As a first-time borrower or a new student at CEI receiving Federal Direct loans, you are required to complete Entrance Counseling and the Master Promissory Note (MPN). By completing these requirements, a student is indicating that they understand and accept the obligations, rights, and responsibilities of borrowing.
To activate your student loan, complete the following:
This requirement only applies to first-time borrowers at CEI. Entrance Counseling ensures that you understand the responsibility and the obligation you are assuming when borrowing student loans. The U.S. Department of Education requires you to participate in Loan Entrance Counseling before your loan funds can be disbursed. During entrance counseling, you will receive facts about loans, how interest works, your options for repayment, and how to avoid delinquency and default. When complete, a record will be sent to the school(s) you select and then you can receive your loan. Entrance counseling must be completed in one sitting. If you have previously borrowed a loan at CEI, you do not need to complete the Entrance Counseling for 10 years.
We have included a link to the PDF version of the Direct Loan Entrance Counseling Guide , which includes comprehensive information on the terms and conditions of the loan and the borrower's responsibilities. For questions please contact the Financial Aid Office. (Last Updated: September 2021)
This requirement only applies to first-time borrowers. The MPN is a legal document you must sign, agreeing to pay back your loans and any accrued interest and fees to the U.S. Department of Education. It also explains the terms and conditions of your loan(s). You may receive more than one loan under an MPN over a period of up to 10 years.
Complete Annual Student Loan Acknowledgement (ASLA) each year you accept federal student loan. You can complete the ALSA requirement at Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), using your FSA ID and password to log in. First time borrowers are acknowledging that you understand your responsibility to repay your student loan(s). If you have previously borrowed student loan(s), you are acknowledging that you understand how much you owe and how much more you are eligible to borrow. Other student aid information is provided, including the interest rates and repayment options to make managing your student loans easier.
Whether you're still in school or you've already graduated, it's important to start planning how you'll repay your loan. To ensure your payments are manageable, you can learn about selecting the repayment plan that fits your needs, learn how to contact your loan servicer, how to make payments and how to address any questions you may have.
Exit Counseling provides important information you need to prepare for repayment of your federal student loans. If you have received a subsidized or unsubsidized loan you must complete exit counseling each time you: graduate, leave school, or drop below half-time enrollment (six credits).
Exit Counseling will ask you for information that will be included as part of your loan records. You must provide the names, addresses, email addresses and phone numbers for: your next of kin, two personal references who live in the U.S., and your future employer (if known).
To complete the exit counseling, you will need: approximately 30 minutes for completion, your FSA ID, Names of the Schools you wish to notify of your counseling completion.
Exit Loan Counseling Completion:
A Loan Servicer is a company that the Department of Education will assign to handle the billing and other services on your federal student loan, at no cost to you. Your loan servicer will work with you on repayment options (such as income-driven repayment plans and loan consolidation) and will assist you with other tasks related to your federal student loans.
Keep your contact information up to date so your loan servicer can help you stay on track with repaying your loans. If your circumstances change at any time during your repayment period, your loan servicer will be able to help.
To determine your Loan Servicer log in using your FSA ID username or verified email address and password. You can click on Mange Loans or your Account Dashboard. Your Loan servicer will be listed.
You’ll have six months after you graduate, leave school, or drop below half-time enrollment (six credits), before you must begin making payments on your student loans. This is known as the Grace Period. You can use this time to get financially settled, to determine your expected income and expenses, and to select a repayment plan.
Help is available so that you know exactly how and when to repay your loans
Once you enter loan repayment, you must make your payments on time to avoid delinquency and default.
Delinquency - The first day after you miss a student loan payment, your loan becomes past due, or delinquent. Your loan account remains delinquent until you repay the past due amount or make other arrangements.
Default - means you did not make your payments on your student loan as scheduled according to the terms of your promissory note, the binding legal document you signed at the time you took out your loan. For most federal student loans, you will default if you have not made a payment in more than 270 days. If you default on a federal student loan, you lose eligibility to receive federal student aid and you may experience serious legal consequences. https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/default
How to Stay Out of Default - Don’t miss a payment! If you don’t pay the full amount due on time or if you start missing payments, your loan may be considered delinquent and late fees can be charged to you. If you are making late or partial payments, contact your loan servicer immediately for help. You may be able to change your repayment plan to one that allows for a longer repayment period or to one that is based on your income. Also, ask your loan servicer about your options for deferment, or forbearance or loan consolidation. NEVER ignore delinquency or default notices from your loan servicer.
Getting Out of Default - If you failed to make your payments on your federal student loan and now are in default, don’t let the consequences of default affect your financial future. Find out how to get out of default by contacting your loan servicer. https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/repayment/servicers#your-servicer
Financial aid may be reinstated once the student makes satisfactory repayment arrangements with the holder of the loan. Proof of such arrangements must be submitted to the Financial Aid Office.
One way to get out of default is to repay the defaulted loan in full, that's not always a practical option for most borrowers. Two other ways to get out of default are loan rehabilitation and loan consolidation. However, loan rehabilitation provides certain benefits that are not available through loan consolidation. Take a look at the chart on studentaid.gov to compare the benefits of loan rehabilitation versus the benefits of loan consolidation. https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/default/get-out. Contact your loan servicer to discuss the best option for you to get out of default.
John E. Christofferson
Multi-Purpose Building
Room 353
Phone: (208) 524-3000
Fax: (208) 525-7026
financial.aid@cei.edu
