Loans are funds that must be repaid. We recommend that students consider other types of free financial aid, including Washington State grants offered by the Workforce Education Service (WES) office, and use loans as a last resort.
If you currently have a student loan or are considering a loan, please visit Bates’ Financial Literacy webpage and download the WhichWay app to see if a loan is right for you.
Default
If you take out a student loan and then stop making payments, your loan may go into default. A default loan can affect your credit score, federal tax refunds, and federal financial aid eligibility. For more information on payment plans and default prevention, you can speak to a Borrower Advocate from Student Connections. You can find more information about Student Connections below.
A Fresh Start for Federal Student Loan Borrowers in Default
On April 6, 2022, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) announced an initiative—called “Fresh Start”—to help eligible borrowers in default.
Fresh Start will continue through one year after the COVID-19 payment pause ends. If your loans are eligible, you will temporarily regain several student aid benefits. You will also get the opportunity to get out of default and keep those benefits for the long term. You may then be eligible to receive Federal and State grants; however, no new student loan requests will be processed (per Bates Technical College policy).
To begin the process, please contact your loan servicer and request a Fresh Start Initiative letter. If you do not know who your loan servicer is, log in at www.studentaid.gov to view your dashboard. Scroll down to the “My Loan Servicers” section, or call the Federal Student Aid Information Center at 1-800-433-3243.
Once you have received the letter, please complete the Acknowledgment form. You can access this form via Smartsheet or a fillable PDF. You will need to upload a copy of your letter to the smartsheet. If you choose to complete the fillable PDF, please send a copy of your letter to financialaid@batestech.edu.
If you have any questions, please contact the Bates Technical College Financial Aid office at financialaid@batestech.edu or 253-680-7020.
About Student ConnectionsSM
Student Connections is passionate about helping students overcome the barriers that can get in the way of attending college, completing their programs of study and achieving success while in school and after graduation. With more than 50 years of experience in counseling student loan borrowers, their primary goal is to help establish the best repayment plan for each individual.
To help you make smart choices about your finances, Bates Technical College has teamed up with Student Connections to provide financial education that is interactive and easy to use.
Through our partnership, we are able to offer students:
- Free student loan counseling
Call 866.311.9450 to speak with a Borrower Advocate today! - Help students establish the best loan repayment options
- The financial literacy app, WhichWay
Code of Conduct
Colleges participating in any of the Title IV loan programs are required by the Department of Education to develop, publish, and enforce a code of conduct. To view Bates Technical College’s code of conduct, download our Title IV Code of Conduct PDF.
Apply for a Stafford Loan
Students must make an informed and educated decision when deciding to borrow for educational needs. To be awarded a student loan you must complete a loan application, available on the Financial Aid Forms and Handouts webpage.
You will also have to complete the following items available at www.studentaid.gov.
- Loan Entrance Counseling
- Annual Student Loan Acknowledgement
- Master Promissory Note
To receive a student loan, you must be enrolled in at least 6 units/credits per quarter.
Federal Direct Loans are low-interest loans for students and parents to help pay for the cost of a student’s education. The lender is the US Department of Education rather than a bank or other financial institution. There are three types of loans available under this program:
- Direct Subsidized Loan
- Direct Unsubsidized Loan
- Direct PLUS Loan
Maximum Borrower Amounts
There is a maximum amount of loans that a student may request per quarter, year, and lifetime. For more information, see the chart below.
There are limits to the amounts of subsidized and unsubsidized loans a student can request every year. For more information on the difference between subsidized and unsubsidized loans, please see the information on Direct (STAFFORD) loans below or visit the Terms and Definitions Used in Financial Aid webpage.
| Maximum Loan Amounts | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dependent Student Loan Limits | ||||
| Earned Units/Credits | Quarterly Total Loan Limit | Annual Subsidized Loan Limit | Annual Unsubsidized Loan Limit | Aggregate Loan Limit* |
| 0 – 44 | $1,375 | $3,500 | $2,000 | $31,000 |
| 45 or more | $1,625 | $4,500 | $2,000 | $31,000 |
| Independent Student Loan Limits | ||||
| Earned Units/Credits | Quarterly Total Loan Limit | Annual Subsidized Loan Limit | Annual Unsubsidized Loan Limit | Aggregate Loan Limit* |
| 0 – 44 | $2,375 | $3,500 | $6,000 | $57,500 |
| 45 or more | $2,625 | $4,500 | $6,000 | $57,500 |
| *The listed aggregate loan limit is for undergraduate through bachelor’s degree | ||||
Students must make an informed and educated decision when deciding to borrow for educational needs. To be awarded a student loan; you must complete a separate application, loan Entrance Counseling, Annual Student Loan Acknowledgement, and a Master Promissory note. To receive a student loan, you must be enrolled in at least 6 units/credits per quarter.
Federal Direct Loans are low-interest loans for students and parents to help pay for the cost of a student’s education. The lender is the US Department of Education rather than a bank or other financial institution. There are three types of loans available under this program:
- Direct Subsidized Loan
- Direct Unsubsidized Loan
- Direct PLUS Loan
Direct Subsidized Loans are need-based. A student’s eligibility to borrow is based on financial need as determined by federal government. The federal government pays the interest on the loan while the student is in school. Repayment begins six months after completion or withdrawing from the college. The 150% Direct Student Loan policy went into effect as of July 2013. The new provision limits first-time borrower’s¹ eligibility for Direct Subsidized Loans. These students may not borrow more than 3 years of subsidized loans if they are pursuing a program (career pathway) at a community technical college.
Under certain conditions, the provision also causes first-time borrowers who have exceeded the three year limit to lose the interest subsidy of their Direct Subsidized Loans. Interest subsidy means the Government will no longer pay the subsidized interest after a first time borrower has exceed the three year limit.
Direct Unsubsidized Loans do not require a student to show financial need; however, the cost of the student’s education must exceed any other financial aid offered. The student is responsible to pay all the interest that accrues on this loan. It is recommended that you make interest payments for unsubsidized loans. Repayment on the principal loan amount (and including any capitalized interest, if payments were not made) begins six months after completion or withdrawing from college.
Direct PLUS Loans are loans a parent takes out in order to pay for their dependent student’s educational expenses. A completed FASFA is required to get a PLUS loan. Parents must complete the Plus Loan Application, Master Promissory Note, and Annual Student Loan Acknowledgement prior to the first disbursement of the academic year.
Students may be eligible for a federal Direct loan or other Title IV (4) financial aid, which may have more favorable terms than a private or alternative loan. See the Title IV Financial Aid (FAFSA) section on the Bates Types of Funding webpage for more details.
If a student would like to pursue a private loan, instead of a federal Direct loan, they will have to submit the Private Education Loan Applicant Self-Certification form to their lender. You can find your Cost of Attendance and estimated financial assistance by logging into the Bates Financial Aid Student Portal.
Code of Conduct and Lender Policies:
Bates Technical College does not have a preferred lender list. If a student desires to use a loan program other than the Federal Direct Student Loan Program, it is their responsibility to locate a lender and complete all paperwork through them. The Financial Aid Office will certify a private loan upon receipt of the necessary information and request for certification. All private loans will be sent to the school in the form of a paper check, and may take additional time to process since our usual mode of certification is through the Federal Direct Lending Program as mandated by recent legislation. The Title IV Code of Conduct gives more information about the College’s stance concerning lenders.