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Grants and Loans

Securing funding for you education at Southeastern is one of the most important parts of you academic journey. The most common types of funding comes in the forms of grants and loans. Many different types of aid are offered by the university, state government, and federal government.

Grants

Grants are a form of financial aid that do not require repayment or additional work to be performed. Southeastern participates in the Federal Pell Grant, the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG), and the Oklahoma Tuition Aid Grant programs.

Federal Pell (Basic) Grant – provides gift aid for undergraduate students. In general, a student may receive PELL Grant until the course of study required for the first undergraduate baccalaureate degree has been completed. Financial need is determined by the Federal Government. The Pell Grant is limited to 10 semesters of full-time awards.

Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG) – provides gift aid for undergraduate students who demonstrate financial need. The federal grant award is dependent upon financial need and availability of funds.

Oklahoma Tuition Aid Grant (OTAG) – is made to students who are legal residents of Oklahoma and enrolled at least half-time. OTAG awards are made by the Oklahoma State Regents based on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Awards range from $500 to $1000 per year. The OTAG grant is a part of LEAP (Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership) and is funded by the federal government and the state.

Southeastern’s School Code: 003179

Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)

Loans

Loans are another form of aid that are required to be repaid. student loans have low interest rates and permit a long term repayment.

Direct Lending

Southeastern participates in the Federal Direct Lending Program. Through the Federal Direct Lending program, all students who apply for loans must complete the Entrance Counseling and a MPN (Master Promissory Note). These can be found at www.studentloans.gov. Students may complete the entrance counseling and MPN at anytime. Once an award has been made, the student must accept or decline his/her awards on Campus Connect. The Financial Aid office will then originate the loan to the Department of Education. Students must complete the necessary steps to ensure funds are disbursed properly. Students must be enrolled in a minimum of 6 hours to receive direct loans. This requirement is the same for the summer semester. Disbursements are currently given out once a week. Generally, initial disbursements for each semester are two weeks after the add/drop period. Loans received through the Direct Lending program are the subsidized, unsubsidized, and PLUS loans. These loans are received from the U.S. Department of Education through Southeastern. Under the Direct Lending program loan payments will be sent directly to the U.S. Department of Education. If a student graduates or completely withdraws from Southeastern, he/she will be required to complete Exit Counseling at www.studentloans.gov. If you would like further information regarding Direct Lending go to the U.S. Department of Education website at http://www.ed.gov/, call at (800)872-5327 or contact the Financial Aid Office.

First time, first year undergraduate students will not be disbursed any direct loans (Subsidized, Unsubsidized, or Plus) for the first 30 days of the semester. All loans with the 30 delay will be disbursed at first disbursement following 30 days after the start of the semester, if all other criteria (see above) have been met.

Repayment

After six months of not attending for any reason (i.e. graduated, withdrawing, or dropping below 6hrs), all direct loans (excluding PLUS) will go into repayment. The monthly repayment amount depends on the total amount borrowed. Southeastern average indebtedness of students that attend sole at SE is $15,458. Based on a standard 10 year repayment plan schedule, looking at the average amount of $15,458 borrowed at SE the monthly payment would be approximately $180.00 per month with approximately 5900.00 in interested paid. For more information on your SE loans and any other student loans borrowed at other school you can access  nslds.ed.gov. For more information regarding repayment options and financial tips please visit the following link https://www.studentoutreachsolutions.com/OKstudent/.

Direct Loan Application Process

  1. File a Free Application for Federal Student Aid(FAFSA) using Southeastern’s school code: 003179
  2. Complete the FAFSA file in the Student Financial Aid Office. You may view the documents needed to complete your file on Campus Connect if you have been admitted to Southeastern. (Students not able to view Campus Connect will be sent a document letter requesting the information to be returned.)
  3. Complete Entrance Counseling at studentloans.gov for processing to be continued. This process is for all students required for Direct Lending. .
  4. Once your entrance counseling is complete you will need to sign the Master Promissory Note at www.studentloans.gov.
  5. The student will review their financial aid award summary on Campus Connect. Click Student Info-Accept/Decline Award. Select the year to view the financial aid awarded and then select the Accept/Decline aid award button.
  6. If all the previous steps have been completed, the Office of Financial aid will originate your loan to the Department of Education for processing.
  7. Southeastern will receive the loan funds from the Department of Education electronically. Once eligibility and enrollment are verified (must be enrolled minimum of 6 hours) from the Financial Aid Office, Auxiliary Business Services will disburse the funds to your SE debit card or the refund preference you chose. Disbursements are currently once a week. (Generally, the initial disbursement of each semester is two weeks after the add/drop period.)
  8. First time, first year students have a 30 day delay on disbursements of Direct Student Loans. This disbursement will be 30 days from the start date of semester. The 30 day delay will only occur at the first semester of a student’s enrollment at the university.
  9. If you graduate or drop below half-time attendance, regulations require that you complete the Exit Counseling session. Exit Counseling can be completed at www.studentloans.gov.

