Direct Loan Eligibility Determination: Fill & Download for Free

How much student loans do I need?Instead of asking “How much student loans can I get?” consider how much you really need.The answer to this question is going to be different for each individual. Depending on your school’s tuition, room and board, books, and living costs, your college expenses could differ wildly from someone else’s. CollegeBoard’s tool to calculate how much college will cost. Student loans aren’t limitless. The maximum amount you can borrow depends on factors including whether they’re federal or private loans and your year in school. Undergraduates can borrow up to $12,500 annually and $57,500 total in federal student loans. Graduate students can borrow up to $20,500 annually and $138,500 total. But just because you can borrow that much doesn’t mean you should. To keep higher education affordable, calculate how much you should borrow for college based on your expected future earnings and aim to keep your student borrowing below that amount.You can also borrow less if you get grants, scholarships, and other student aid that doesn’t have to be repaid. The FAFSA4Caster tool can help you estimate how much federal aid you’re likely to receive, and how much you’ll have to finance with loans.How Much Money You Can BorrowThere are two types of student loans available—federal and private. It is best to maximize the amount of money borrowed through federal student loans first before turning to private lenders. Current federal student loan lending limits are illustrated in the graph below, with a description to follow:Federal student loan limitsThe first type of loan that students should consider is federal student loans, which are offered through and guaranteed through the Direct Loan Program. This program offers four types of Direct Loans, and caps how much you can borrow with each under the following rules:Annual limits: The maximum amount of that the borrower can take out in an academic year.Aggregate limits: The maximum cumulative amount that a borrower can borrow in student loans.Cost of attendance: In addition to annual and aggregate limits, the federal government also limits loans by your costs. It will not allow borrowers to take out more student loans than their college program costs.How much student loans you can get, specifically, will vary by your student status. For example, the Direct Loan program lends less to students who are dependents (per FAFSA guidelines), or who are in their first or second year of college. For independent students and upperclassman, the borrowing limits are higher.Here are the federal student loan limits for different types of Direct Loans.Type of federal student loanWho can get this loan?Annual loan limitAggregate limitDirect Subsidized LoansUndergrads with demonstrated financial need$3,500 for freshmen, up to $5,500 for upperclassmen$23,000Direct Unsubsidized Loans*Undergrads$5,500 for dependent freshmen, up to $12,500 for independent upperclassmen$57,500Direct Unsubsidized Loans* (graduate students)Graduate and professional students$20,500$138,500PLUS LoansGraduate and professional students, and parents of undergraduatesCost of attendance (after all other student aid is applied)NoneTo access these federal student loans, you’ll need to file a FAFSA. The colleges you’ve applied to use your FAFSA information to evaluate your need and eligibility for federal student aid, including loans. Next, these colleges will send you financial aid award letters outlining what kinds of aid you can get.So as you want to know how much student loans you can get, pay attention to this letter. It will list the types and amounts of federal student loans you’re being offered.Private student loan limitsPrivate student loans are offered by banks and lenders directly to students and their parents. They aren’t part of the federal government’s programs, so they won’t have the same rules for how much student loans you can get.This can actually be good news for students who have hit their federal student loan limits and still have costs to cover. For instance, if you go to a more expensive university and pay a higher tuition, those federal student loans won’t go as far. In these cases, private student loans can help to cover any leftover costs.What you can borrow with private student loans will also vary by lender, as each bank will have its own lending rules. Here’s what private lenders will look at when deciding on your student loan amount:Lenders’ limits or guidelines: Each bank or lender will have its own limits on annual borrowing, while others may just have a certain maximum yearly amount you can borrow. Citizens Bank’s private student loans, for example, are limited at $100,000 for undergraduates.Credit qualifications: Lenders might limit student loan amounts based on your qualifications for a loan, too. You’ll need good credit to get a private student loan, for example. If you do not have any credit history you’ll likely need a parent or trusted adult cosign the loan for you.Education and employment: Private lenders might also limit loan amounts to what they determine will be affordable. To figure this out, they might look at details such as the type of degree you’re earning, and your cosigner’s income.Cost of attendance: Lastly, most private lenders will also consider your cost of attendance when deciding how much student loans you can get from them. Many will offer financing of up to 100% of your cost of attendance, but few private lenders will let you borrow more than what your program costs.

FAFSA does not cover anything.It is merely the Free application to try and obtain federal aid.If you are truly economically deprived you may be eligible for a Pell Grant. Otherwise almost everyone who fills out a FAFSA correctly (including information from your parents) will be eligible for Federal Direct Loans.However, the total that you may borrow may be Less than what you are eligible to borrow, because the College determines the amounts for the Feds:Subsidized and Unsubsidized LoansThe total cost of college includes: Tuition, Fees, Room, Board, Books & supplies, and miscellaneous local travel.The Federal money is given to the College, and not to you. Therefore, if the tuition and fees are $12,000 and Room and Board and Books/Supplies/Travel are another $15,000, and you can afford (EFC) to pay $17,000 of which the Federal direct loan is $5,500, then the college gets the $5,500 and you owe the college $6,500 more and are on your own for the $15,000 of other college related expenses. Which means you will either to reduce your “other” budget or come up with an additional $4,500.I hope that helps.

Before applying for a loan, it is very important to know the amount of loan you are eligible for. If your loan gets rejected, it directly hurts your credit score.The eligibility is not the same for all financial institutions. But several websites of banks and NBFCs have personal loan eligibility calculator that will tell you what you can expect from that particular institution. The calculator will consider the below factors to determine your personal loan eligibility:Age: Many loan providers define 23 to 55 years as the age bracket to acquire a loan. Some banks stretch the limit to 65 years.Occupation: Loan providers can sanction the loan amount based on whether you are salaried or self-employed.Monthly income: The minimum salary required for personal loan eligibility varies from city to city. For example, in a tier 2 city like Baroda, it is Rs. 25,000 and in a tier 1 city like Mumbai, it is Rs. 35,000.Monthly expenses: Bills, rent, commutation costs, fun and leisure expenses and other costs will be taken into account to determine how much EMI will you be able to pay.NBFCs have relatively more relaxed eligibility criteria as compared to banks. Getting a personal loan from a bank with a low credit score can be a tough task. And you might also have to pay a higher interest for a lesser amount. NBFCs are more approachable as they have schemes such as Flexi Personal Loan with which you can even lower your EMIs by up to 45%.