Loans

UCSB participates in the Federal Direct Loan program. Funds for Direct Loans are provided by the U.S. government directly to students. These loans have low fixed interest rates and a variety of deferment and flexible repayment options. Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized loans do not require a credit check and/or collateral.

We strongly encourage students to use the Loan Simulator tool available through the Federal Student Aid website to help manage their student loan related debt.

  • Federal Direct Student Loan

    All Direct Loans are either Subsidized or Unsubsidized. With Subsidized loans, interest does not accrue until after students graduate or leave school. To receive a Subsidized Direct Loan, you must have financial need.

    With Unsubsidized loans, interest begins to accrue after the first disbursement. We recommend that students make payments on the interest while they are in school to reduce the total loan balance at the point of graduation.

    Many students combine Subsidized loans with Unsubsidized loans to borrow the maximum amount permitted each year.

    View the Annual Federal Direct Loan Limits

    For more information, view your Direct Loan Borrower's Rights and Responsibilities.

    Interest Rate and Origination Fee

    View the Federal Student Loans: Repaying Your Loans Guide

    The interest rate for Federal Direct Student Loans depends on when the loan was first disbursed. Visit the Federal Student Aid Interest Rates for information about current and past rates. Interest rates are determined each spring for new loans being made for the upcoming award year, which runs from July 1 to the following June 30. Each loan has a fixed interest rate for the life of the loan.

    The Department of Education charges an "Origination fee" on all Direct Subsidized Loans and Direct Unsubsidized Loans. The loan fee is a percentage of the loan amount and is proportionately deducted from each loan disbursement. See the Federal Student Aid Loan Fees for the current percentages.

    How to Apply

    To apply for either the Subsidized or Unsubsidized Federal Direct Loan, you must:

    1. Apply for Financial Aid
    2. Accept your Federal Direct Loan through My Aid Status
    3. Complete a Direct Loan Entrance Counseling
    4. Complete a Subsidized/Unsubsidized Master Promissory Note

    As long as your requirements are completed, Subsidized and Unsubsidized loans generally take 3-5 business days to disburse to your BARC (billing) account.

    Exit Requirements

    When you graduate or permanently leave UCSB, you must complete the Direct Loan Exit Counseling.

    Repayment

    Repayment for subsidized and unsubsidized Direct Loans begins six months after a student leaves school or drops below half-time enrollment. Information about your loans is submitted to the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS), which is the database where you may view your entire federal loan history. Please visit StudentAid.gov view your borrowed loan amounts, disbursement dates, and who your federal loan servicer is as well as their contact information. The federal loan servicer is assigned by the Department of Education, and they handle matters related to billing and repayment of your loans. If you have questions about changing your repayment plan, loan consolidation or if you qualify for loan forgiveness please talk to your servicer.

    We suggest you utilize Federal Student Aid’s Repayment Estimator while you are in school to see approximately how much a month you will owe post-graduation.

  • Federal Direct Parent PLUS Loan

    The U.S. Department of Education makes Direct PLUS Loans to eligible parents of dependent students. Unlike the Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans borrowed by students, the Parent PLUS Loan requires a credit check that is valid for 180 days.

    How to Apply

    To apply for a Federal Direct PLUS Loan, you must:

    1. Determine the PLUS loan eligibility amount which is shown on the Financial Aid Award Letter. Parents will need to check availability with their student.
    2. Visit Studentaid.gov and log in with the "parent" FSA ID. Make sure to not log in as the student.
    3. Proceed to “Apply for a PLUS Loan”. Two important things to know is the amount you wish to borrow and the method of disbursement (see options below).
    4. Complete a Parent PLUS Master Promissory Note 

    If approved, our office will receive an electronic update of your completed loan application. Generally, we receive this information within 5-7 business days.

