During periods of enrollment, Short Term Loan (STL) funds are made available by the University to enrolled students who need money for educationally-related expenses for a brief period of time until other sources become available. You must meet all eligibility requirements and have a guaranteed source of repayment in order to receive a STL. Short Term Loans are available to both Athens and regional campus students.

You must meet the following eligibility requirements to be eligible for a Short Term Loan:

• You must have a minimum accumulative GPA of 2.00 for undergraduates; 3.00 for graduate students and/or be making Satisfactory Academic Progress as defined by the Office of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships.
• You must be officially registered as at least a half-time student (half time is defined as six credit hours for undergraduates and five graduate hours for graduate students).
• You must have a satisfactory repayment history if you have had previous STLs. Students who have had more than two delinquent STLs or who have been turned over to a collection agency are ineligible to borrow again.
• You can have no more than one STL outstanding at a time and no more than three STLs per year.
• Your STL application must be accompanied by appropriate documentation, if required.
• You must have a guaranteed source of repayment. A guaranteed source of repayment is described as follows.

Athens and regional campus students can use a Federal Direct Subsidized and/or Unsubsidized Loan and/or other financial aid (Pell Grant, Ohio Instructional Grant, Ohio College Opportunity Grant, Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant, other federal grants, Perkins Loan, and OU Grants and Scholarships) as a source of repayment.

In addition, Athens campus students can use employment, veteran's benefits, funds from a foreign country in the case of international students, and earnings from a graduate/teaching assistantship. A student must attach appropriate documentation to the STL application when using one of these sources for repayment. In addition, the student must make an appointment with the assigned alpha counselor, except in the case of graduate students using their stipends as the source of repayment.

You can obtain a STL application from the client services area of the Office of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships or the Student Services Office at any of the regional campuses. After you have completed the application, you must submit it to the OSFAS or the Student Services Office on the appropriate regional campus. The staff at the regional campus will fax your STL application and addendum to the Athens campus.

Your STL application is reviewed to determine if you meet the eligibility criteria, including a verifiable source of repayment. If your application is denied, you will be notified by mail or e-mail. Otherwise, your STL check will be available for you to pick up five business days from receipt of your application. During the first two weeks of the quarter (first week of each session of summer school), your STL check will be ready in three business days after receipt of your application if you are eligible for a STL.

You go to the Bursar's Office - Cashier Window (or the Student Services Office on the regional campus) after 12 p.m. (noon) on the appropriate day to pick up your STL check. You must have a valid Student ID or a valid driver's license with a picture. You will sign a Promissory Note when you pick up the STL check, and you will be given a copy of the signed Promissory Note for you records. The Promissory Note is a legal document and includes the date by which your STL must be repaid, the service charge, and any finance charges if applicable. You may be asked to sign an addendum authorizing repayment from your financial aid if applicable. There is a $5.00 Service Charge on each STL.

Your Promissory Note will indicate when the STL is due and must be repaid. However, if you experience difficulty in repaying your STL on time, you can request an extension on repayment. You should complete a "Request for Short Term Loan Payment Extension" available from the Office of the Bursar or Student Services Office at the regional campus. A regional campus student must submit the form to the Student Services Office and discuss the situation with a staff member on the regional campus. The form will be forwarded to the Athens campus for review.

The granting of an extension on the time allowed to repay a STL is not automatic and is based on the individual circumstances of each case. An Athens campus student will be informed verbally as to whether the extension request is approved or denied. If the request is approved, a new due date will be established. In the case of a regional campus student, a notice will be sent by mail.