Student Loan

Customer service for your loans will be provided by Aspire Servicing Center. The Arkansas Student Loan Authority will remain the owner of your loan and is available to assist you with any needs.

Consider federal student loans first. When you apply for financial aid by completing the FAFSA, your school will possibly include federal student loans as part of your aid package. If there is a need to access additional funds to assist with college expenses, you and your family should consider Arkansas Education Loans.

Yes, you are required to be an Arkansas resident or attend school in Arkansas. You are eligible to receive an Arkansas Education Loan if you are from another state attending school in Arkansas or if you are an Arkansas resident attending school outside of Arkansas.

To be eligible for an Arkansas Education Student Loan, you must:

• Be of majority age (e.g., at least 18 years old in Arkansas) pursuant to applicable law at the time of application or be an emancipated minor.
• Not have defaulted on any private or government student loan.
• Be attending any eligible nonprofit, Title IV eligible, degree-granting, accredited college or university.
• Be accepted, enrolled or attending on at least a half-time basis, as defined by the school, and be making satisfactory academic progress in an eligible education program.
• Be a citizen or permanent resident of the United States. Cosigners must be citizens or permanent residents of the United States and must reside in the United States. Military addresses are considered U.S. addresses if designated as an APO or FPO.

To qualify for the Arkansas Education Student Loan, you or your cosigners must have:

• Monthly payments for approved credit (mortgages, rent, car loans, credit cards and other forms of credit, including the loan for which the student has submitted an application) that do not exceed 50% of gross monthly income (if a mortgage or rent is not included, debt-to-income ratio cannot exceed 35%). All student loan debt will be treated as though it is in repayment.
• A FICO score of at least 660. (The FICO score used is the TransUnion FICO Score 8, which is based on data from TransUnion and may be different from other credit scores. FICO is a registered trademark of the Fair Isaac Corporation.)
• Continuous employment over the last two years. (This requirement may be waived for retirees, disabled persons or those receiving a verified income.)
• No more than two accounts reporting 30-day delinquencies and no delinquencies of 60 days or more during the previous two years.
• No charge-offs, repossessions, collection accounts, judgments, foreclosures, garnishments by credit providers or tax liens.
• No previous bankruptcies.
• Not defaulted on any private or government student loan.

The Arkansas Education Student Loan must be:

• No more than the school's "cost of attendance" (tuition and fees, housing, books and supplies, and transportation) minus other financial aid.
• At least $1,001.
• No more than $100,000 cumulative.

• Immediate Payment Plan – payments will begin after the loan is fully disbursed.
• Interest-Only Payment Plan – payments of interest will begin immediately after the first loan disbursement. 
• Deferred Payment Plan – payments will be postponed until after you graduate, leave school, or drop below half-time enrollment.

Use our Student Loan Repayment Calculator to estimate how much your monthly payment will be once you start repayment.

• The Interest-Only Payment Plan features a six-month grace period once you graduate, leave school or drop below half-time enrollment. Interest only payments are required during the six-month grace period. Your regular principal and interest payments begin after the six-month grace period. 
• The Deferred Payment Plan features a six-month grace period during which no payments are required. You may make payments during the in-school or grace period, however, payments are not required.

Arkansas Education Loan borrowers can release their cosigners from payment obligations:

• After 48 consecutive monthly principal and interest payments are received on time.
• When the release is requested, the student borrower must meet the same credit and underwriting criteria the cosigner possessed at the time of the loan application.

1. Borrower completes application and submits documentation.
2. School certifies the loan amount and the dates the loan funds will be received.
3. Borrower electronically acknowledges acceptance of the loan.
4. ASLA sends loan funds to the school, typically via electronic funds transfer.

Approval will take approximately one week as long as you submit your, or your co-signer’s, most recent paystub and W-2 for the last two years.

Your school will determine the date your loan funds are to be received along with the final loan amount. If the loan is processed before the semester begins, your loan funds will typically be received by the school by the beginning of the semester.

Once the school has certified the loan, you will electronically acknowledge acceptance of the loan. After acceptance of the loan, you will be taken to the self-certification form. Once you indicate that you want to continue with the loan, a three day “right to cancel” period begins (lenders must wait three-business days before the loan funds can be sent to the school – this is known as the “right to cancel” period.)

After the “right to cancel” period, loan funds will be disbursed to your school on the scheduled disbursement date. You can login to your account to check the status of your loan at any time.

Yes, you have 180 days after the academic period has ended to request a Student Loan.

You may earn a 0.25% interest rate reduction on your Arkansas Education Student Loan by making auto-debit payments when you begin principal and interest repayment.

Interest capitalizes (interest is added to your principal balance) at:

• The end of any qualifying deferment period for all loan options.
• The start of repayment status for loans that do not require principal and interest or interest-only payments while the borrower is enrolled and during the separation period.
• The final disbursement of loans that require monthly principal and interest payments while the borrower is enrolled in school and that have more than one disbursement.

You may qualify for assistance based on your situation. Please call us as soon as possible if you experience issues, so we can help you avoid delinquency.

In the unfortunate event of a borrower’s death or qualifying total and permanent disability, Arkansas Student Loan Authority will forgive the loan and not require cosigners or the borrower’s estate to satisfy the loan obligation. A tax professional or the IRS can provide additional information about possible tax consequences of loan forgiveness.

No; in the event of a cosigner’s death or qualifying total and permanent disability, you will not be required to find a new cosigner for an existing loan. In addition, if a cosigner suffers a qualifying total and permanent disability, Arkansas Student Loan Authority will release the cosigner from his or her obligation.