Financial Aid Office

• Must have a valid FAFSA on file
• Must be a U.S. citizen or eligible noncitizen
• Accepted into a recognized Master’s Degree program - Graduate Pre-Majors are not eligible for Grad PLUS loan
• Attend at least half-time (6 credit hours of required coursework)
• Maintain satisfactory academic progress toward a degree per the policies of the college
• Cannot be in default on any other federal loans
• Cannot owe a refund on a federal student grant or loan
• Must be credit approved

Graduate PLUS loans for Summer 2021 are part of the 2020-21 academic year. Graduate students should select the academic period for 05/2021 to 08/2021 when applying for the loan at https://studentaid.gov. An application for a Graduate PLUS loan for summer should not be requested until the student has registered for a minimum of six credit hours over the course of the summer (this can be from a combination of different summer modules). 

Students who also intend to request a Graduate PLUS loan for the 2021-22 academic year, will need to file a separate application for this loan period on or after JUNE 1, 2021.  

Applications for a Graduate PLUS loan for the 2020-2021 year should not be made until after June 1, 2020, or later to avoid expiration of the required credit check prior to the loan being originated. Credit checks are only valid for 180 days.

• Graduate students sign in at www.studentaid.gov using their Federal Student Aid (FSA) ID and password
• Click on "Apply for a Direct PLUS Loan"
• Next, Select Direct PLUS Loan Application for Graduate/Professional Students
• Click: START
• Complete all information and submit request for credit approval. Please be careful to choose the correct school name. Buffalo State is listed as "SUNY College at Buffalo." Refer to the image below:

• If approved, complete a Federal Direct PLUS Master Promissory Note

• Credit approval will be given to any student who does not have adverse credit; it is not based on low income, the amount of loan requested, the amount of debt a student has, or a students’s FICO score. Even students who do not have a credit history may be approved. A student will generally be approved for a PLUS loan as long as they do not have adverse credit as defined below.

The following criteria will determine when a Graduate PLUS Loan is denied due to adverse credit:

 A Graduate PLUS loan applicant has an adverse credit history if, in addition to other conditions (e.g., bankruptcy, foreclosure, tax lien, or a default determination) the applicant has one or more debts that:

• Are 90 or more days delinquent;
• Are in collection or have been charged off during the two years preceding the date of the applicant’s credit report; and
• The total combined outstanding balance of those debts is greater than $2,085

 The following options are available for students whose Graduate PLUS application is denied:

• Use a credit approved endorser
• Request an appeal of the credit decision based on extenuating circumstances
• Request reconsideration if it is offered to you
• Choose not to pursue the Graduate PLUS loan; no additional action will be taken on the credit decision and the school will be notified of the denial 

Students who are approved for a Graduate PLUS loan using an endorser, or who are approved following an appeal or reconsideration, must complete PLUS COUNSELING at https://studentaid.gov before the loan can be originated. PLUS Counseling is not the same as the Entrance Counseling requirement for first-time borrowers of a Graduate PLUS Loan.  PLUS Counseling would be required in addition to Entrance Counseling if the loan was approved with an endorser or through an appeal.

Students who are credit approved and borrowing a Graduate PLUS Loan for the first time will be required to complete an online Entrance Counseling Session for graduate students and a Direct Graduate PLUS Master Promissory Note (MPN) at https://studentaid.gov (Entrance Counseling is not the same as PLUS Counseling).

The Graduate PLUS MPN is different than the MPN used for unsubsidized student loans.

• Once your loan has been originated by our office, the Department of Education will assign your loan to a federal student aid loan servicer. The servicer assigned to your loan(s) will send you correspondence including disclosure statements that contain loan amounts, interest rates and disbursement dates, repayment information and options regarding loan consolidation. 
• Always notify your loan servicer with any changes to your personal information such as name, address, or phone number and feel free to contact them with any questions regarding your loan(s). 
• Contact information for your federal loan servicer can be found by reviewing your loan(s) at www.nslds.ed.gov.  

Students who borrow a Graduate PLUS loan are eligible for an in-school deferment as long as they are enrolled at least half-time or a minimum of six credit hours in required coursework. If a student drops below half-time, they will be contacted by their federal loan servicer regarding the first payment.

Helpful information including repayment plans and calculators, public service loan forgiveness, and postponing repayment.;

• Effective for loans first disbursed between July 1, 2020, and June 30, 2021, Grad PLUS loans have a fixed interest rate of 5.3% 
• If possible, it is wise to make interest only payments during the in-school deferment period to keep the interest from being capitalized and added onto the principal balance of the loan. 

Information on other topics related to Federal Direct Graduate PLUS loans including loan consolidation, repayment plans, loan forgiveness, and/or cancellation may be found online at the following websites:

• Federal Student Aid -  General information about federal student aid
• StudentAid.gov - Complete federal MPNs and entrance counseling
• Federal Student Loan Consolidation - Consolidate federal student loans
• National Student Loan Database System (NSLDS) - Review federal loan history