2021-2022 Graduate Bulletin > Policies and General Information > Financial Policies and Information > Scholarships and Financial Aid > Student Loans

Student Loans

William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program

Unsubsidized Student Loans

Unsubsidized loans are made to students by the federal government and applied directly to the student's account. The program is open to all students who have completed the FAFSA and have federal loan eligibility. The student is responsible for the interest that accrues while he/she is in school.

The aggregate maximum for undergraduate study is $31,000 for a dependent student and $57,500 for an independent student. Graduate students making satisfactory academic progress who carry at least five (5) graduate semester hours may borrow up to $20,500 in an unsubsidized Federal Direct Loan. The aggregate maximum for undergraduate and graduate study combined is $138,500. Application is usually made for one semester or an academic year (9 months), with summer school requiring a separate award.

The interest rate for a graduate Federal Direct unsubsidized loan is fixed. Student borrowers are assessed an origination fee prior to loan disbursement.

Six months after ceasing to be at least a half-time student, the borrower must begin repayment. Several repayment options are available; contact your servicer. Payment of principal may be deferred under certain conditions. Students should refer to their promissory notes for details.

Loan Counseling

Entrance Interviews. Students who have applied for a Federal Direct Student Loan as a first-time borrower are required by federal regulations to complete an entrance interview before their loan funds may be applied to their accounts. Important information on loans, debt management, repayment options and consequences of default will be presented. Information regarding this mandatory session is available online at https://studentaid.gov/

Exit Interviews. Students who receive a Federal Direct Loan are required by federal regulations to complete a loan interview before graduating or withdrawing from the university. Important information regarding deferment and payment schedules will be discussed. Students are contacted electronically to complete on-line exit counseling. This online session will take about 30 minutes to complete through https://studentaid.gov/. 

Annual Student Loan Acknowledgment 

First time borrowers and students with existing federal student loans are required to acknowledge that they understand the responsibility of borrowing and how loans affect future finances. The annual online session is completed at  https://studentaid.gov/

Federal Graduate PLUS Loan

This program is for students in graduate level programs only. Students must file the FAFSA, be enrolled at least half-time, and receive all unsubsidized loan eligibility before a PLUS loan may be disbursed. This loan is a non-need loan for students with good credit histories. Applicants may borrow up to the cost of attendance minus other financial assistance. Students will receive an automatic deferment while enrolled at least half-time. Interest accrues while the student is enrolled in school and during grace periods. The interest rate is fixed. Students may complete a Graduate PLUS Loan Application available online at: https://studentaid.gov/ 

TEACH Grant

Central Michigan University participates in the U. S. Department of Education’s TEACH Grant Program, which was implemented during the 2008-2009 academic year.

Note: You should consider this source of aid as a grant that has a high potential of turning into a LOAN.  It is estimated that only 20 percent of students who participate in the TEACH Grant Program will be able to use the funds as grants, while many students will see their funds converted to loans with accumulated interest.

A student who receives $16,000 in TEACH Grants who fails to fulfill the terms of the Agreement to Serve and Promise to Pay (ATS) will incur substantial indebtedness. On a 10-year term, the monthly payments would be $315.60 for a cumulative payment of $37,871.

Amount of Grant

The TEACH Grant Program will provide up to $4,000 per year ($16,000 total for four-year undergraduate programs; $8,000 total for graduate studies) in grants to students who plan to teach full-time in high-need subject areas at schools that serve students from low-income families. Grants will be prorated for part-time enrollment. Under the Budget Control Act of 2011, additional sequester funding reductions took effect October 1, 2013. The sequester changes the percentage by which TEACH grants must be reduced. TEACH grant awards where the first disbursement is made on or after October 1, 2020 must be reduced by 5.70% from the original statutory amounts.

Teaching Obligation

In exchange for receiving a TEACH Grant, you must agree to serve as a full-time teacher in a high-need field in a public or private elementary or secondary school that serves low-income students (see below for more information on high-need fields and schools serving low-income students). As a recipient of a TEACH Grant, you must teach for at least four academic years within eight calendar years of completing the program of study for which you received a TEACH Grant. IMPORTANT: If you fail to complete this service obligation, all amounts of the TEACH Grants that you received will be converted to a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan. You must then repay this loan to the U.S. Department of Education. You will be charged interest from the date the grant(s) was disbursed.

Student Eligibility Requirements

At Central Michigan University you must:

• Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), although you do not have to demonstrate financial need
• Be a U.S. citizen or eligible non-citizen
• Be accepted into the undergraduate Teacher Education program or into the Graduate Studies Master of Arts in Special Education program and have a signed elementary or secondary education major or minor in a high-need subject
• Have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.25 and maintain that GPA throughout your academic program (or score above the 75th percentile on a national standardized college admissions test)
• Complete TEACH Grant counseling each year at https://studentaid.gov/
• Sign a TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve and Promise to Pay each year at https://studentaid.gov/
• Complete a TEACH Grant Checklist each year available from Education and Human Services (EHS) Center for Student Services
• Undergraduate students are eligible only if they are pursuing their first undergraduate degree. Students pursuing a second undergraduate degree, teachers working on teacher certification and graduate students who have a “conditional admission” status are NOT eligible for the TEACH Grant. Graduate students are eligible only if they are pursuing a Master of Arts in Special Education or a Master of Arts in Reading and Literacy degree.
• Note: CMU has determined the following major is NOT eligible for a TEACH Grant because students will be unable to fulfill the teaching requirements:
• B.S. in Education - Elementary Provisional Certification students who do not have a high-need field major or minor.

High-Need Field

High-need fields are the specific subject areas identified below:

• Bilingual Education and English Language Acquisition.
• Foreign Language
• Mathematics
• Reading Specialist
• Science
• Special Education

Other identified teacher shortage areas as of the time you begin teaching in that field. These are teacher subject shortage areas (not geographic areas) that are listed in the Department of Education’s Annual Teacher Shortage Area Nationwide Listing at https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/pol/tsa.html.

Schools Serving Low-Income Students

Schools serving low-income students include any elementary or secondary school that is listed in the Department of Education’s Annual Directory of Designated Low-Income Schools for Teacher Cancellation Benefits at https://www.ed.gov/  

Teach Grant Agreement to Serve

Each year you receive a TEACH Grant, you must sign a TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve and Promise to Pay (service agreement), which will be available electronically on a Department of Education Web site. The TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve specifies the conditions under which the grant will be awarded, the teaching service requirements, and includes an acknowledgment by you that you understand that if you do not meet the teaching service requirements you must repay the grant as a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan, with interest accrued from the date the grant funds were disbursed. Specifically, the TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve will provide that:

• For each TEACH Grant-eligible program for which you received TEACH Grant funds, you must serve as a full-time teacher for a total of at least four academic years within eight calendar years after you completed or withdrew from the academic program for which you received the TEACH Grant.
• You must perform the teaching service as a highly-qualified teacher at a low-income school. The term highly-qualified teacher is defined in section 9101(23) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 or in section 602(10) of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act.
• Your teaching service must be in a high-need field.
• You must comply with any other requirements that the Department of Education determines to be necessary.
• If you do not complete the required teaching service obligation, TEACH Grant funds you received will be converted to a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan that you must repay, with interest charged from the date of each TEACH Grant disbursement. If the grant is converted to a loan, it cannot be converted back to a grant.

To apply:

Students who are interested in receiving a TEACH Grant must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) every year. To initiate application for the TEACH Grant, students must contact the Center for Student Services, College of Education and Human Services, EHS Building 421, Central Michigan University (989) 774-3309.