Other Private Loan Options

Harvard University periodically conducts a Request for Information (RFI) process to develop a list of lenders offering non-federal student loans ("private loans") who are willing to lend to Harvard students. This list, consisting of all lenders who responded to Harvard's most recent RFI, can be found on the ELM Select website. (International students who have a U.S. co-signer should review loan options on both the "Graduate" and "International" pages on ELMSelect.)

Harvard also maintains a list of lenders that have made private loans to Harvard students in the last three years. This list is shown below. Harvard cannot confirm that all of these lenders are still willing to lend to Harvard students, as some of them did not respond to Harvard’s most recent RFI.

Note: borrowers who are U.S. citizens or Permanent Residents may qualify for federal loans, and the terms and conditions of these federal funds may be more favorable than the terms and conditions of private education loans.

Prospective borrowers should review a lender’s materials closely and contact the lender with any questions. Rates and other terms offered by lenders may change throughout the year. Consider the following when comparing loans:

  • Cosigner Requirements and Cosigner Release Options
  • Interest Rate: Variable or Fixed, Index and Margins, Interest Capitalization Policies
  • Borrower Benefits: Interest Rate Reductions for ACH and Cosigners, On-time payment incentives
  • Fees: Origination Fees, Late Fees, Return Check Fees
  • Repayment Options: Repayment Start Dates, Years In Repayment
  • Grace Period, Deferment and Forbearance Options

The following lenders have provided student loans to Harvard students in the past three years:

  • 8B Education Investments
  • AAA Advantage Student Loan
  • Abe
  • Arkansas Student Loan Authority
  • Ascent
  • Brazos Higher Education Lending
  • Citizens
  • College Ave
  • Community Federal Credit Union (CFCU)
  • Connecticut Higher Education Supplemental Loan Authority (CHESLA)
  • Custom Choice
  • Digital Federal Credit Union
  • Discover
  • Earnest
  • Edly
  • EdvestinU
  • Funding U
  • Harvard Federal Credit Union (HFCU)
  • Higher Education Student Assistance Authority (HESAA) NJCLASS
  • Kentucky Higher Education Student Loan Corporation (KHESLC)
  • LendKey
  • Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority (MEFA)
  • Massachusetts Medical Society
  • MIT Federal Credit Union
  • Monogram
  • MPOWER Financing
  • Navy Federal Credit Union
  • Nelnet Bank
  • Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA)
  • PNC Bank
  • Prodigy Finance
  • Rhode Island Student Loan Authority (RISLA)
  • Sallie Mae
  • SoFi
  • SouthEast Bank
  • Star One Credit Union
  • UMassFive College Federal Credit Union
  • Union Federal
  • USC Credit Union
  • Vermont Student Assistance Corporation (VSAC)