Direct Loans for Graduate Students

If you receive this type of loan, you are responsible for all the interest that accrues on it, including interest that accrues while in school. Interest also accumulates during deferment and the grace period. Once you enter repayment, the interest becomes part of the loan principal in a process called capitalization.

Maximum Annual Loan

$20,500

Interest

For the 2026–2027 academic year: 8.07% for Direct Unsubsidized loans disbursed on or after July 1, 2026, and before July 1, 2027.

Fees

Direct loan fees are 1.057% for loans disbursed between October 1, 2020, and September 30, 2027. Direct loan fees are deducted from the loan proceeds at disbursement. So, for example, a Direct loan disbursement of $2,000 would have $21 in fees deducted from it so that the net proceeds of the disbursement would be $1,979.

Please note: Direct loans are fixed rate loans. Graduate Unsubsidized loans taken out in the 2026–2027 academic year that are disbursed after July 1, 2026, will have a fixed rate of 8.07% for the life of that loan. Each academic year, the government will determine the interest rates for that year’s loans. The interest rate for graduate direct loans is based on an index + 3.60%. Under the law, the index rate is determined each year as the “10-Year Treasury Note High Yield” auctioned at the final auction held prior to the June 1 preceding the July 1 of the year for which the rate will be effective.

To be eligible, students must:

• Have a completed financial aid application (FAFSA) for the applicable academic year.
• Be U.S. citizens or eligible non-citizens.
• Be accepted in a degree-seeking program.
• Be registered at least half-time.
• Attend classes and maintain satisfactory academic progress to continue to be eligible for their loans.
• Direct loans are awarded as part of a student’s financial aid package. Once the loan is offered, the student will need to accept the direct loan fund(s) online via myEmerson (Duo Required).
• All borrowers are required to participate in Exit Loan Counseling if they stop attending or drop below half-time standing. Exit Counseling can be done via studentaid.gov.

All students wishing to borrow a direct loan must complete their financial aid file. Once the direct loan has been offered, students must accept or decline the direct loan fund(s) online via myEmerson (Duo Required). If the loan is accepted, Emerson will notify the direct lending servicer that you are attending Emerson College and certify your eligibility for a direct loan. A fall semester applicant’s lender will be notified in late June. A spring semester applicant’s lender will be notified starting in December.

If you have not previously borrowed a Direct Federal Loan at Emerson College:

• You must complete the Direct Loan Master Promissory Note (MPN) on the Direct Loan website. You only need to do the MPN once and it is valid for subsequent loans for up to 10 years.
• You must complete the federally required Entrance Interview. The Interview can be found on the Direct Loan website. If you have borrowed a direct loan at Emerson College in the past, you do not need to complete another Entrance Interview.

Loans are disbursed in two equal installments split evenly between the fall and spring semesters. Each disbursement occurs after the add/drop period each semester.

• The estimated Fall 2026 term disbursement date is 9/17/2026.
• The estimated Spring 2027 term disbursement date is 1/28/2027.

Loans are disbursed in three installments for all returning graduate students who are enrolled for the summer term in addition to the fall and spring semesters.

• The estimated Fall 2026 term disbursement date is 9/17/2026.
• The estimated Spring 2027 term disbursement date is 1/28/2027.
• The estimated Summer 2027 term disbursement date is 5/24/2027.

When a student’s loan has disbursed, Emerson College is required by federal regulation to notify the borrower that the funds have disbursed to their student account. Further, this regulation states that we must inform the student of their right to cancel all or a portion of the loan. To do so, the student must submit a written request via email to studentloans@emerson.edu within fourteen (14) days of the date of this notice and include the following information:

• Type of loan(s) to be canceled
• Amount of loan(s) to be canceled
• Date of request

Please note that the student is the borrower of the Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan and the Graduate PLUS Loan.

Upon receipt of the request, the College will cancel the loan(s) and return the funds to the lender/servicer. We will send confirmation of this to the borrower. Please be aware that if you have used a student or parent loan to pay your semester bill, cancellation of any loans(s) may result in an open balance owed to the College. Emerson requires immediate payment of balances resulting from cancellation of your loan(s).

If you submit a request to cancel a loan beyond the 14-day period, the College is not required to honor your request. However, we will give it every consideration and notify you, in writing, of the outcome.

Unsubsidized Direct Loans start accruing interest once the loan disburses. Unsubsidized loans have a six-month grace period after the student drops below half-time status, leaves, or graduates. Once the grace period has ended, repayment begins.

There are several repayment options available. You will receive Exit Loan Counseling when you leave school. To review repayment information now, review the Federal Student Aid website. They also offer helpful interest and repayment calculators to help you better understand your repayment options.

Emerson College’s two-year cohort default rate on direct loans is 1.4%, which is substantially below the national average of 9.1%.