06.13.08 | Thinking about studying abroad?
Before you decide to attend an international school to get your graduate degree, you may want to consider a few things. The biggest thing being, IT’S EXPENSIVE. If you choose to study in the states, most graduate students can get $20,500 a year in the Stafford loan…this is not always the case at schools overseas. If you have a particular school in mind, you want to check a few things. First, contact the school’s financial aid office to see what their policy is with accepting and handling US Federal loans. If they have no idea what you are talking about, you have a long road ahead of you.
When it comes to getting Federal aid for a school here, getting the actual loan certified is a relationship between the school’s FAO and the lender you chose. For school’s abroad, you need to be the middle man/woman. You need to find out exactly what the school needs from the lender, and then you relay that to the lender here. In most cases, you need to follow up on both ends to make sure paperwork has been received and is being processed. It can take a few months to actually get the loan.
In some of the more popular/larger schools abroad, there is already an established relationship between the school and a US lender. Consider yourself lucky if you go to a school like this. Most are not used to dealing with our Federal loan system. In some cases, schools abroad will not accept US federal loans…so you want to check with the school first, before you apply to go there…especially if you are relying on the $20,500 in the graduate Stafford loan. Check out Gradloans.com for more info about getting the Stafford loan for an international school.
