I did see the money.
However, because you would be using it for personal use, like fixing your car, I’d suggest applying for a loan through a credit union or if possible, through your parents’ bank (if you are still a dependent).
You can go directly through a lender such as Sallie Mae (there are many others) and request a certain amount of money for a personal loan. The money still goes to the school first, but if your school account doesn’t have a previous balance then you will receive a disbursement check for the full amount. The interest rates on these are a bit higher than loans received through the FAFSA, but you can defer payments until after graduation or even make payments on the interest alone so it does not become part of the principal at the end of the year. However, you may need a cosigner if you don’t have enough credit built up.
I had similar problems through college as my parents were expected to pay for quite a bit of my college even though they had no money of which to speak.
Beatrice is exactly right. You get the remainder after tuition is paid for. Of course, legaly, you are suppose to spend it on furthering your education, but I BELIEVE living expenses may fall in that category.
If you get a FAFSA student loan, if you have any tuition/fees due, it will be put toward that. The remainder you can use as you please. There’s a limit on how much you can get per year. The check goes to your school, but your remaining $$$ after fees are paid are your to keep. The school will give you a refund check.
I went to one school that wanted you to tell them exactly what it was being spent on, the school I go to now doesn’t care. But I do believe living expenses and child care is a reason you can get one. (at least in the state of Ohio)