Federal Direct Parent PLUS Loan

The Federal Direct Parent PLUS Loan program is available only to the parents of dependent students pursuing an undergraduate degree. The Parent PLUS Loan, like any loan, must be repaid. Parent PLUS Loans with a first disbursement between July 1, 2023 and June 30, 2024 have a fixed interest rate of 8.05%. The current loan fee for loans disbursed between October 1, 2020 and September 30, 2024 is 4.228%. The Parent PLUS Loan program is available to parents without adverse credit who wish to borrow for a dependent student enrolled at least half-time. The annual loan limit is the estimated cost of education minus any financial aid received by the student (i.e., grants, loans, scholarships, work, etc.). However, parents should never borrow more that what is absolutely necessary to help the student offset their costs for attending South Dakota Mines. All fees that are required to be withheld from the loan disbursement will be disclosed on the Notice of Guarantee and Disclosure Statement. After your loan is disbursed, your loan will be assigned to a Department of Education Federal Loan Servicer. Keep all communication that you receive as you will need to remember and know which servicer has your loan(s). Repayment of the Parent PLUS Loan begins within 60 days of the loan period's final disbursement on the loan (for example, after the spring semester disbursement for a fall/spring loan). The parent borrower can elect to defer payments on the principal until six months after the date the student ceases to be enrolled at least half-time; however, interest continues to accrue, which can be paid monthly, quarterly or allowed to capitalize the interest quarterly (add accrued interest to the principal balance). Instructions for repayment are included with the application. The responsibility for repaying a Parent PLUS Loan will always remain in the parent borrower's name and can never be transferred to the student.

Federal Regulations require that the student for whom a Parent PLUS Loan is borrowed must have a valid FAFSA record on file in the South Dakota Mines Financial Aid Office. In the case of a student with divorced parents, whose parental information used on the FAFSA does not dictate which parent can borrow a Parent PLUS Loan. If a parent wants to apply for a Parent PLUS Loan, please complete an online PLUS Loan application at https://studentaid.gov (the parent borrower must log in with his/her own FSA ID). For 2024-25, the PLUS Loan application will be available beginning in May 2024. Parent PLUS Loan funds will be electronically received and applied to the student's account. Any funds in excess of what is needed to pay the student's bill are expected to be used to assist the student in paying for educationally related expenses. Parents should carefully consider how much they agree to borrow and not borrow more than what is needed for the academic year.