HOW TO APPLY FOR A FEDERAL PLUS LOAN

Through the Federal PLUS Loan Program, parents may borrow up to the annual cost of attendance minus any aid the student receives for the year. Eligibility for a PLUS Loan is based on a parent's creditworthiness and not on need. Although most PLUS Loan lenders offer a pre-approval process that allows the lender to determine if a parent's credit rating meets the federal requirements for a PLUS Loan, Wake Forest does not require pre-approval for parents who apply at least four weeks prior to the start of the semester. If you have previously been contacted by a PLUS lender and have already completed their pre-approval process, please note that this action does not commit you to a loan with that lender. Because discounts and incentives on PLUS Loans vary, parents should carefully review lenders' information before making a decision about which loan best meets their needs.

We encourage you to compare lender discounts and other borrower benefits with these loan comparison tools:

Simple Tuition (Highly recommended!)

Loan Discount Analyzer from FinAid.org.

Steps to apply for a PLUS Loan:

· Complete Wake Forest's PLUS Reply Form and return it to the Office of Student Financial Aid. On the form, indicate the total amount you wish to borrow for the academic school year. Please keep in mind that this figure cannot exceed the cost of attendance minus any aid received by the student.

NEW! Undergraduates who are unable to meet their expected family contribution may be eligible to borrow an additional $2,000 of unsubsidized Stafford loan, under recently passed federal legislation. Students who wish to borrow this additional unsubsidized loan amount should notify the Financial Aid Office in writing. Parents who borrow under the PLUS loan program should reduce the amount requested by this $2,000 in newly available unsubsidized Stafford loan.

Parents must complete a new Wake Forest Federal PLUS Loan Reply Form every year. To request a Parent Loan for 2008-09, complete the 2008-09 PLUS Reply Form.

The lenders listed below do not ask borrowers to pay a 1% default fee. They offer excellent service, as well as electronic application processing and fund delivery. None of these lenders sell their education loans.

Click here to see a comparison of these lenders.

College Foundation................................ (888) 234-6400
Citibank..................................................... (800) 967-2400
Wachovia.................................................. (800) 347-7667
Sallie Mae................................................. (888) 272-5543
Chase........................................................ (800) 487-4404
Wells Fargo.............................................. (800) 378-5526

You are not required to borrow from one of the lenders listed above.

· Parents should start the application process sometime in July to meet fall semester deadlines, since lender processing can take several weeks.

· We encourage families to plan ahead to borrow the full amount needed for the year and have the amount disbursed in two payments rather than reapplying each semester. This arrangement expedites the process and can also defer loan repayment, since repayment is due 60 days after the final loan disbursement is made for the year.

· Complete a master promissory note with your chosen lender. Once the master promissory note is signed, it remains in effect throughout the student's undergraduate years.

· Receive an approval notice from the lender.

· Receive notification from Wake Forest that the PLUS loan has been credited to your student's account.