The Financial Aid Office has prepared an alternative student loan lender resource list to assist you in selecting a loan program that may suit your particular needs. It is important to note that several education lending agencies offer alternative student loan products. St. Lawrence will accept applications from any lender a student chooses.

In order to assist you in selecting an alternative loan lender and product, we are providing some resources to consider. In January 2009, we sent out a Request for Information (RFI) to sixteen lenders. We asked numerous questions within the following seven categories: Lender Stability, Servicer Information, Borrower Benefits, Products/Services, Customer Service, Default Prevention and Lender Operational Standards.  Eight of the sixteen lenders responded to our questions. The information they provided was reviewed by the St. Lawrence University Financial Aid and Student Financial Services staff to identify several options to include on our Lender Resource List.  The lenders chosen for inclusion on our list ranked high across all seven categories.  However, the Financial Aid and Student Financial Services staff placed the greatest importance on student affordability when finalizing our decisions about lending institutions to include on the Lender Resources Lists.  The chart below is a result of that process.

Please note that you are not obligated to choose one of these lenders; we will process your Alternative Loan through any lender you choose.  St. Lawrence University does not receive any benefit, either financial or in-kind, for including a lender on our Lender Resources List. We have compiled this list solely as a resource for students and parents.

You should always review your options for grants and scholarships as well as your own resources prior to borrowing to pay for your education.  If you do need to secure an educational loan, you should always explore Federal educational loans first.  The Federal PLUS Loan, for example, often has better rates than alternative loans. 
Here are a few things to keep in mind when borrowing an alternative loan:

• Only borrow what you need. These loans must be repaid in addition to any Federal loans you OBTAIN.
• You can only borrow up to the Cost of Attendance less any financial aid you have been awarded.
• Be an informed borrower. Understand how much you have borrowed, the interest rate during the life of the loan, and the repayment requirements.
• Interest rates vary and are based on indexes. Check with the lender for current rates.
• Visit the lender's website for specific details on the products listed below, and to apply.
  

* Wells Fargo has a contractual minimum for Prime Rate of 4.75%.

Please Note: This information is for comparison purposes only. Please contact each individual lending agency for specific and up to date information on benefit and criteria used to qualify for and maintain eligibility for advertised benefits.  St. Lawrence reserves the right to adjust our Alternative Student Loan Lender Resource List for the 2009-2010 academic year to reflect the changing conditions in the student loan industry.

In today’s student loan marketplace there are a myriad of lenders offering all types of products and services.  To assist families with comparing the different lender’s products are several online tools for your use:

Loan Discount Analyzer – Allows you to compare many different types of loan discounts, expressing them as the equivalent no-fee interest rate discount starting when the loan enters repayment.

Student Loan Advisor – Allows you to estimate of the amount of educational debt you can reasonably afford, given the expected starting salary for your major.

How Much To Borrow - This calculator helps you decide how much of the net college costs (e.g., the family contribution) should be paid from income and assets (or a short-term payment plan), and how much you should borrow through education loans to help pay the bill.