Parent loans

Parent Loans for Undergraduate Students

The PLUS loan may be borrowed up to the cost of attendance (COA) minus any other financial aid the student receives each year. The student and parent must meet eligibility requirements, including US citizenship, and a credit check.

PLUS Loan Application Process 

To initiate the PLUS loan application, complete the CIA PLUS Application and submit it to CIA's Office of Financial Aid. Data from this application will be transmitted electronically to the US Department of Education where a credit check and other eligibility information will be evaluated. 

If the PLUS is approved, and the parent borrower is a first-time borrower for their student, the parent borrower must complete the Parent PLUS Master Promissory Note (MPN). The Federal PLUS MPN is designed for a parent borrower to use as a multi-year note for one dependent student. Under the PLUS MPN multi-year process, a parent borrower will, in most cases, sign a PLUS MPN only once, at the time the parent first borrows for that dependent student. The parent may obtain additional loans for that same dependent student for up to 10 years after the date the parent first signed the PLUS MPN. If an endorser is required for the approval of the PLUS, the parent will not be eligible for a multi-year MPN. 

If the parent uses an endorser to qualify for a PLUS, they must submit a new PLUS MPN and PLUS entrance counseling each academic year. 

Both parents of a dependent student may apply for the PLUS. If a different parent chooses to borrow a PLUS for the same depended student, a separate PLUS MPN must be completed. Likewise, a separate PLUS MPN must be completed for each dependent student.

Once the Office of Financial Aid receives notification from the US Department of Education that your PLUS has been approved, it will be added to your student’s CIA Financial Aid award, and the student will be emailed to accept the PLUS loan online at Net Partner.

Payment and terms
Payments for the PLUS are not required as long as the student is registered for college for at least six credit hours and the parent borrower elects to defer payments while the student is enrolled for that time period.

The Department of Education will assign the approved PLUS to a federal loan servicer. The federal loan servicer will handle the billing and other services associated with the PLUS. It is the parents' responsibility to update the servicer with changes, such as address, name, school, etc.

For details regarding the federal PLUS program, click here.