Question About Northwestern Loans

[UCLAMAN]

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Hopefully this question doesn't get moved to the financial aid forum since since a lot more fellow Northwesterners will probably see it here.

Anyhow...I just got my financial aid packet today and had a question regarding the NU Loans offered to us. Well...actually its regarding going with NU as the lender for the Stafford Loans.

The green folded brochure about NU Loans says that there is no application or origination fee for NU loans.

However, the Financial Aid Award Notice budgeted $1,155 for "Loan Fees."(Found at the bottom of the Financial Aid Summary)

Does anyone know if the "no application fee/no origination fee" also applies if one chooses NU as the lender for the Stafford Loans? Or does the no origination/no application fee only apply toward the need based and optional NU Loans?

If it does apply, then one could essentially cut the alotted $1,155 for "Loan Fees" out of the budget, correct? I could cut out $1,155 out of one of my unsubsidized loan awards since there are no fees? Or are there more fees that I am missing other than the application and originator fees?

I apologize if my questions sound dumb. I've been fortunate enough to not have to deal with educational loans thus far so I'm just learning the ropes now.

Thanks in advance to anyone that can help! 😀

 

[banannie]

i have no useful information to contribute
i just want to complain

yesterday afternoon, i was actually leaning toward going to northwestern.

then i got my FA package in the mail.

talk about a shot of bitter reality. they gave me all loans (which I guess wasn't unexpected) but the real kicker is that, after four years, my recommended loans are probably going to be at about the level of the debt cap, PLUS I'll have another $100,000 in optional loans on top of it! Absolutely ridiculous. They make me so mad.

Tough luck for me. I love the school, but it looks like I'll have to put off living in Chicago for 4 more years.

Good luck to everyone who's taking on these loans . . . and I really hope they aren't as crappy to you as they were to me.

 

[manicmaven]

UCLAMAN,

That's a good question about the loan fees. I have an unsubsidized Stafford loan and an optional NU loan and I just assumed that loan fees applied to these. We should probably call and see which loans have origination fees. It is probably somewhere in the 40 pages of tiny print info we got.

Banannie, sorry that you got tons of optional loans. That sucks. That $59,780 bottom line is a frightening deal. I lucked out and qualified for independent status and so I only had $6500 in 'unnecessary loans'. I'm sure you'll be happy at one of the many other fantastic schools you were accepted to.

 

[agent]

Hopefully I can finish up my Undergrad at NW.

Are those est loan fees your estimated loan interest?

 

[UCLAMAN]

Originally posted by agent
Hopefully I can finish up my Undergrad at NW.

Are those est loan fees your estimated loan interest?

No. Estimated Loan fees are the fees for pulling out the loans. You gotta pay for documentation and start up fees when you pull out a loan. Some lenders have promos where they waive all application and origination fees. The $1,155 is not interest. They are startup fees for your loan.

Loan interest is not calculated in the budget. That depends on the interest rates that are set every summer. You must calculate that yourself when the new interest rates for the year are posted.

 

[UCLAMAN]

Any Northwesterners out there planning on going with a lender other than NU for their Stafford loans?

 

[Wrigleyville]

Not to hijack the thread, but anyone know what the debt cap is for the class entering this year? I qualified for independent status, so most of my loans are "required" -- I was wondering what I'm looking at as far as debt after I graduate.

UCLA- To answer your question, I just went with NU for the lender. From what I remember of the financial aid presentation, using NU for loans sounded really convenient -- if you needed a few thousand extra bucks for rent or what not you could just call up the office and they'd put the money in your student account for you.

Wrigley

 

[UCLAMAN]

I think it is $128,000....or maybe that was from previous years.

 

[ssf77]

I got my FA packet too and was very dissappointed. Nu expects me to come up with 14,000 a year...I dont have that kind of money. This over 4 years amounts to 56,000. This is in addition to the rquired 46,000 I would have to borrow every year. I am really really confused now. Should I pick my state school where I have to borrow a measly 32,ooo a year or pick NU?? What''s ur opinions?

 

[UCLAMAN]

Originally posted by ssf77
I got my FA packet too and was very dissappointed. Nu expects me to come up with 14,000 a year...I dont have that kind of money. This over 4 years amounts to 56,000. This is in addition to the rquired 46,000 I would have to borrow every year. I am really really confused now. Should I pick my state school where I have to borrow a measly 32,ooo a year or pick NU?? What''s ur opinions?

Is the $14,000 the value they put at the bottom for your "Total Resources?" If so...if it makes you feel better I have to come up with 35k.

Which state school are you referring to? I always advocate going to where you will be happy. If you would be happy at your state school then go there. Its a win win situation with the costs. However, if you would be happier at NU then you would have to decide whether the cost difference is worth it.

I would pick my state schools over NU....but I'm from CA and our state schools are some of the best medical schools in the nation so its a no brainer.

 

[ssf77]

My state school is University of Illinois at Chicago.

 

[ForceField]

Originally posted by ssf77
My state school is University of Illinois at Chicago.

SSF,

I'm in a very similar situation to you, and have been agonizing over the decision to go to UIC, and am leaning towards UIC. UIC took care of all of my loans and even gave me a scholarship. In addition, I feel I'll be equally happy at UIC.

You have to ask yourself where you want to be 4 years from now. If you are planning on applying to residencies all over the nation, NWU will have better national recognition; however, if you are going to stay in the Midwest, UIC is highly regarded right next to Northwestern.

Lastly, one of my main concerns with Northwestern was if I decided to do Primary Care, Family Practice, etc., how long is it going to take me to pay off those loans and get on with the rest of my life? Don't know if this is a valid point, but just something I was thinking about.

Hope this helps. 🙂