Private education student loans
What is a private student loan?
Private student loans are loans for your education that you get through a private lender such as a bank and are not funded by the federal government. Watch the video for more information on how private loans work.
Where can I get a private student loan?
You must apply directly through a lender. You are free to choose any lender you wish. If you choose to borrow from a lender you might consider using a tool called ELM by visiting ELM Select. ELM Select helps undergraduate, graduate and international students determine which lender and product is right for them. You can filter by lender, repayment types, index rate, enrollment and satisfactory progress. You can also compare lenders and their products side by side to determine the best private education loan for you.
Visit ELM Select View Private Loan FAQs
ASU does not recommend or promote any of the lenders listed on ELM Select. The list represents lenders who provided private education loans to students at Arizona State University. It is up to you to decide which lender to use to obtain your private education loan. For information on Canadian student loans visit the FAQs.
Private student loans generally have stricter eligibility requirements. Lenders may require a good credit score and a cosigner. If you’re considering borrowing through a private lender, we encourage you to:
- Be sure you have exhausted other possible sources of financial aid, including subsidized and unsubsidized federal loans first.
Borrow only what you absolutely need.
- Ask questions and compare the rates and terms offered by different lenders.
- Remember that Private Loans are credit based and require an established credit history and ability to repay. To improve the likelihood of approval, students are encouraged to apply with a credit worth co-signer who can provide additional support to the loan application.
How will I get my loan?
Certifiable loan terms are Fall/Spring (same academic year), Fall only, Spring only and Summer only. That means that loans can only be processed and disbursed for these academic terms.
Two-semester loans
If your loan is certified for both the fall and spring semesters, the first half of your funds will disburse in the fall semester and the second half in the spring semester.
Single-term loans
If your loan is certified for a single term, your private education loan will be disbursed in one disbursement.
Disbursement timeline
Your private education loan will disburse within 8 to 10 business days from the date you receive the Loan Consummation Disclosure Statement. Lenders and schools are prohibited by federal regulations from disbursing funds until the cancellation period has passed.
The private loan process involves you as the student, a lender and ASU.
Step 1: Research and apply
You begin by researching lenders through ELM Select. After selecting a lender, you apply directly with that lender.
Step 2: Certification request
Within one to three business days of approving your application, your lender sends a certification request to ASU.
Step 3: Loan certification
ASU reviews and certifies your loan. Processing typically takes up to four weeks. Once the review is complete, ASU sends the certification back to your lender, generally within five business days.
Step 4: Right to cancel period
Federal law requires a 3-business-day right to cancel period. During this time, you may cancel your loan.
Step 5: Disbursement
After the right to cancel period ends, your lender sends a disbursement request to ASU. ASU disburses your loan funds within 10 business days.
Private loan FAQs
You are free to choose any lender you wish. ASU does not recommend or promote any lenders. However, to expedite loan applications and disbursements, you may want to consider a lender that is compatible with ELM (an electronic student loan management system).
Find lenders compatible with ELM by visiting ELM Select. ELM Select is a great tool for undergraduate, graduate and international students to determine which lender and product is right for them. Filter by lender, repayment types, index rate, enrollment and satisfactory academic progress. Then, compare lenders and their products side by side to decide the best private education loan option.
ASU cannot certify private education loans across several terms and/or academic years.
Certifiable terms include:
- Fall/Spring of the same academic year
- Fall only
- Spring only
- Summer only
A private loan may be used to pay your past due balance from a previous semester or year. Contact your lender to verify that they will fund a loan for a past due balance. Each lender has different criteria when applying for a private loan.
Once you confirm the lender, they can fund a private loan for a past due balance. Please ensure that you request the loan period in which the past due amount is located. You may wish to notify Financial Aid and Scholarship Services; however, please be aware that we are unable to review your private education loan request until the lender transmits the information to us. Your private loan must be certified in order to cover your past due balance. Once the loan funds are received, they will be applied to your student account to pay your past due balance.
If your private loan was certified for the current year and has not yet been disbursed, the loan can be changed to cover a past due balance for the prior year, if approved by your lender
You may research a variety of lenders to secure a private education loan. Any questions you have about the loan itself and application or processing times should be directed to your lender. ASU will not know the details of your arrangement.
Please remember that once your loan is approved by a lender, there will be a transition period between when the loan is certified by ASU and when your lender disburses the funds. Ask your lender about processing timelines.
Will my private loan disburse if I have a SAP hold?
The SAP violation hold will prevent ASU from disbursing your private loan funds. Disbursement of your private education loan is dependent upon your private lender’s policies. ASU will review your file once we receive your private loan funds from your lender to determine if you are eligible for disbursement. If your lender does not require that you meet SAP, then ASU will disburse your private education loan funds within five to seven business days of receipt of funds.
You may visit ELM Select and use the Satisfactory Academic Progress Required filter to determine your lender’s SAP requirement.
Once your private loan has been certified by Financial Aid and Scholarship Services, the amount cannot be increased. You will need to contact your lender directly and request that they send ASU another loan certification request for the additional amount.
If you would like to decrease your loan amount before or after disbursement, please contact your lender directly for information.
It takes about 20 business days from the day ASU certifies the private loan until it will disburse.
Once ASU receives the required information from the private lender:
- You will receive an email confirming that the private loan has been certified.
- After ASU certifies your private loan, the certification record must be transmitted back to the private lender. There is then a federally mandated seven to 10 business day waiting period before any funds can be disbursed.
- After the waiting period, the private lender will then transmit the funds to ASU for disbursement. Once received, ASU will assign the funds to your account and issue any refund.
Due to the steps, the electronic transmissions involved and the mandatory waiting period that must elapse, students can expect to receive their private loan disbursement about 20 business days from the date ASU certifies the loan.
Your private education loan is most likely showing a disbursement hold on My ASU because we have not yet received the private education loan funds from your lender. Once we receive the funds, they will disburse to your student account within three to five business days.
If you are not meeting Satisfactory Academic Progress, are not enrolled at least half-time or are a nondegree-seeking student, ASU will review your file once we receive your private loan funds to determine if you are eligible for disbursement.
If your lender does not require that you meet SAP, or allows for less than half-time or nondegree-seeking status, ASU will disburse your private education loan funds to your student account within three to five business days.
Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada living in any province for over a year are eligible to receive a Canadian Student Loan by the Canadian government through the Canada Student Loan Program. Eligible borrowers may also receive loans through individual provinces either through their own programs or programs integrated with the CSLP. Loan funds are sent directly to the student from the province it was obtained through. ASU does not receive funds.
ASU processes the Canadian Student Loan applications one semester at a time. Students should submit a new loan application each semester when charges for that semester are posted to their student account. The Canadian Student Loan applications should be submitted to Financial Aid and Scholarship Services via [email protected].*
*Note: Canadian Student Loan applications through British Columbia are processed directly on their website. An email is sent to ASU each time a new loan application is available for review.
Canadian Confirmation of Enrollment and Confirmation of Distance Education Eligibility forms are also processed one semester at a time. Students should submit a new form each semester to Financial Aid and Scholarship Services via [email protected].
Private lenders may not offer repayment plans that are as flexible as those offered for federal student loans, such as income-based or extended payment plans. Each repayment plan is different. You will need to work directly with your lender to determine the plan that best fits your needs.
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