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Explore Student Loans at DC3

Student Loans

Student loans are serious business and should be considered carefully. The represent borrowed funds that come with a long-term financial responsibility. It’s crucial to fully understand your loan, including its actual costs like fees and interest, and the repayment timeline. Unlike grants, loans do have to be repaid. As long as you remain in school taking at least 6 credit hours you will be in an in-school deferment, and will not have to pay. Once you drop below 6 credit hours, your grace period of 6 months begins. Once your grace period ends, you will need to begin repayment of your loans.

Be a Smart Borrower!

Take time to understand the type of loan being offered to you and try to limit your borrowing to just the amounts you need to cover your expenses. You may only use the student loan money to pay for your education expenses at the school that is giving you the loan. Education expenses include school charges such as tuition, room and board, fees, and indirect expenses such as books, supplies, equipment, dependent child care expenses, transportation, and rental or purchase of a personal computer.

Know How Much You Owe!

Make sure to ALWAYS keep in contact with your loan servicer – especially if you cannot afford the payments, as there are many programs out there where they may be able to help you with payments.

If you are unsure who your lender is, sign in to www.studentaid.gov with your FSA ID (same username and password as the FAFSA) and check the loans section to find out.

Types of Federal loans – Student Loans are NOT all the same!

Direct Subsidized Loans
  • Direct Subsidized Loans are awarded to students who demonstrate financial need based on the results of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The Federal Government pays the interest on this loan while a student is enrolled at least half-time (six credit hours). There is no penalty for early repayment.
Direct Unsubsidized Loans
  • Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans are not based on financial need, but a student must be enrolled at least half-time and fill out the FAFSA each year. Interest begins to accrue when the loan is first disbursed. Students can pay the interest while still in school; any unpaid interest will be added to the loan principal (capitalized) at the time of repayment. Loan capitalization can substantially increase the amount you repay. You can save money by paying the interest on an Unsubsidized loan while still in school. There is no penalty for early repayment.
Direct PLUS Loans
  • A parent has the option to borrow a Parent Loan for Undergraduate Student (PLUS) for their dependent student. In addition to the student completing the FAFSA, a parent must also apply for the PLUS loan online at www.studentloans.gov.
  • If a parent has been denied a PLUS loan, the parent can ask that the loan be Endorsed (adding a co-signer) or can request a credit appeal decision. The parent will be required to complete loan counseling in both instances.
  • If the PLUS loan is denied, the student can request additional loan funds by completing DC3’s Additional Loan Request form.







Current Interest Rates

Subsidized/Unsubsidized Loans first disbursed from July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026 – 6.39% fixed

Parent PLUS first disbursed from July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026 – 8.94% fixed

Subsidized/Unsubsidized Loans first disbursed from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2027 – 6.52% fixed

Parent PLUS first disbursed from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2027 – 9.07% fixed

Loan Origination Fees

Subsidized/Unsubsidized Loans will have an Origination Fee of 1.057% deducted from each disbursement.

Parent PLUS Loans will have an Origination Fee of 4.228% deducted from each disbursement.

How Do I Apply for A Federal Direct Loan?

Follow these steps to successfully apply for federal direct loans.

*The FAFSA MUST be completed EACH academic year.

First-Time Borrowers

The first loan disbursement for first year, first-time borrowers will be delayed for 30 days. This is a federal requirement.

Right to Cancel

You have the right to cancel a loan disbursement within 14 days of a scheduled disbursement by completing a Cancellation of Aid Request form. After 14 days, you loan cannot be canceled.

Loan Limits

There are limits to how much a student can borrow through the Direct Loan Program.

Dependent Student Loan – Yearly Amount:

SubsidizedAdditional UnsubsidizedTotal
First Year (0-24 credit hours)$3,500$6,000$9,500
Second Year (24+ credit hours)$4,500$6,000$10,500

Dependent Students can borrow a total of $23,000 Subsidized and Combined Subsidized/Unsubsidized amount of $31,000 over a lifetime.

Independent Student Loans (and Dependent Students Whose Parents Cannot Borrow Plus)– Yearly Amount:

SubsidizedAdditional UnsubsidizedTotal
First Year (0-24 credit hours)$3,500$6,000$9,500
Second Year (24+ credit hours)$4,500$6,000$10,500

Independent Students (and dependent students whose parents cannot borrow PLUS)

can borrow up to a total of $23,000 Subsidized and Combined Subsidized/Unsubsidized amount of $57,500 over a lifetime.

