If additional loan funding is needed to cover the cost of attendance, eligible students have the option of applying for a Direct Graduate PLUS loan. In order to qualify, students must complete the FAFSA and meet all federal eligibility requirements. If you meet federal requirements, you may borrow Graduate PLUS loan funds up to the cost of attendance (less any other financial aid).
Unlike the Direct Unsubsidized Loan, the Graduate PLUS loan is approved based on a student's credit. A credit check is required to determine whether the applicant has any adverse credit history (according to federal guidelines, adverse credit history means no past-due payments, charge-offs, or collections in the past 90 days). It is critical that students seeking to apply for credit-based loans such as the Graduate PLUS loan maintain their credit. If you have an adverse credit history, you may apply with a co-signer on the Graduate PLUS loan application. NYU cannot process a Graduate PLUS loan for an applicant who is credit denied or who fails to appeal or is unsuccessful in appealing a credit denial. It is the loan applicant's full responsibility to ensure that all steps in the loan application and/or credit denial appeal process are completed.
The Graduate PLUS loan does not have a grace period. Instead, it has a post-enrollment deferment period which acts in the same way as a grace period. Interest accrues from the time the loan is disbursed much like the Direct Unsubsidized Loan.
Finally, be sure to familiarize yourself with all loan terms before borrowing. Interest rates on new loans under the Federal Direct Loan Program are now indexed to the financial markets and may be adjusted each spring for the following award year. Please visit the U.S. Department of Education's website for more information about interest rates on federal student loans.