    Denied Applications

    The parent is notified immediately after applying whether they are approved or denied. If the credit check leads to a denial, parents have the following options:

    1. Appeal: Log into Studentaid.gov and select “Document Extenuating Circumstances” and follow the instructions.
    2. Endorse: Obtain an endorser who does not have an adverse credit history. An endorser is someone who agrees to repay the Direct PLUS Loan if you cannot repay it. Have the endorser create an FSA ID, and then log into Studentaid.gov and select “Endorse a PLUS Loan”. If the loan was endorsed or you completed a successful credit appeal, complete the PLUS Counseling through Studentaid.gov.
    3. Request Additional Unsubsidized Student Loan: Have your student apply for additional Loan funds instead of acting on the parent PLUS loan. Download and submit the Request for Additional Unsubsidized Loan form found in the Forms tab of our website.
    *With either option 1 or 2, you also must complete “PLUS Counseling” on StudentAid.gov 

    Interest Rate and Origination Fee

    The interest rate depends on when the loan was first disbursed. Visit the Federal Student Aid website for information about current and past interest rates. Interest rates are determined each spring for new loans being made for the upcoming award year, which runs from July 1 to the following June 30. Each loan has a fixed interest rate for the life of the loan.

    The Department of Education charges an "Origination fee" on all Direct PLUS Loans. The loan fee is a percentage of the loan amount and is proportionately deducted from each loan disbursement. See the Federal Student Aid website for the current loan fee percentages.

    Disbursement

    While applying for the loan, parents will be given two disbursement options. In order to receive your funds in a timely manner, we strongly encourage you to select the “student” disbursement option. If you chose “me”, the borrower and would like to change the disbursement method to “student”, you can complete our Parent PLUS Loan Adjustment Form found on the Forms tab of our website. The two different disbursement options are:

    1. STUDENT (highly recommended): If you indicated on the application that you want the money to go to “the student", then the PLUS funds will credit to the student's BARC account. Those funds first pay any university fees and the remaining amount is then "refunded" to the student. The earliest these funds will be released to the student is 10 days before the start of the quarter.
    2. BORROWER: If you chose the "me" (the parent borrower), one of the following options will occur:
      1. If the loan’s quarterly amount is less than your student’s BARC balance at the time of disbursement, the loan may be paid to the student’s BARC account.
      2. If the loan’s quarterly amount is more than the BARC balance, UCSB will send the entire loan amount to you, the parent borrower, via paper check in the mail. These checks are not mailed until after the quarterly fee payment deadline with the BARC Office. Please ensure that your student’s BARC account is paid or deferred prior to the payment deadline.

    Repayment

    Repayment begins 60 days after the final disbursement of the loan. During the application process, a parent can also choose to defer repayment until 6 months after the student graduates or leaves school.

    Information about your loans is submitted to the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS), which is the database where you may view your entire federal loan history. Please visit StudentAid.gov view your borrowed loan amounts, disbursement dates, and who your federal loan servicer is as well as their contact information. The federal loan servicer is assigned by the Department of Education, and they handle matters related to billing and repayment of your loans. If you have questions about changing your repayment plan, loan consolidation or if you qualify for loan forgiveness please talk to your servicer.

    We suggest you utilize Federal Student Aid’s Repayment Estimator to see approximately how much a month you will owe.

  • Federal Direct Graduate PLUS Loan

    The U.S. Department of Education makes Direct Graduate PLUS Loans available to graduate students. The Graduate PLUS Loan allows graduate students to borrow up to the full cost of education minus other Financial Aid received. The PLUS loan requires a credit check that is valid for 180 days. 

    How to Apply

    To apply for a Graduate PLUS Loan, you must:

    1. Determine the PLUS loan eligibility amount which is shown on the Financial Aid Award Letter. 
    2. Visit Studentaid.gov and log in with your FSA ID and password
    3. Proceed to “Apply for a PLUS Loan”.
    4. Complete a Graduate PLUS Master Promissory Note 

    If approved, our office will receive an electronic update of your completed loan application. Generally, we receive this information within 5-7 business days.

