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Yes, you can get student loans as a DACA recipient from private lenders, your school and possibly your state. But you likely aren’t eligible for federal student aid — including federal student loans — since it’s only open to US citizens, permanent residents and eligible noncitizens.
Can’t qualify for federal aid? You might want to check out the following private student loans.
Lender | Best for … | Cosigner required? | |
---|---|---|---|
Stilt | Students who are employed | No | |
Discover | High-achieving students | Yes | |
Sallie Mae | Flexible repayment options | Yes | |
Mpower Financing | Upperclassmen with no cosigner options | No | Read review |
Citizens Bank | Competitive interest rates | Yes | Read review |
While technically not a student loan provider, this lender offers personal loans made for noncitizens living in the US. But you’ll need to be employed to qualify.
There’s also no option to apply with a cosigner, so your family can’t help you — unless they take out the loan in their name. These loans come in even smaller amounts than Mpower, so you might not be able to cover your entire degree.
This lender is one of the few student loan providers that specializes in financing for international students and DACA recipients. It doesn’t require a cosigner who’s a US citizen or permanent resident — and you don’t need to have a job or credit score.
The downside is that you need to be in the last two years of your degree to qualify. And its loans come with higher rates and lower maximum amounts than you might find with other providers.
While you can’t qualify on your own, Discover treats DACA recipients as international students on a visa. This means you have to apply with an eligible citizen or permanent resident cosigner to qualify. Unlike Mpower, Discover offers funding for your entire program.
This lender might be a particularly good choice if you’re a strong student — it offers a cashback reward if you keep your GPA over a 3.0. It also has lots of options for graduate students and postgraduate expenses.
Like Discover, this bank also allows DACA recipients to apply as international students with a US citizen or permanent resident cosigner. It offers student loans for undergraduate and graduate students — and you only have to apply once to fund your entire degree.
It also has some of the lowest rates out there available to DACA recipients. But its loans come with relatively short terms, so you might want to look elsewhere for more affordable monthly repayments.
Sallie Mae offers a wide range of student loans for everyone from undergraduates to doctors in their residency. While you have to apply with a cosigner who’s a US citizen or permanent resident to qualify, it offers cosigner release. This allows you to move the loan to your name if your legal status changes.
Its loans also come with more flexible repayment options than you might find with other private lenders, like allowing you to defer your loans when you go back to school or during an internship.
There are a couple of other places where you may be able to find student loans besides private lenders.
While you might not be able to qualify for federal aid, you might be eligible for student loans offered by your state or city’s Department of Education. These often come with more competitive rates and terms, as well as more flexible repayment options than private lenders. Generally, all students get the same rate. And you typically don’t need to apply with a cosigner to qualify.
Some universities offer institutional loans to students, which may be available to DACA recipients. These tend to have rates and terms comparable to state options — and all students usually get the same rate. These might come in lower amounts, but they’re generally meant to supplement state and federal aid.
Before you apply for student loans, you might want to look into free aid available to you first. This includes:
Take advantage of online resources like those provided by United We Dream, which has a searchable list of financial aid designed specifically for DACA students on its website.
Want to limit how much you need to borrow? Follow these steps to ensure you find all of the free aid you’re eligible for:
The fees involved with applying to college might cost some families nearly $5,000, but it doesn’t have to. If the cost of taking the SAT, submitting the CSS Profile and applying to multiple schools is standing in your way, you might be eligible for fee waivers.
You can also skip the expensive test prep courses by taking advantage of free tutoring opportunities in your neighborhood or high school. Talk to your high school college adviser to learn about other options available to you.
While federal and some private student loans are off the table for most DACA students, you still have several options. But you might want to look into free aid first. Scholarships and grants might be more widely available to you — and you don’t have to pay them back.
You can learn more about how paying for school works by checking out our guide to student loans.
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