US federal loans

When should I apply for my loan and how long will it take to process?

Can I apply for my US federal loan mid-year?

You can apply for a loan during the course of the academic year, however you must submit your application in time for us to complete processing and disburse the funds before the end of your academic year (e.g. June for undergraduates). There is a US Department of Education deadline for submitting your FAFSA, so you must ensure that this is also met.

Other funding options for US students

Scholarships 

Information on funding and scholarship opportunities can be found on our Oxford Funding and External Funding pages.

Private loans

If you are interested in applying for a private US student loan, please see our private loans page.

US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) funding

The University is able to process applications for US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) funding (also known as the GI Bill or Post 9/11 Bill) and can complete and submit certificates of enrolment to the VA. Please refer to our US Department of Veterans Affairs funding information.

What US federal loans can I borrow?

The type of loan and the amount you can borrow is dependent on whether you are a graduate or undergraduate student.

In addition to the below, you must complete the federal Cost of Attendance (COA) form to determine the amounts you are eligible to borrow in the relevant academic year. Your COA refers to the costs of completing your study at Oxford for one academic year.  The COAs are available on the How to apply tab.

Loan types for Graduate Students

Loan types for Undergraduate students

Before completing a federal loan application, you will need to determine whether you are a dependent or an independent student and this will establish which loan types and amounts you are eligible to borrow. Definitions on how to determine this can be found on the Federal Student Aid website, but if your circumstances are unusual and you need advice, please email the US loans team. 

*Some courses are not eligible for federal loans. More information is available on the Eligibility tab.

**Origination fees, default fees and interest rates are subject to change. For the latest information on interest rates and fees, please see the Federal Student Aid website.

How do I receive and manage my US federal loan?

Receiving your US federal loan

Payment of federal loans are made in equal termly instalments by bank transfer to your college. The US Department of Education stipulates that loans must be paid in equal instalments.

The disbursement dates are when your college will receive the loan funds, not the date that you will receive any funds remaining for living costs. Once the US loans team approves your loan, you will receive a letter providing the details of your loan disbursements. The main scheduled disbursement dates are in October, January and April, with an additional payment in July for those on courses with 11 or 12 month loan periods.

You should ensure that you have sufficient funds from an alternative source to cover any costs until you receive your first disbursement. You must be fully enrolled before your funds can be requested from the US.  If you have not completed your enrolment by the deadline your loan payment will be postponed to the next scheduled disbursement date. Further information on registration can be found on the Guide to registration webpage.

Although it is standard practice to invoice students for all fees at the beginning of the academic year, special dispensation is made for federal loan takers. Instead, your college will arrange for your fees to be paid in instalments that correlate with your US loan payments.

Within three working days of receiving the funds, your college will deduct a proportion for fees and battels (room and board). They will then pay the balance to you within 14 calendar days for living costs. For students on some courses, the central University and/or your department will perform these functions instead. Please note the US loan regulations require that colleges pay US loan funds to you within the specified time scales and colleges cannot usually hold funds on your student account beyond these dates.

Exchange rate

Your funds will be converted to £GBP on receipt and currency conversion costs will apply. Although the Cost of Attendance (COA) form uses a static exchange rate to calculate costs, the actual amount your college will receive for each disbursement will vary, as it will depend on the exchange rate on the date the funds are received.

Managing your US federal loan

Any changes to your loan must be requested by the deadlines specified in the table below. Any changes made after the deadline given may cause your loan payment to be delayed to the next disbursement date.

SAP

To be eligible for US federal student loans, a student must make satisfactory academic progress (SAP). To assess SAP you will be sent a form for your supervisor to complete confirming you have made satisfactory academic progress for your course. For courses lasting 12 months or less SAP will be evaluated once per term; for those on programmes lasting more than 12 months SAP will be evaluated in Trinity term. Please note that your form must be returned by the deadline given, otherwise it may cause any upcoming disbursements to be postponed until such time as your SAP form has been completed. More information on SAP can be found here.

Increasing your loan

To increase your loan within the limits of your COA, email the US loans team stating the new gross $USD amounts you would like to borrow in the current academic year. We will return an updated version of your COA to you for your approval. Any approved additional funds will be spread across the remaining scheduled disbursements.

If you have an endorser on your PLUS loan, you can only increase the loan up to the endorsed amount, unless your endorser is willing to increase the endorsed amount. Please email the US loans team in the first instance if your PLUS loan is endorsed and you wish to increase the amount. 

If you are currently taking only a Subsidized and/or Unsubsidized loan but your increase includes a PLUS loan, you will need to complete a PLUS loan agreement (MPN), PLUS entrance counselling and a PLUS loan application. More information on this is on our How to apply tab.

Decreasing your loan

To decrease your loan, email the US loans team stating the new gross $USD amounts you would like to borrow in the current academic year. The reduction will be spread across your remaining disbursements. You cannot decrease your loan below the amounts already released for each type of loan in the current academic year. 

Cancelling your loan

We will email you prior to each disbursement with the deadline for cancelling/returning loan funds through the University. To cancel your loan you must notify us by the specified deadline, as well as informing your college of your requested cancellation. You may need to pay fees and bank charges associated with returning any funds if payment has already been requested from the US.

If you would like to cancel your federal loan and the deadline for doing so through the University has passed (if it is more than 120 days past the disbursement date), you can make a repayment directly to your lender; details on this can be located on the Federal Student Aid webpage. If you make a repayment within 120 days of the loan disbursement date, your lender may be able to treat this as a partial or full cancellation with the appropriate adjustment of the loan fee and interest.

Changes affecting your loan

You must contact us if any of the below occur or may occur. Contact us immediately and in advance of the change where possible.

• Other funding received: If you are provided with a financial award, such as a scholarship or grant, your COA will be adjusted accordingly. This may change the amounts you are able to borrow.
• Change of college: Your loan will be transferred to new records on Oxford and US systems. We will be unable to release funds unless your record is against the correct college.
• Change of course: We will reassess your eligibility and amend your COA, which could change the amounts you are able to borrow.
• Change of mode of study: If you change from full- to part-time study or vice versa, we will reassess your eligibility and amend your COA, which could change the amounts you are able to borrow.
• Change of location of study: If you change where you are living during the academic year (except vacations) we will reassess your eligibility. More information can be found on our Eligibility tab.
• Change or potential change in enrolment status: You must contact us immediately if you are considering changing enrolment status, so that we can prevent your disbursement being released if this has not already been done. We are required to report any enrolment changes within tight timescales and may need to complete a Return to Title IV (R2T4) calculation, which can lead to ‘unearned’ funds being returned to the US Department of Education (see our Consumer information and policies page for the full R2T4 policy). Please contact us with any questions as we can provide information tailored to your individual circumstances. The requirements for Title IV program funds when you change status are separate from the University's refund policy, therefore you should also discuss any enrolment change with your college and department.
• Return to study from a suspension: You need to complete a loan application for the year in which you will be returning to study, should you wish to borrow funds for this period. Information on applying is on our How to apply tab. It is advisable to submit your application prior to the term you are due to return, for example in November if you are returning in Hilary term.