The Southern Miss financial aid office automatically awards stafford loans to students who have applied for federal aid and meets all criteria to receive Federal Title IV funding.

Stafford loans amounts are subject to federally mandated limits. Learn more about loan limits by clicking here.

Once you have accepted your Stafford loans track their status by clicking here.

What is NSLDS?

The National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) is the U.S. Department of Education's central database for student aid.  It receives data from schools, agencies that guaranty loans, the Direct Loan program, the Pell Grant program, and other U.S. Department of Education programs.  NSLDS provides a centralized, integrated view of Title IV loans and Pell grants that are tracked through their entire cycle; from aid approval through closure.

www.nslds.ed.gov

Deferment

A Deferment is a period of time during which no payments are required and interest does not accrue (accumulate), unless you have an unsubsidized Stafford Loan. In that case, you must pay the interest.

How do I qualify for a Deferment?

The most typical loan deferment conditions are enrollment in school at least half time, inability to find full-time employment ( for up to 3 years), and economic hardship ( for up to 3 years). Other deferment conditions are loan specific.

****You must continue making payments on your loan until you're notified that your deferment or forbearance has been granted. If you don't, and your request is denied, you'll become delinquent and could end up in default. ****

What is loan consolidation?

You can consolidate (combine) multiple federal student loans with various repayment schedules into one loan; either a Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) Consolidation Loan or a Direct Consolidation Loan. Your payments might be significantly lower and you can take a longer time to repay (up to 30 years) if you consolidate. Also, you might pay a lower interest rate than you would on one or more of your existing loans. Please compare the cost of repaying your unconsolidated loans with the cost of repaying a consolidation loan. Consolidation can double total interest expense because you can have a longer period of time to repay, you'll repay more interest.

*For a list of your loans eligible for consolidation, contact your lender. For more information you can read more by going to www.studentaid.ed.gov/pubs. (Click on the "Repaying" tab, then click on "Loan Consolidation" **