Applying for Loans

• Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan
• Federal Direct Graduate PLUS Loan  (not available for new borrowers as of July 1, 2026)
• Private student loans

You must apply for loans each academic year. 

For students enrolled in programs through The Graduate School, the School of Communication and the Bienen School of Music, the academic year begins with the Fall quarter and ends with the Summer quarter.  
    
For students enrolled in programs through the McCormick School of Engineering and the School of Education and Social Policy, the academic year begins with the Summer quarter and ends with the Spring term.

See Priority Dates and Deadlines for more information. 

• Each year you must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) on the Federal Student Aid website  and designate Northwestern University (school code 001739) as a recipient. See our Federal Student Loans webpages for additional details.

• We recommend that you complete your FAFSA by May 1st.
• The FAFSA is aid-year specific, so it must be completed for each academic year for which you would like to be considered for federal loans. It is based on your prior, prior year's federal tax return.
• See Dates and Deadlines for more information.

• Federal Student Aid will confirm receipt of your FAFSA application by email (if you provided your email address) and provide a link to your online Student Aid Report (SAR). If you did not provide your email address, the SAR will be sent through the mail.
• The Student Aid Report (SAR) is a summary of the information you reported on your FAFSA. Review your SAR to ensure accuracy. Note: If you forgot to sign your FAFSA, you will receive a rejected SAR.
• If you listed Northwestern University (school code 001739) as a recipient of your FAFSA data, we will receive the information electronically from Federal Student Aid within a week. You can confirm that your FAFSA was received by Northwestern by checking your To Do List on CAESAR.
• If your SAR does not list Northwestern University, you can correct this on the FAFSA website or contact the U.S. Dept. of Education's Central Processor at 1-800-4-FED-AID and provide the DRN (Data Release Number) listed on your SAR.

• Students who have created an FSA ID can electronically sign their FAFSA on the FAFSA website. (If you do not have an FSA ID, visit the Federal Student Aid website to create one.
• Alternatively, students can print the signature page, sign it and mail it to the Central Processor (CPS).
• Corrections and updates can also be submitted online or through the mail to CPS.

The amount you may borrow in student loans is based on your Cost of Attendance which includes direct (fixed) expenses such as tuition, plus indirect (variable) expenses such as housing, food, books, and transportation. The total of all federal and non-federal financial aid (from all sources) cannot exceed your Cost of Attendance.

• You can apply for a private student loan at any time. Some private lenders even offer loans for students who have left the university and have a recent past due balance. (Federal student loans cannot be processed once a student no longer has in-school status.)  
• Private student loan funds are borrowed through private lending institutions. Federal student loans are funded through the U.S. Treasury.
• The terms and conditions for private student loans are set by the individual lender. Federal student loan terms are set by the U.S. Congress and offer more flexible repayment plans, deferments and loan forgiveness.
• Interest rates for private student loans are usually variable and based on the creditworthiness of the applicant or cosigner. Interest rates for federal student loans are fixed (set each July 1st by the U.S. Congress).
• We recommend that you apply for federal student loans (if eligible) prior to seeking a private loan. See the Federal Student Aid website for more information regarding federal vs. private loans.
• For both private and federal student loans, the amount borrowed (including all other sources of aid) cannot exceed your Cost of Attendance for the loan period.
• Visit our private student loan webpage for more information.

• Only private student loans require lender selection.
• We provide a list of private student loan programs and lenders based on a review of competitive interest rates and fees, quality of servicing, and borrower benefits. The list is intended only to help you start your research. Northwestern will process loans from any lender you select.

The lender is the institution from whom the loan money is actually borrowed. For federal student loans, you can find the name(s) of your current loan holder(s) and servicing agents on the Federal Student Aid website.

Private loans will be listed on your credit report. You can obtain a free copy of your credit report on the Annual Credit Report website.