Private Student Loans for College

When federal financial aid doesn’t cover the cost of tuition, you may need to fill the gap with a private student loan. Franklin can help you understand how to get a student loan to pay for college if you need it.

Institutional Aid

Schell Loan Program

Details:

Open to undergraduate students age 25 or under
Requires that a current FAFSA be on file at Franklin
Must be registered at least half time
Must complete 30 hours at Franklin with a minimum 2.0 GPA
May not be receiving any other grants or scholarships
Must reside in Ohio, Kentucky or West Virginia
Student and parents must be born in and a citizen of the United States of America

How to Apply:

Contact Student Financial Services for an appointment.

Amount:

Up to $200 per credit hour

Deadline:

None

Private Loans

What are private loans?

Banks and other independent lenders offer private loans to help pay for the costs of college not covered by financial aid, including current tuition and past-due balances. Private loans are subject to lender approval based on a credit review and other lender-specific requirements.

Before you apply for a private loan, we recommend that you pursue eligibility for federal loans, such as Federal Direct, PLUS and Grad PLUS. Federal loans are usually less expensive than private loans and offer more flexible repayment options.

Selecting a Student Loan Lender

Franklin reviews its list of private education lenders each year. Our Director of Financial Aid provides comparative information of borrower benefits for Private Education loans to the Executive Director of Student Affairs Operations, and makes recommendations that include at least three unaffiliated lenders.

Selection criteria are based on the following:

Competitive interest rates
Competitive front-end and back-end benefits
Efficiencies in processing loan transactions through Scholarnet.
That lender scopes loan information in Nelnet FastChoice and makes updates as necessary
Must be able to certify the loan through the Scholarnet system
Loan funds are disbursed through CDS at Nelnet, Inc.
At least three lenders are unaffiliated with other preferred lenders, meaning they are not
- Under the ownership or control of the same entity or individuals;
- Wholly or partly owned subsidiaries of the same parent company;
- Under the direction of directors, trustees, general partners or individuals exercising similar functions, who constitute a majority of the persons holding similar positions with the other lender; or
- Making loans on their own behalf and also holding loans as a trustee lender for another entity.

Franklin Preferred Lenders

Our students are our number one priority, so we seek out lenders that demonstrate excellence in all they do. Franklin University does not endorse any private educational loan lender. No student is required to choose a lender from Franklin’s Private Educational Loan Preferred Lender List. You may choose any eligible and participating lender -- regardless of whether the lender appears on our preferred list or not.

Franklin’s preferred lenders are:

Citizens
Cognition Financial - AAA Advantage
College Ave Student Loans
Nelnet Bank
PNC
Sallie Mae
SoFI
Wright-Patt Credit Union

None of these lenders are affiliated with each other. You are not required to choose your lender from this list

How to Apply

Step 1: Compare Lenders and Apply

To simplify the process of choosing your lender, you may select a lender from Franklin’s Preferred Lender List. Visit the Great Lakes FastChoice website to compare and view lender benefits, loan disclosures, loan cost examples, and apply for a loan.

Step 2: Applicant Self-Certification

Before any money can be disbursed from a private education loan, the Private Education Loan Applicant Self-Certification form must be completed and submitted to the lender -- not Franklin’s Financial Aid Office. Many lenders provide this form during the loan application process, so if you did not complete it then, please download the form now and submit it to your lender.

In order to complete Section 2 of the Self-Certification, you need to fill in the Cost of Attendance (COA) and Estimated Financial Assistance portions. Find the COA on your Franklin Financial Aid Award Letter or, if you have not yet received your Award Letter, visit the Cost of Attendance section on our website, and select the undergraduate or graduate COA model.

Step 3: Authorization

Your lender will send Franklin University’s Financial Aid Office a request to certify your loan. We will email you an Authorization for Private Education Loan. You must complete and return the form to our office before we can certify your loan.

Additional Information

Franklin University protects your choice of lender by:
- Making it clear that you have the right to select any lender
- Processing/certifying loans in a timely manner -- regardless of lender
Franklin University employees may not request or accept any kind of payments or benefits from a lender in exchange for being included on a preferred or recommended lender list, or in exchange for the school recommending the lender to students and parents.
Franklin University employees are prohibited from receiving any gift, including travel gifts, of more than nominal value from any lender, servicer or guarantee agency. Franklin University reserves the right to add or remove any lending agency from the Preferred Lender List at any time.
Franklin University employees are held to the highest ethical principles, as defined by our code of conduct.