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EDUCATIONAL SERVICES
COLLEGE STUFF
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FINANCIAL AID
- Tuition Assistance
- Grants
- Scholarships
- Loans
- GI Bill (overview)
- GI Bill - Active Duty (Ch. 30)
- GI Bill - Selected Reserve (Ch. 1606)
- Reserve Education Assistance Program (REAP or Ch. 1607)
- Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2008
LOANS
There are many many different education loan programs available to all students. Some of them are:
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Coast Guard Mutual Assistance Education Loan Program – offers financial assistance by providing eligible CGMA clients a loan up to $2,000 to assist with education expenses.
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Federal Perkins Loan Program – provides low-interest loans to students who can demonstrate a need for financial assistance and who are enrolled at least half-time (and sometimes less than half-time) in regular programs of study at participating schools.
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Stafford Loan Program – provides low-interest loans to undergraduate and graduate students attending accredited schools at least half-time.
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PLUS (Parent Loans for Undergraduate Students) – enables parents to borrow money for each dependent undergraduate student enrolled in school at least half-time.
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Loans for Disadvantaged Students – provide long-term, low-interest loans to full-time, financially needy students from disadvantaged backgrounds, to pursue degrees in allopathic medicine, osteopathic medicine, dentistry, optometry, podiatric medicine, pharmacy, or veterinary medicine.
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Health Professions Student Loan (HPSL) – provides long-term, low-interest loans to full-time, financially needy students to pursue degrees in dentistry, optometry, podiatric medicine, pharmacy, or veterinary medicine.
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Primary Care Loans (PCL) – provide long-term, low-interest loans to full-time, financially needy students to pursue degrees in allopathic or osteopathic medicine.
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Nursing Student Loan Program (NSL) – provides long-term, low-interest loans to students pursuing studies leading to degrees in nursing.
There are also a two programs available to uniformed personnel (regular, reserve, Public Health Service officers working with the Coast Guard, and retirees), civilian employees, and Auxiliarists. They are:
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Supplemental Student Loan Program – a need’s-based loan of up to $700 provided by CGMA to supplement the Coast Guard’s Tuition Assistance program. This loan is available to all active duty personnel, retirees, reservists, Public Health Service officers working with the Coast Guard, civilian employees, and Auxiliarists. You can read more about this loan on CGMA's flyer.
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Vocational & Technical Training Student Loan Program – a loan of up to $1,500 to eligible personnel pursuing a Department of Veterans Affairs- or Department of Education-approved vocational technical training program and who have a demonstrated need for financial assistance. Assistance is intended to help pay the cost of non-college courses that provide the technical knowledge and skills needed for entry into a specific career field. This loan is available to all uniformed personnel (regular, reserve, Public Health Service officers working with the Coast Guard, and retirees), civilian employees, and Auxiliarists. You can read more about this loan on CGMA's flyer.
A number of publications with information on loans are available in the ESO's office.
Student Loan Forgiveness
Starting within the next few years, you may qualify for forgiveness of the remaining balance due on your eligible federal student loans after you have made 120 payments on loans under certain repayment plans while employed full time by certain public service employers. Only non-defaulted loans made under the William D. Ford Direct Loan ProgramSM are eligible for loan forgiveness.
The Direct Loan Program includes (but is not limited to) the following types of loans:
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Federal Direct Stafford Loans (Direct Subsidized Loans)
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Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loans (Direct Unsubsidized Loans)
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Federal Direct PLUS Loans (Direct PLUS Loans, for parents and graduate or professional students)
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Federal Direct Consolidation Loans (Direct Consolidation Loans)
“Public service”, for purposes of this program, includes employment by any federal, state, local, or tribal government entity (including the military, public schools and colleges, public child and family services agencies, and special governmental districts).
According to LTJG Thomas Garcia, who contacted the Department of Education, “[T]here is no application process at this time. The program will not start until 2018, so they are still figuring out the mechanics. I was told [to] expect an application sometime after 2012.”
For more information about this program, go to the Department of Education’s web site.