    Denied Applications

    If your application was denied, you will be notified immediately and will be presented with two options:

    1. Appeal: Log into Studentaid.gov and select “Document Extenuating Circumstances” and follow the instructions.
    2. Endorse: Obtain an endorser who does not have an adverse credit history. An endorser is someone who agrees to repay the PLUS Loan if you cannot repay it. Have the endorser create an FSA ID, and then log into Studentaid.gov and select “Endorse a PLUS Loan”.
    3. If the loan was endorsed or you completed a successful credit appeal, complete the PLUS Counseling through Studentaid.gov.

    Interest Rate and Origination Fee

    The interest rate depends on when the loan was first disbursed. Visit the Federal Student Aid website for information about current and past interest rates. Interest rates are determined each spring for new loans being made for the upcoming award year, which runs from July 1 to the following June 30. Each loan has a fixed interest rate for the life of the loan.

    The Department of Education charges an "Origination fee" on all Direct PLUS Loans. The loan fee is a percentage of the loan amount and is proportionately deducted from each loan disbursement. See the Federal Student Aid website for the current loan fee percentages.

    Repayment

    Repayment for Graduate Plus Loans begins six months after a student leaves school or drops below half-time enrollment. Information about your loans is submitted to the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS), which is the database where you may view your entire federal loan history. Please visit StudentAid.gov view your borrowed loan amounts, disbursement dates, and who your federal loan servicer is as well as their contact information. The federal loan servicer is assigned by the Department of Education, and they handle matters related to billing and repayment of your loans. If you have questions about changing your repayment plan, loan consolidation or if you qualify for loan forgiveness please talk to your servicer.

    We suggest you utilize Federal Student Aid’s Repayment Estimator while you are in school to see approximately how much a month you will owe when you graduate or leave UCSB.

     

  • UCSB Loan

    The UCSB Loan is awarded to undergraduate students who are California residents, considered on time FAFSA or CA Dream applicants and who demonstrate sufficient financial need.

    Loan Acceptance Process

    To apply for a UCSB Loan, you must:

    •     Apply for financial aid
    •     Be awarded the UCSB Loan on your award letter
    •     Accept your UCSB Loan through My Aid Status
    •     Complete the entrance counseling and promissory note
      • Entrance counseling and promissory note must be completed each year
      • You can expect to receive an email from webmaster@ecsi.net  within 2-3 business days after accepting the loan
      • It may take up to 5 business days for this information to be uploaded into our system after completing the loan requirements
      • Once all loan requirements are met and logged into our system, your loan will credit to the BARC account

    Interest Rate and Repayment

    The interest rate for the UCSB Loan is 5%. The interest does not accrue until repayment begins. Repayment begins nine months after the student graduates, leaves school, or drops to less than half-time.

    Exit Requirements

    When you leave UCSB, you must complete the UCSB Loan Exit Counseling. You should expect to receive an email notification with instructions on how to complete this requirement. If your exit counseling is not completed, you will have a block placed on your BARC account which could affect your diploma or transcripts.

    Contact Information
    ECSI - UCSB's Institutional Loan Servicer
    UCSB Loan, CA Dream Loan, Federal Perkins Loan & UC Regents Loan

    UCSB Loan Collections Office
    UCSB Loan, CA Dream Loan, Federal Perkins Loan & UC Regents Loan

  • CA Dream Loan

    The California Dream Loan Program provides eligible undocumented AB 540 undergraduates with the option to borrow loans to help cover the cost of attending UC.

    To be eligible for the CA Dream Loan students must have financial need and be enrolled at least half time at UCSB.

    Through the CA Dream Loan Program applicants may receive a maximum of $4,000 per academic year, however offered amounts will be determined from year-to-year based on funding. Additionally, applicants can receive a maximum of $20,000 in CA Dream Loans at UCSB throughout the duration of their academic career.

