Ventura College participates in the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program. The U.S. Department of Education is the lender for the William D. Ford Federal Direct Parent Loan for Undergraduate Students (PLUS) Loan Program.
What are the Eligibility Requirements?
To borrow a PLUS loan for a student, the parent must be the student’s biological or adoptive mother or father. A stepparent is also eligible to borrow a PLUS loan if his or her income and assets would be taken into account when calculating the dependent student’s EFC. A legal guardian is not considered a parent for Federal Student Aid purposes. Your child must be a dependent student who is enrolled at least half-time at Ventura College. For financial aid purposes, a student is considered "dependent" if he or she is under 24, unmarried, and has no legal dependents at the time the Free Application for Federal Student Aid is submitted. If a student is considered dependent, then the income and the assets of the parent have to be reported on the FAFSA.
Parent PLUS loan borrowers cannot have an adverse credit history (credits check will be done). In addition, parents and their dependent child must be U.S. citizens or eligible noncitizen, must not be in default on any federal education loans or owe an overpayment on a federal education grant, and must meet other general eligibility requirements for the Federal Student Aid programs. You can find more information about these requirements in Funding Education Beyond High School: The Guide to Federal Student Aid available at: www.studentaid.gov.
How are loans awarded, and what are the interest rates and fees?
Maximum annual award for PLUS is the student's Cost of Attendance minus any resources the student has been awarded. Eligibility is contingent on approved credit which is only valid for 90 days. Do not apply prior to July 1st. The interest rate for Direct PLUS Loans is set on July 1st. Interest is charged on Direct PLUS Loans during all periods, beginning on the date of your loan's first disbursement. For Direct PLUS Loans with a first disbursement date between July 1, 2019 and June 30, 2020, the interest rate is 7.08%, fixed for the life of the loan.
In addition to interest, you pay a loan origination fee that is a percentage of the principal amount of each Direct PLUS Loan that you receive. For loans disbursed on or after October 1, 2018 and before October 1, 2019 the fee is 4.284% and the fee for loans disbursed on or after October 1, 2019 and before October 1, 2020 the is 4.236%. . This fee helps reduce the cost of making these low-interest loans. We deduct the fee before you receive any loan money, so the loan amount you actually receive will be less than the amount you have to repay.
Dependent students whose parents have applied for but were unable to get a PLUS Loan may be eligible to receive additional Direct Unsubsidized Loan funds. Students must provide a copy of the PLUS credit denial to the Financial Aid Office.