The Regents Scholarship loan is designated for undergraduate Georgia residents who are enrolled full time, rank academically in the upper 20% of their class and who have established financial need. Borrowers who reside and work in the State of Georgia may be eligible to have all or part of their scholarship cancelled. It is extremely important that you understand your rights and responsibilities.
Students are required to be enrolled at full time each term to receive Regents Scholarships funds.
The Federal Regents Scholarship loan program requires the completion of Entrance Interview Questionnaire, Truth-in-Lending (acknowledgement of total loan indebtedness) and sign a Promissory note (Agreement to Conditions) each year that funds are awarded. The Truth-in-Lending and a Promissory note are mailed to the student each award year and must be completely filled out, signed and returned to Student Accounts – Loan Servicing Department. Funds will not be disbursed until our office receives the proper paperwork for the loan.
Financial aid funds are first applied to a student’s account balance and any excess funds are mailed to you in the form of a check or directly deposited into your personal bank account.
Every time a student’s enrollment is less than half-time, graduates or withdrawals from the University of Georgia, they must complete an Exit Interview Questionnaire. It must be completely filled out, signed and returned to Student Accounts – Loan Servicing Department. If the Exit questionnaire is not returned to our office or is not completely filled out, the student’s University of Georgia records are flagged until the proper paperwork is completed
The annual percentage rate per the terms of the promissory note is computed on the unpaid balance. Interest will begin to accrue the date funds are advanced. Interest does accrue while students are enrolled.
Borrowers may, without penalty, prepay on their loan. Prepayments will be used to reduce the amount of outstanding loan principal and decrease the repayment period and related total interest charge. If you pay more than your monthly payment, the additional amount will automatically be applied to principal unless you otherwise designate. If partial prepayments on the loan are made, the next monthly payment will still be due as originally scheduled. Borrower’s who wish to have prepayments applied to the next scheduled payment(s) of their loan, must request this in writing accompanying their payment. (Installment payments in advance must equal or exceed the scheduled amount of future installment(s). If you would like to make a prepayment on your University of Georgia Regents Scholarship loan, you may write a letter of your intentions or use our Prepayment Letter.
Payments are due on the 1st of each month to the University of Georgia, Student Account Services – Loan Servicing department. Payments are considered late if received after the 15th of each month and if applicable, you will be charged a late fee.
Checks should be made payable to “The University of Georgia”. Please include borrower name and last four numbers of social security number on the check. Payments should be accompanied by a payment coupon. However, if you do not have a payment coupon, you may mail your payment without one and request future payment coupons. You may also print a general payment coupon and mail it with your payment. Please remember that not having a payment coupon does not excuse you from making a payment. The coupon helps to properly credit your account with your payment. If you do not have a supply of coupons, please contact Student Accounts.
Checks should be mailed to:
University of Georgia
Student Account Services – Loan Servicing
110 Business Services Building
Athens, GA 30602-4226
Repayment begins on the 1st of the month after a nine month grace period following graduation, withdrawal or enrollment less than full time. The minimum monthly payment is $83.33 and it may be higher depending on the amount of Regents scholarship loan money borrowed. Repayment is made in equal monthly installments and is made directly to the University of Georgia, Student Account Services – Loan Servicing Department. If a loan becomes delinquent, late fees equal to seven percent of the monthly loan payment are assessed to the loan balance. The University of Georgia may assign loans to an outside collection agency or legal firm for collection in which case the borrower is responsible for all collection costs, attorneys fees and court costs incurred by the University in collecting the delinquent account. Repayment can be deferred while students are enrolled full time at an eligible institution. Repayment can be cancelled for employment and residency in the State of Georgia. Please see cancellation section below for more details on repayment via service. However, if a borrower cannot make the full payment on time, they must contact our department to make arrangements to bring their account current.
n accordance with federal regulations, all loan information including loan balances and repayment histories are reported to National Credit Bureaus at the time of disbursements and continually reported monthly until the loan is paid in full.
