Alternative Loans Process

You Select a Lender

  • Decide which lender with whom to apply
  • Complete all necessary paperwork. You will be required to fill out a "Self-Certification Form" with your lender. They have the forms available on their website or you may download this electronic version.
  • Provide all necessary signatures

The Lender Contacts Financial Aid

  • Sends us an electronic certification request after you have filled out all paperwork and are fully approved

Financial Aid Certifies

  • Certify that you are an eligible student based on lender criteria
  • Certify that you have unmet educational expenses that this loan will cover
  • Establish what date the funds should be sent to the university

Next Steps

  • After a mandatory 10 day rescission period (time period in which the student may cancel the loan application), the lender sends funds to the university via electronic funds transfer
  • Funds are paid directly to your student account with the university
  • Tuition and anything owed the university is paid
  • If there is a balance owed back to you, the university will either process a direct deposit into your checking or savings account or process a paper check that will be mailed to your mailing address on DuckWeb

Things to Remember

  • If you want your loan to cover education related expenses for something not already in your cost of attendance, you will need to request an increase to your cost of attendance. The revision request must be in the Office of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships prior to our receiving the loan certification request.
  • If your expenses are higher or lower from one term to the next, you may provide a written request your loan be disbursed unevevnly to account for this.
  • Only some lenders will loan to students who are enrolled as a non-degree seeking student, enrolled less-than-half-time, not meeting Satisfactory Academic Progress standards, or in a non-credit program.
  • We currently certify loans Monday-Friday and receive records from lenders Monday-Friday. The Business Affairs Office prepares refunds twice a week so there may be a lag between funds paying to your student account and you receiving a refund.
  • We are unable to certify loans for the upcoming academic year prior to July because of necessary computer upgrades. Remember that most credit checks are only good for 90 days.
  • August and September are high volume months for all aspects of the financial aid process. At this time of year, certification of loans may lag by several weeks.