    Loan Acceptance Process

    To apply for a CA Dream Loan, you must:

    • Apply for Financial Aid
    • Be awarded the CA Dream Loan on your award letter
    • Accept your loan through My Aid Status
    • Complete the Entrance Counseling and CA Dream Loan Promissory Note
      • Entrance counseling and promissory note must be completed each year
      • You can expect to receive an email from webmaster@ecsi.net  within 1-3 business days after accepting the loan
      • It may take up to 5 business days for this information to be uploaded into our system after completing the loan requirements
      • Once all loan requirements are met and logged into our system, your loan will credit to the BARC account

    Interest Rate and Repayment

    The CA Dream Loan interest rate matches the Federal Direct Subsidized Stafford Loan interest rate for the given academic year. For 2024-2025 the rate is 6.53%. Interest will not accrue on the loan as long as the student maintains a half-time enrollment status (between 6-8.9 units). Once the student graduates, or ceases to be half-time, there is a 6-month "grace period" before repayment begins. For additional information regarding the CA Dream Loan Program, visit the University of California website.

    Exit Requirements

    When you leave UCSB, you must complete the Loan Exit Counseling. You should expect to receive an email notification with instructions on how to complete this requirement. If your exit counseling is not completed, you will have a block placed on your BARC account which could affect your diploma or transcripts.

    Contact Information

    ECSI - UCSB's Institutional Loan Servicer
    UCSB Loan, CA Dream Loan, Federal Perkins Loan& UC Regents Loan

    UCSB Loan Collections Office
    UCSB Loan, CA Dream Loan, Federal Perkins Loan & UC Regents Loan

  • Private Student Loans

    Private student loans can help to fill the gap between the cost of education and the amount of other Financial Aid awarded. These loans are provided by private lenders for students who need to borrow funds in excess of the yearly maximums for the federal loan programs. Most lenders will take applicant's credit history into consideration when evaluating applicant's eligibility. Students may be eligible for these loans which have varying criteria (interest rates, minimum monthly repayments, etc.). They are not federally guaranteed student loans.

    Students have the right and the ability to select the private loan lender of their choice. We highly recommend that students exhaust their Federal Direct Loan eligibility before pursuing funds through a private education loan. Also, be aware that parents of dependent students are able to borrow up to the complete cost of education through the Federal Direct PLUS Loan program.

    Federal Direct Student Loans are available to most students regardless of income and provide a range of repayment options including income-based repayment plans and loan forgiveness benefits, which other education loans are not required to provide.

    To start your search, the UC Office of the President has put together a list of recommended lenders. You are not required to use any of the lenders on the list. They are simply provided for your convenience. Per HEOA guidelines, our office adheres to the UC Student Loan Code of Conduct. If you have specific questions related to your credit history, you should contact the private loan lenders at the numbers provided on the website listed below:

    Self-Certification Form

    In order to receive loan proceeds, you must apply to the lender directly.

    In addition to completing a lender-specific loan application, you must also complete and submit a Private Education Loan Applicant Self-Certification Form to your lender.

    For the cost of attendance amount required in Section 2A of the form, use the amount listed on your financial aid award letter.

    For the estimated financial assistance amount required in Section 2B of the form, total the awarded amounts from your award letter.

    Submit the form to your lender; do not submit it to our office. You will not receive any loan disbursements until your lender receives the form.

  • Deferment and Forbearance

    If you are unable to make your loan payments, you may want to consider deferment or forbearance. Visit the following websites for deferment or forbearance information related to specific types of loans:

    Federal Student and Parent Loans

    Federal Perkins Loan

  • Student Loans Consolidation

    Federal Student Loans
    A Direct Consolidation Loan allows you to consolidate multiple federal education loans into one loan at no cost to you. If you have multiple student loans you may be able to combine them into one loan with a fixed interest rate based on the average of the interest rates on the loans being consolidated. Learn more about loan consolidation. Once the consolidation is complete, you will have a single monthly payment on the new Direct Consolidation Loan instead of multiple monthly payments on the loans you consolidated. Complete the free application for federal loan consolidation.

    Private Student Loans
    U.S. News & World Report has published an in-depth guide that breaks down private student loan consolidation, how they work, and what students should know before considering them. Read more here.