US federal aid

Cost of Attendance and Funding Notification Offer

Students (or students and their parents) can only borrow up to the full Cost of Attendance (COA) of their degree programme as indicated in the Funding Notification Offer (FNO).   The COA for your programme at Edinburgh Napier is calculated annually on the sum of your tuition fees and estimated living costs for each year of your programme.

The estimated COA is shown in GB Pounds Sterling (£) and converted to US Dollars ($) using a fixed rate taken at the beginning of the spring period. This is a fixed rate for the entire academic year, and will not be adjusted should currency exchange rates fluctuate.Once you have notified us that your FAFSA has been submitted, we will email you to let you know the maximum amount you can borrow, based on your estimated COA by sending an FNO.

Please note: all students are treated equally and the COA cannot be increased to support lifestyle decisions. However, if you have genuine reasons for requiring a higher cost of attendance such as medical expenses, please discuss this with us.The Cost of Attendance is made up of your tuition fees; rent; food; social, clothing, utilities, telephone, personal; miscellaneous (for new applicants, not continuing students) covering visa application,NHS health surcharge and laptop; and transportation (including airfares).

Example figures for these areas are below, for the 2021/2 academic year. Any scholarships or other financial assistance and your estimate family contribution (undergraduate only) will also be deducted from your Cost of Attendance.

• Tuition fees – dependent on your programme and will be listed on your offer email as well as each individual course webpage.
• Rent – £9,537 for PG; £6732 for UG
• Food – £4080 for PG; £2,880 for UG
• Social, Clothing, Utilities, Telephone, Personal – £9,690 for PG; £6,840 for UG
• Miscellaneous (new students) – various depending on the length of course, e.g. £1,519 for a 1 year Masters; £2,929 for a 4 year UG Bachelor
• Transportation – £2,650 for PG; £2,459 for UG.

Professional Judgement

In special or unusual circumstances, students may require additional funds beyond their eligibility limits as calculated using our Cost of Attendance when creating their Financial Aid package. In these situations, students can contact our US Loans team for a professional judgment decision regarding their circumstances. All requests should be sent to usloans@napier.ac.uk. Appropriate documentation supporting the request must be provided for a professional judgment decision to be considered and made. Professional judgment decisions are made on a case-by-case basis at the discretion of the Financial Aid Administrator and are not guaranteed. We reserve the right to deny any request for adjustment. You will be notified by email of the outcome of your request, and professional judgment decisions are not eligible for appeal.

Entrance and Exit Counselling

Federal regulations dictate that all students taking out federal loans must complete entrance and exit counselling.

• Entrance counselling MUST be completed online on the US Department of Education website for all first time borrowers before we can approve your loan.
• It is also a federal requirement that you must complete exit counselling prior to the completion of your course. This can also be completed on the studentloans.gov website or on the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) Student website and must be completed each time you graduate or a leave an institution.
• Both counselling sessions help you to understand your rights and responsibilities as a borrower.

Financial Awareness Counselling

Financial awareness counselling can be found on StudentLoans.gov and is voluntary. We highly recommend that you complete the counselling so that you are confident in managing your student loans. You will need your Federal Student Aid pin to gain access. As well as details on your income, financial aid and living expenses.

This does not replace the Entrance Counselling requirement.

Master Promissory Note (MPN)

The MPN must be completed and signed for each loan type a student borrows every year. If you have completed an MPN for previous loans or have signed a ‘multi’ year MPN these are not valid for foreign schools.

When you sign an MPN you promise to repay your loans and any interest and fees accrued. You should have one completed for your Direct Subsidized/Unsubsidized Loan and another for your Direct PLUS Loan.

If you have an endorser for a PLUS loan then you will also need an Endorser Addendum which can be found here under the Parent Borrowers section.

You'll find out more about Loan disbursement including details of how and when you'll receive your loan and how much you'll receive on the Loan disbursement page. 

Private loans may be used to supplement your federal loans but only up to your maximum Cost of Attendance.  They are normally subject to credit checks and you may be required to have a co-signer. Lenders offer these private loans at commercial rates. The University does not recommend any private lender, however as far as we are aware there are only two private lenders that makes loans available to US citizens receiving their degree at a foreign school. These are Sallie Mae and Earnest, you can find more information about the respective lenders via their websites at the following links, https://www.myglobaled.com/ and https://www.earnest.com/.

If you have already borrowed Federal Loans up to your full Cost of Attendance, we will be unable to certify a private loan. The decision on which loan you take out is ultimately yours, please read all of the available information about Direct, PLUS and Private Loans before deciding which best suits you. Federal loans generally have better benefits and lower, fixed interest rates.

Loan Process

Please notify the US Loans team if you plan to apply for a private loan. Once you have applied for your loan, your lender will normally contact the University to ask us to confirm your Cost of Attendance and certify your loan.

Disbursement Loan

To meet UKVI requirements, private loans will be disbursed in full at the start of the year. You must have matriculated and be registered at Edinburgh Napier University before we can disburse your loan. The disbursement date used is the date that private lenders issue the cheques in the US. Therefore it may take up to 10 days to be received by the University.

Once the cheque is received, you will be required to sign/endorse the cheque to allow the University to bank it. Once banked, tuition fees will be deducted from the disbursement before the remaining balance is paid to you for living expenses.

We would advise you to ensure you have borrowed enough to cover your expenses for the entire academic year.

Code of Conduct

In order to prohibit a conflict of interest with the responsibilities of an agent with respect to private education loans, all agents at the School with responsibility for US loans are prohibited from:

• Revenue-sharing arrangements with any lender;
• Receiving gifts from a lender, a guarantor, or a loan servicer;
• Contracting arrangements providing financial benefit from any lender or affiliate of a lender;
• Directing borrowers to particular lenders or refusing or delaying loan certifications;
• Offers of funds for private loans;
• Advisory board compensation.

Satisfactory Academic Progress

In order to maintain eligibility for US Loans funding, all students who are in receipt of US Loans must make Satisfactory Academic Progress in their studies. Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) for US Loans students will be reviewed using two measures, qualitative and quantitative. You must meet both standards to continue receiving financial aid.

For more information, download the Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy (PDF, 584 kB).

Returning Title IV Financial Aid

Title IV Financial Aid is awarded to students on the basis that the student will attend for the entire duration of their studies. Any early withdrawal or suspension of studies may therefore impact on the amount of financial aid the student is eligible for. Dependent on the date of withdrawal/suspension, the University and student may be required to return a portion of the loan to the US Federal Loans authority.

For more information, download the Return to Title IV Policy (PDF, 465 kB).

Tuition Fee Policy

All information relating to Tuition Fee Policy and Tuition Fee Sanctions can be found on the Admissions Policies page.

Admissions Policies and Procedures

All Edinburgh Napier University admissions policies can be found on Admissions policies pages.

Services and Facilities for Students with Disabilities

Edinburgh Napier University welcomes people with disabilities, long term health conditions and specific learning difficulties and is committed to providing students with positive support in all aspects of University life. For more information visit Disability & Inclusion pages.

Further information on the University’s current equality and diversity aims and related documents, can be found on Equality & diversity pages.