Student
Loans and Financial Aid
Students,
depending on meeting lender criteria, have
varying opportunities to obtain student loans. The types of student loans
available - http://www.tjsl.edu/financial_aid_types.
US
nationals and permanent residents who meet
the federal government established criteria
have access to a combination of government
guaranteed student loans and also private
student loans. For the 2006/2007 academic year, an enrolled
student could borrow up to $18,500
in Federal Stafford
loans, with no more than $8,500 Subsidized,
only for the cost of education, less other
financial aid received.*
Exploring
eligibility for the government program of
student loans, such as Federal Stafford loans,
is simple – just fill out the government FASFA
form online.
FAFSA is located at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov. The Thomas Jefferson School of Law Federal School Code is 013780.
From
the time of receiving the student’s FAFSA
information, the remaining two steps below
should take approximately 4 weeks till when
the lender sends the funds to the student's
account, allowing time for mail and assuming
prompt response from the student. If
a student opts for electronic signature, then
expect 2-3 weeks.
Any
student, including foreign nationals / non-residents
persons, may explore the opportunities available
through non-government student loans.
A
comparative sampling of opportunities is available
at http://www.mylenderlist.com/tjsl/private/
The
private loan programs allow you to apply online
and in many cases immediately determine eligibility. Many programs require less than ten minutes
to apply online.
This process is considerably faster
than the government loan program.
Fill
out your FAFSA online http://www.fafsa.ed.gov.
The
Federal School Code for Thomas Jefferson is 013780. The federal government takes about 2-3
weeks to process the FAFSA information. The
federal government will notify Thomas Jefferson
when you are approved.
If
you have enrolled by submitting your tuition
deposit, then Thomas Jefferson will certify
the cost of your education and notify the
Federal Government that you are registered,
triggering the financial aid award letter,
other documents, and the disbursement of the
funds.
You
are required to first submit your $500 tuition
deposit or Thomas Jefferson will not consider
your FAFSA eligibility.
If you are submitting your FAFSA within one
month before classes begin, you should
consider a private student loan to bridge
the gap in time so that you do not miss a
semester waiting for your financial aid award
letter, signed promissory note/s, and disbursement.
See http://www.mylenderlist.com/tjsl/private/
STEP
2 – Stafford Loan Form
If
you have filled out your FAFSA and paid your
tuition deposit, then please go to the following
links to download the financial aid information
form. Sign this form and submit back the original
to Thomas Jefferson.
http://www.tjsl.edu/files/financial/2007_08_Stafford_Loan_Wrap.pdf
You
must choose a designated loan lender from
the list or write in another lender that you
prefer in order to transmit the data to the
lender or guarantee agency. They approve the
loan and e-mail the promissory note information
to you. The student completes the note and
sends it back to their lender or guarantee
agency.
The
maximum student loan that you may apply for
annually is set by a federally acquiesced
student budget.
That budget for the LLM/JSM includes:
(a)
your tuition and de
minimis fee
costs per semester
(b)
your book costs set
at an average $500 per semester
(c)
a one-off computer purchase
cost of $2,500 as a new student (this
includes transfer students BUT you must seek
that purchase now – the federal government
may request to authenticate the purchase receipt)
Your
final step for your student loan approval
is to sign the actual loan agreement. The loan agreement will be found at http://www.edfund.net/ednet/index.html
when your information has been entered in
the system (i.e. you completed Steps 1 and
2 and have met the other enrollment requirements
such as original transcripts).
Applicants
should independently and robustly research
scholarship and financial assistance sources
within their own country of origin, as well
as the possibilities of tax relief for themselves
or their employer.
By example, some countries allow students
to offset course fees and/or living expenses
against income tax, which considerably reduces
the cost.
- Types
of funding includes scholarships,
grants, and writing contests for graduate
and doctoral students, as well as loans
and loan payback programs, and employer
tuition reimbursement programs both during
and upon employment.
- Sources
of funding come from governments
(e.g. federal, state, and local); charities
and foundations; associations (e.g. professional
associations, fraternities and sororities);
and from corporations.
- Aid
is sometimes directed to specific groups of
recipients, generally based upon a criterion
such as a racial/ethnic group,
geographic orientation, disability, mature
returning students, gender, or area of study.
Example
resources and websites are included below
to assist applicants in formulating their
own search methodology using the WWW and books. None is endorsed by the program,
merely these are illustrative of the types
of research available on the web.
