Direct GradPLUS Loan Application Instructions

When applying for a GradPLUS loan you will need to indicate the total amount you want to borrow for the entire academic year since funds are disbursed in two equal amounts at the beginning of each term per federal regulations.

GradPLUS loans have a 4.228% loan fee that is deducted from the total loan amount prior to disbursement, therefore, you will want to consider whether or not you should increase your loan request by the amount of this fee in order to net a certain amount of money. We will automatically add the 4.228% fee amount to your student budget when we process your GradPLUS loan request. If you decide, at a later date, that you would like to reduce the overall loan amount of this loan, you may do so by completing the Adjustment form.

On the GradPLUS application (link below), there are three loan amount request options. Please read each option carefully:

• First Option: “Borrow the maximum amount”. You may choose to borrow the maximum amount. If you choose this option we will process your loan for the difference between your student budget and all other financial aid. We will automatically add the 4.228% fee to your maximum loan amount and increase your budget to account for the additional fee.
  • For example: if your Student Budget is $116,000 and you are receiving an HLS grant of $15,000, an HLS loan of $10,000, and a federal direct unsubsidized loan of $20,500 you will have room in your student budget for a maximum loan of $70,500 ($116,000 minus $15,000 minus $10,000 minus $20,500 = $70,500). By clicking on this first option, you do not need to do any math since we will automatically process your loan for an amount that includes the 4.228% fee. Your gross loan amount will be $73,612 ($70,500 maximum loan amount divided by 0.95772 = $73,612). Your budget would be increased by $3,112 for the loan fees.
• Second Option: “Specify an amount”. You may specify the amount you want to borrow within the limit of your student budget minus all other financial aid. We must process the loan for the exact amount you specify. When choosing this option we will automatically increase your student budget for the amount of fees that will be deducted from the total loan amount requested, however, we cannot automatically add the loan fees to your requested loan amount.  If choosing this option, you will first want to determine the net amount of the loan that will be disbursed. The net amount is the amount after the loan fees have been deducted.
  • For example: If you only want to cover tuition of $77,100, then you will want to request $77,100 plus the loan fees so that the loan will disburse for $77,100. You will need to list your loan amount as $80,504 ($77,100 divided by 0.95772) in order to net a disbursement of $77,100.
• Third Option: “I don’t know the amount I want to borrow”. You should NEVER choose this option since it will cause significant delays in processing your loan. Instead, call our office at (617) 495-4606 or email sfs@law.harvard.edu with any questions you have about the loan amount.

Please enter and/or review the following information on the GradPLUS loan application.

• Award Year: 2024-2025
• Authorization for School Use of Funds: We strongly encourage all students to click this box and authorize us to use this loan to cover charges that are beyond tuition and the mandatory health service fee, such as dorm/rent, parking fees, and/or meal plans, etc. If this question is not answered, we will be required to issue a Title IV refund for funds that exceed tuition and the mandatory health fee. This means we will not be able to deduct your dorm charge, rent, other health insurance charges, etc. You will be responsible for paying those charges back to your bill within a matter of days. Checking the School Authorization box essentially eliminates the need for you to make a payment, since you will have authorized us to apply the funds to any current charges on your account before we issue a refund in the form of a direct deposit for any excess credits on your student account.
• School State: MA
• School Name: Harvard Law School
• School Code: E00471
• Requested Loan Period Start and End Dates: September 2024 and May 2025
• Read credit check section carefully
• You must e-sign the Master Promissory Note before we will process your Direct GradPLUS loan. If you have previously signed a Master Promissory Note, then you do not need to sign another note.
• Once we have received your approved application and your promissory note, we will list the anticipated credit from the proceeds of this loan to your student account for registration purposes and until the funds have actually been disbursed later in the month of September or two weeks after your application is certified (during the academic year)

Once you click on the link below, a new window will open in your browser to give you access to the Direct GradPLUS application site. You should click the “Sign In” button, log in with your FSA username and pin and then choose Apply for a PLUS loan for Graduate or Professional Students.