Financial aid for summer attendance is usually limited to loans from the Federal Direct Loan Program or private alternative loans. You are eligible to borrow from the Federal Direct Loan Program if you:
The Catholic University Summer Aid Application is available on the Office of Student Financial Assistance's Forms page.
If you have not reached your annual loan limit for the academic year, you can borrow the difference between the loan limit for your grade level and your current loan. For example, if you are a dependent freshman and borrowed $3,000 in the fall and/or spring, you may be eligible for a summer loan of up to $500.
The amount you can borrow annually depends on your grade level, as determined by the number of credits you have earned. Loans are also limited to amounts that do not exceed the Cost of Attendance (COA) for the semester/year the student is enrolled for.
ANNUAL LOAN LIMITS |
|||
GRADE LEVEL * |
EARNED CREDITS |
DEPENDENT ** |
INDEPENDENT |
Freshman |
0-29 |
$5,500 |
$9,500 |
Sophomore |
30-59 |
$6,500 |
$10,500 |
Junior |
60-89 |
$7,500 |
$12,500 |
Senior |
90+ |
$7,500 |
$12,500 |
Graduate |
N/A |
$20,500 |
$20,500 |
* The individual departments determine grade level and some vary from the standards above. **You are considered dependent if you were required to report parental income information on the FAFSA. |
In order for the Office of Student Financial Assistance to process you for your federal loan eligibility for the summer term, we must receive your completed valid FAFSA results from the U.S. Department of Education three weeks before the end of the last summer session in which you plan to be registered.
In addition, if you are a Federal Pell Grant recipient and were enrolled less than full time during the previous academic year, you may have remaining eligibility for the Federal Pell Grant Program.
Students who have reached their annual Federal Direct Student Loan limit can consider applying for an private/alternative loan. Students are urged to explore and exhaust their federal loan eligibility before considering commercial education loans which generally carry higher interest rates and origination fees. For more information, please visit the Private (Commercial) Education Loans site.