PLUS Loan – Yearly Amount:

Pre-OBBBA LimitNew Limit
Total Amount (Each Year) for PLUS loansCost of attendance minus other aid received$20,000 on behalf of each student

Parent PLUS loan lifetime borrowing limit: $65,000 for each child.

Private Loans

DC3 will process alternative education loans from private lending sources up to the cost of attendance minus other financial aid. DC3 utilizes a service called ELM that partners with many different banks for students to choose from. DC3 does not endorse certain banks nor does DC3 have a preferred lender list. There are no representatives from student loan organizations on campus or appearing to represent DC3 in any way. Additionally, DC3 staff members to do not receive any funding or incentives whatsoever from lenders providing student loans. Students should research various lenders and choose the one that best fits their needs. Students can access the ELM list at https://www.elmselect.com/v4/school/1158/program/1/program-detail.

Private loans require a credit check and, in most cases, students will require a co-signer. Keep this in mind when applying for a private loan. The DC3 Financial Aid office cannot certify any private loans until the student is enrolled in classes nor will the office certify any amount that takes the student over their cost of attendance. Securing, maintaining, and repaying private loans is the responsibility of the student.

Default

If Your Loan is in Default, The National Student Data System (NSLDS) will show DC3 that you stopped paying one or more of your student loans and that they have gone into default. The Department of Education will suspend your financial aid eligibility until the defaults have been resolved.

Where to Find Your Loan History: You can find your student loan history, the status of each loan, the loan servicer or lender and their contact information on the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) at studentaid.gov. You will need contact information for loan servicers/lenders for all of the loans in default. If you have a Perkins Loan, contact the school where you received the loan for details. If you know your Perkins Loan has been assigned to the U.S. Department of Education, contact the ECSI Federal Perkins Loan Servicer.

How to Resolve Your Default: Find information on resolving loan defaults at studentaid.gov/manage-loans/default/get-out.
Defaulted student loans can be resolved in the following ways if you meet the requirements for the option:

  • Pay off the defaulted loan.
  • Consolidate all defaulted loans, which pays the defaulted loans off with a larger consolidation loan. The default stays on your credit history.
  • Make payment arrangements with the loan servicer followed by 6 on-time monthly payments. The loan is still in default but does not prevent you from receiving financial aid.
  • Make 9 qualifying monthly payments to rehabilitate the loan. This removes the default from your credit history.

In order for us to be able to clear this requirement, we must either:

  • Receive a clearance letter from the loan servicer/lender(s) of all defaulted loans
    • Once you have resolved the issue, ask your loan servicer/lender to email a “clearance letter” to us at finaid@dc3.edu. The clearance letter will state that the loan defaults should no longer prevent you from receiving federal student aid. This will be the fastest option.
  • See that the loan statuses have been updated in NSLDS.
    • It can take several weeks for NSLDS to be updated.
  • Complete this the Default Resolution Form

We cannot use any other documentation, such as letters from a consolidation lender showing a consolidation loan has been approved or payment arrangement contracts. We MUST have a letter from the holder of the defaulted loan or wait until NSLDS is updated.

One Big Beautiful Bill Changes

In July 2025, the way student loans are administered changed with the implementation of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The information that impacts our student loan borrowers can be found here at our OB3-Loan Changes page.

I need assistance with my student loans, repayment, loan questions, and more. Who do I talk to?

You are not alone when it comes to student loans. Dodge City Community College has partnered with Educational Credit Management Corporation (ECMC) Solutions, a nonprofit organization that provides Federal Student Loan repayment counseling services, to provide you with FREE assistance on your Federal student loan obligations to ensure successful, and comfortable, loan repayment. They assist students and families in their efforts to plan and pay for college. ECMC’s friendly customer representatives may reach out to you during your grace period to answer questions you have about your loan obligation and/or repayment options. They may also contact you if your loan(s) become delinquent. ECMC is not a collection agency. We’ve partnered with them to help you explore a wide variety of possibilities such as alternative repayment plans, deferment, consolidation, discharge, forgiveness, and forbearance options. ECMC will stay in touch with you via phone calls, letters, and/or emails to help you find answers to your questions and solutions to your issues. You are encouraged to take advantage of these free services provided by DC3!

For additional resources including information on repayment options, please visit ECMC Solutions’ Student Loan Repayment Counseling & Resources website at https://www.ecmcsolutions.org/.