The Impact of Credit

Students with an adverse payment history on consumer debt, evidence of a previous bankruptcy, or a current or past default on an education loan run a serious risk of being denied access to a Federal Graduate PLUS or alternative student loan.

As credit has become an integral part of borrowing, we encourage financial aid applicants to pay special attention to the following:

When you are accepted to the School of Medicine, you will receive a letter requesting a current copy of your credit report for review prior to matriculation. This ensures that you know, well in advance, if there are any credit difficulties which may prevent approval of a credit-based student loan.

The School of Medicine is not responsible for financial obligations of students who have been denied education loans for reasons of credit, delinquency, bankruptcy or other personal financial problems. In such cases, students will be requested to document sufficient personal resources to support their cost of attendance.

Students who are aware of problems with their credit history, or who anticipate difficulties borrowing, should contact our office immediately to discuss their situation.

Budgeting is critical, especially in medical school. Students are not permitted to receive financial aid in excess of their standard financial aid budget. Therefore, it is imperative that students reduce or eliminate any consumer (i.e. credit card) debt prior to entering medical school. Federal regulations do not consider consumer debt part of the student’s standard budget.

The School of Medicine’s ability to participate in federal loan programs is contingent upon how well its’ borrowers manage their education loans and subsequent repayment. Therefore, it is important to remember that you are partly responsible for helping ensure that other students have access to education loans.