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CONTACT THE GRADUATE ADMISSIONS & FINANCIAL AID OFFICE
New Student Federal Unsubsidized Loan Application
The Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan is a low-interest loan available to students for post-secondary educational expenses. Most domestic matriculated students are eligible for an Unsubsidized Loan each academic year. The Federal Direct loan program is part of the Title IV aid program that offers Federal financial assistance to students and includes, among other funds, the Direct Unsubsidized and Direct Graduate PLUS loan.
The interest rate for all Direct Unsubsidized Loans disbursed on or after July 1, 2023 and prior to July 1, 2024 is a fixed rate of 7.05%. The origination fee is 1.057% for loans disbursed after October 1, 2020 and prior to October 1, 2024.
- Obtain a FSA ID. Students will need an FSA ID to complete and electronically sign the FAFSA.
- Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (2023-2024 FAFSA) Boston University’s FAFSA school code is 002130.
- Complete the 2023-2024 Federal Unsubsidized Loan Application
- First-time BU applicants may be asked to provide their SSN through secure email.
- Submit the Master Promissory Note (MPN)* and Entrance Counseling for your loan (first time BU borrowers only)
You are eligible to participate in the Federal Direct Loan Program if you are:
- A U.S. citizen or permanent resident
- Enrolled in a degree program on at least a half-time basis (or considered at least half-time by your School/College) and credits count towards your degree
- Have not met the cumulative (aggregate) limit for the Federal Direct (formerly Stafford) Subsidized/Unsubsidized loan program of $138,500 for graduate and professional students, including any amount borrowed for undergraduate study.
2023-2024 Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan Request – CLICK HERE
Summer Financial Aid
Federal Loans
Summer financial aid is a separate process. A student may be eligible to borrow the Federal Direct Loan for the summer term if the student did not borrow all of their annual loan limit during the prior academic year or will not be borrowing the annual loan limit for the coming academic year due to attendance for only one semester.
Graduate students are eligible to borrow up to 20,500 for an academic year. If you are enrolling in a summer semester, the amount borrowed will be placed against that annual limit. The remaining amount will be divided equally between the fall and spring semesters.
In addition, a student is eligible to borrow if the summer term is the student’s final enrollment period. Students must also be enrolled at least half-time (six credit hours) over the course of both summer sessions to be eligible.
Summer 2023 Direct loan applications are currently available!
Summer 2023 Unsubsidized Direct Loan Request Form
Summer 2023 Direct PLUS loan Application
Be sure to complete the 2023-2024 FAFSA prior to completing Summer 2022 loan application.
Central office (BU Office of Financial Assistance) process Summer loan applications, therefore there may be delays depending on volume.
*Loan eligibility cannot be determined until you are registered for the summer session. It is important that your request be submitted as soon as possible after registering for your summer classes. Your application will take approximately seven to ten business days to process once our office begins reviewing loan requests in early April.
Private Loans
You are eligible to borrow a private educational loan for the summer. Options for lenders can be found here. If you intend on taking less than 6 credits, please be sure that your lender of choice allows this.
Direct Unsubsidized Loan
Students are eligible to borrow up to $20,500 per academic year
Students must remain enrolled at least half-time (6 or more credits).
The interest rate on the UNSUB loan is currently 6.54% fixed.
Graduate PLUS Loan
Graduate students must complete the Graduate PLUS application and Graduate PLUS Master Promissory Note (MPN).
Students must remain enrolled at least half-time (6 or more credits).
The interest rate on the Graduate PLUS loan is currently 7.54% fixed.
Students can request to borrow up to their full cost of attendance, less any financial aid awarded.
Students must apply for their UNSUB loan before applying for the Graduate PLUS loan.