Direct PLUS (Parent Loan for Undergraduate Students)

If you are a dependent student and your financial aid doesn’t meet your full cost of attendance, your parent may be able to take out a Direct Parent Loan for Undergraduate Student (PLUS) if they choose. PLUS Loans are available to provide a parent with additional resources to help pay the educational expenses of an undergraduate child, who is enrolled at least half-time. Since the parent is the borrower, the responsibility of repaying PLUS Loans rests with the parent rather than the student. The Financial Aid Office will pursue other options of aid for you before calculating PLUS Loan eligibility. PLUS eligibility is a last resort.

To be eligible to receive a PLUS Loan, a parent will be required to pass a credit check. If for some reason the PLUS Loan is denied, you may have the option to borrow additional Direct Unsubsidized Loans in your own name. A copy of the PLUS Loan denial is required for us to confirm your additional unsubsidized loan eligibility. Repayment of a PLUS Loan is selected when the parent fills out the PLUS loan application. Your options are to start 60 days after the loan is taken out or to defer the payment until the student stops attending.

PLUS Loan Application Process

  1. File a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
  2. Complete the FAFSA file in the Student Financial Aid Office; indicating that you are interested in a Plus Loan on our Student Data Form. The student may view the documents needed to complete the file on Campus Connect if they have been admitted to Southeastern. Students not able to view Campus Connect will be sent a letter requesting the documentation needed.
  3. The student will review their financial aid award summary on Campus Connect. Click Student Info-Accept/Decline Award. Select the year to view the financial aid awarded and then select the Accept/Decline aid award button.
  4. Parents need to complete, Request a Direct PLUS Loan and a MPN (Master Promissory Note) at www.studentloans.gov for processing to be continued. Both of these should be completed in the parent’s name and with the parent’s PIN number.
  5. Once all previous steps are completed, the Financial Aid Office will originate the loan to the Department of Education for processing.
  6. Southeastern will receive the funds from the Department of Education electronically. Once eligibility and enrollment are verified from the Financial Aid Office, Auxiliary Business Services will disburse the funds to the student’s account balance (if any). Remaining funds will be disbursed to the parent.

Alternative Loans

Alternative loans may be available to students who are not eligible for federal financial aid or who may need additional funds to meet educational expenses.  Alternative loans are usually more expensive and should only be borrowed when all other resources have been used.    Southeastern Oklahoma State University does not maintain a preferred list of lenders nor does the college recommend any lenders of alternative loans. You may find additional information on alternative loans through your bank or lending institution.  Information is also available at http://www.finaid.org/loans/privateloan.phtml.

Students who have applied and been approved for an alternative loan must complete the Alternative loan form.  Please return the completed form to the SE financial aid office.  (Note:  Your lender will be notified of your Cost of Attendance, all financial aid and other resources being received)

National Student Loan Database (NSLDS)

www.nslds.ed.gov

The National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) is the U.S. Department of Education’s (ED’s) central database for student aid. NSLDS receives data from schools, guaranty agencies, the Direct Loan program, and other Department of ED programs. NSLDS Student Access provides a centralized, integrated view of Title IV loans and grants so that recipients of Title IV Aid can access and inquire about their Title IV loans and/or grant data. All federal loans (including PLUS Loans) submitted by Southeastern will be sent to the NSLDS system. This system will be accessible by the guaranty agencies, lenders and any school the Department of Education had deemed an authorized user of the data system.

The OK Promise

OK Promise (Formerly OHLAP) is a state funded program that will pay tuition at an Oklahoma Public two-year college or four-year university for those students who qualify. To be considered eligible, students must have signed up during their 8th, 9th, or 10th grade year with a validated household income of less than $50,000 and complete the required coursework and conditions outlined by the Oklahoma State Regents Office.

The Financial Aid office verifies eligibility for all students enrolled and notifies OK Promise of tuition costs. Generally, OK Promise payments are put on students’ accounts 4-6 weeks after the Add/Drop date.

The scholarship, however, does not cover items such as books, supplies, room and board, and other fees that are usually associated with tuition costs. Students are encouraged to apply for other types of financial aid to cover these costs.

All OK Promise students attending Southeastern must meet the Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) requirements set by the university. If you become ineligible for federal financial aid (like Pell grants or student loans) for not meeting the SAP requirements, you will be ineligible for OK Promise. This requirement applies to all OK Promise students, even if the student is not currently receiving federal financial aid and regardless of the year the student started college.

For more information, contact the Financial Aid office or the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education Student’s Information Hotline at 800-858-1840, by email okpromise@osrhe.edu, on the web http://www.okhighered.org/okpromise/, or by writing Oklahoma’s Promise at the address below.

Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education
PO Box 108850
Oklahoma City
OK 73101–8850.