Private Student Loans
Private student loans are nonfederal educational loans in the student's name, offered through private lenders. For U.S. citizens and permanent residents, we recommend that you first explore all federal loan options before considering nonfederal private loans. International students generally require a qualified U.S. co-signer. We highly recommend that you speak with a financial aid counselor before taking out a private student loan. Please contact Student Financial Services to make an appointment.
Eligibility
You are able to apply for a loan from any lender that offers private education loans. Private lenders check your credit history to see if you qualify for a loan. In many cases a coborrower may be required to qualify for a loan and may help lower your cost of borrowing. Interest rates, fees and qualifications vary, so be sure to review loan details provided by lenders.
Comprehensive List of Private Vendors
Smith College does not maintain a recommended lender list. However, we do provide a comprehensive list of lenders that Smith students have used over the past three years.
Smith College has not reviewed the terms and conditions of the loans offered by these lenders and does not endorse any of them.
Please go to ELM Select to review the comprehensive list of lenders and the terms and conditions of their loans. Other private lenders exist that may not be on our list. You are able to choose any private lender that meets your needs.
Note that many credit unions are not listed individually but can be found under cu student (student choice) on ELM Select.
Smith College and its employees do not receive any benefits from lenders listed on this comprehensive list. We are committed to the highest standards of professional conduct. Please review our Code of Conduct for details of our practices.