Paying for your flight lab

Paying for flight labs and managing the financial aid process can be confusing! That's why we're here to help. We created these web pages to provide you information on the different sources of aid that may help in paying for your flight lab and completing the financial aid process.

Cost of Attendance

Every student is given a financial aid budget that allows for the estimated expenses you will have during the school year. These expenses include tuition, books, room and board, travel, and even miscellaneous expenses. We call this budget the Cost of Attendance (COA). You may have noticed that flight lab costs are not included. But don't panic! Flight lab costs can be added to the COA as long as you have declared an aerospace major, and the flight lab is required for your major.

The Financial Aid Office (FAO) will be working in conjunction with the Aerospace Department to identify students who may be enrolled in a course that requires a flight lab. We can increase your COA based upon the additional cost required for the flight lab. However, no financial aid will be credited to your student account until we verify that you are enrolled in the course. But, we need you to let us know that you are requesting us to adjust your COA because you will be applying for federal student aid (including student and/or Parent PLUS loans) OR Alternative loans. Please submit a Flight Lab Cost of Attendance Request Form. You will need to complete a form for the Fall and Spring semesters and another one for the Summer semester. (If applicable).

Getting Money for Your Flight Lab

The first step to applying for federal financial aid is to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). After MTSU receives your results and has verified the accuracy of the information reported on the FAFSA (if required), your federal financial aid will be packaged. You may view your awards on RaiderNet. The FAO automatically accepts any grants awarded to you. To apply for Student Loans for the Fall and Spring terms, please accept your loans on RaiderNet. (Click here for instructions on how to accept aid on RaiderNet.) For one semester loans, Fall only, Spring only, and Summer only loan periods, you will need to submit a Loan Request Sheet to the Financial Aid Office.

The amounts for student loans are based on your grade level and your status as a dependent or independent student (as determined by the FAFSA). If you were required to enter parent data on the FAFSA, then you are dependent. The following amounts are the maximum yearly amount a student may borrow during the Fall, Spring and Summer terms. Most students borrow their yearly amount in the Fall and Spring semesters. If you accept a Fall/Spring loan on RaiderNet, then the following amounts will be divided equally between the Fall and Spring semesters.

Classification	Independent  OR Dependent student whose parent was denied a Parent Plus loan	Dependent
Freshman	$9,500 per academic year	$5,500 per academic year
Sophomore	$10,500 per academic year	$6,500 per academic year
Junior	$12,500 per academic year	$7,500 per academic year
Senior	$12,500 per academic year	$7,500 per academic year

Often, students with flight labs will have to take out Parent PLUS Loans or Alternative Loans in addition to student loans and their other financial aid to pay for the flight lab. What we can do is raise your COA to include flight lab costs so that those loans can be applied to your account.

Federal Parent Plus Loans

Let's take a look at the application process for Parent PLUS Loans (PLUS). Parents of dependent students (as determined by the FAFSA) may apply for a loan to help a student with educational expenses. The PLUS loan is a loan in your parent's name and eligibility is based on his/her credit information. The interest rate is 7.9%. If your parent is denied a PLUS loan due to his/her credit history, then you may be eligible for federal student loan funds as an independent student (see chart above).

Applying for Parent Plus Loans

• Step 1:  Talk with your parents about the Parent PLUS Loan. Click here for more information about Parent PLUS Loans
• Step 2:  If you have not already completed a FAFSA, complete your FAFSA online.
                 (This is a federal loan, and all federal loans require a FAFSA.)
  
• Step 3:  Have your parent complete the Parent Plus Loan Request Sheet
• Step 4:  Have your parent complete a Master Promissory Note (MPN) online by visiting http://www.studentloans.gov. The parent will need to use the PIN # to sign the MPN. If the parent completing the Parent PLUS Loan is not the parent who signed the FAFSA, the parent may register for a PIN # at http://www.pin.ed.gov/

 

 Alternative Loans

Alternative loans are loans borrowed directly from a lending institution, essentially a bank. MTSU does not recommend or endorse any Alternative Loan lenders. Alternative loans are credit based, which means you will most likely need a co-signer. We recommend you borrow from the federal student loan programs before borrowing Alternative loans. Typically, you should request an Alternative Loan 4-6 weeks before the loan funds are needed. Let's walk through the application process.

Applying for Alternative Loans

 Step 1:
         For the first step, you should ask the following questions about the loan you are considering.

Does the lender process Alternative Loans with Middle Tennessee State University?Does the lender provide an online application? (many of them do)What will my interest rate be?Are there any fees that are deducted from the loan before I receive my loan funds?Do they require that I start repaying the loan while I am in school?How many hours must I be enrolled to receive the loan?

Step 2:

• How do you find alternative Loans? Type in Alternative Educational Loans in your search engine in your internet browser. Most lenders have an online application.
• After you apply, the lender will send you three separate disclosures during the Alternative Loan process. You must sign and return these disclosures to the lender in a timely manner.
• Also, you are required to complete a Self-Certification Form. The lender will provide you with this form. You are required to list your Cost of Attendance (COA) and any aid that you were offered at MTSU. Typically, you can view this information on RaiderNet.

Step 3:

• After you are pre-approved for the Alternative Loan and have returned all required paperwork to the lender, the lender will ask the Financial Aid Office to certify the loan, either by paper or electronically.

Step 4:

• If you have submitted all required paperwork to the lender and the Financial Aid Office has completed the certification request, the lender will schedule a date to disburse your loan funds to MTSU.

 

As always, if you have questions, please contact the Financial Aid Office. You can reach us by phone at 615-898-2830, in person in the Cope Administration Building, Room 218, or by email at fin_aid@mtsu.edu