A deferment allows the temporary postponement of principal payments and in some cases also interest payments while you meet certain criteria. The Federal Regents Scholarship Loan program has several deferment provisions which in general include a six month grace period after your deferment ends. Each deferment has different criteria you must meet in order to receive the benefit. Please read the following types of deferments to determine if you may qualify for the benefit. If you believe that you are eligible for a deferment, please follow the instructions under that provision and call us for further instructions. It is the borrower’s responsibility to file the request for deferment on a timely basis. Failure to submit the deferment forms by the due date may result in the reporting of past due information to the Credit Bureau on your account. Please remember it is your responsibility to contact our office to apply for a deferment.
Borrowers who are enrolled at least half-time in an eligible institution may be eligible for a repayment deferment. This deferment can be granted for up to one year per request and reapplied for if you remain eligible. This deferment allows the suspension of principal and interest (and interest does accrue) repayments during the deferment period. Repayment resumes on the 1st of the month following your last enrollment date after a four month grace period. To request your loan to be placed in deferment based on the criteria you are enrolled at least half-time at an eligible institution, you must print and complete the Enrollment Certification form which must be certified and officially stamped by the Registrar at the school you are attending. The Enrollment Certification form must be received by our office in order to defer your repayment. If your school prefers to use its own official certification, you may submit their certified form in lieu of our Enrollment Certification form. Remember, if you did not attend school, you will be asked to make payment for all prior months in which your loan was in deferred status when you became ineligible. If you should leave school during a period of deferment, contact our office immediately.
Borrowers who serve on active duty or performing qualifying National Guard duty may be able to defer repayment. There are other criteria that you must meet in order to qualify for this deferment, so to request your loan to be placed in deferment based on military service, you must contact our office for further instructions.
Borrowers who perform service as a volunteer in the Peace Corps or Americorps*VISTA may qualify for a deferment. There are other criteria that you must meet in order to qualify for this deferment, so to request your loan to be placed in deferment based on Peace Corps OR Americorps*VISTA Volunteer service, you must contact our office for further instructions.
Borrowers may be entitled to have up to 100% of the original principal loan amount canceled if the borrower maintains employment and residency within the State of Georgia during the cancellation period. No repayment amounts can be canceled for employment and residency with in the State of Georgia performed prior to the date the loan was disbursed or during the enrollment period covered by the loan. The employment and residency within the State of Georgia must be performed after receiving the loan. Any payments made by a borrower during a period for which the borrower qualified for cancellation can not be refunded. Loans may be placed in a deferred status during periods of time while the borrower is performing service eligible for cancellation. Interest does accrue during these periods. To request a cancellation based on the above criteria, complete the Regents Scholarship Postponement OR Partial Cancellation Certification form. The employment and residency must be officially verified. You also may be asked to provide additional documentation to verify your qualification for a cancellation. The form and if necessary any additional documentation must be returned to our office before your loan can be placed in a deferred status or a cancellation can be granted.
The Regents Scholarship loan cancellation rate is $1,000 (or fraction thereof) of original principal loan amount and accrued interest per year as long as the employment and residency in the State of Georgia criteria is meet.
The University of Georgia does not offer a loan consolidation program. However, borrowers may consider loan consolidation to make repayments of their total loan debt easier. Please understand that if you consolidation your Federal Regents Scholarship Loan, you will lose any and all opportunity for the cancellation provision. Remember, loan consolidation will negate cancellation benefits.
It is imperative, without exception, that borrowers update the Student Accounts – Loan Servicing department of any personal information changes. We cannot correspond with you about your University of Georgia Federal Regents Scholarship loan in a timely basis without a correct and updated address. Updating your address with the University of Georgia Registrar’s Office or on the OASIS Registration System will not automatically update your address for UGA Federal Perkins loan. Therefore, students are required to contact the Student Accounts – Loan Servicing Department by phone or by completing and return to our office the Personal Information Change and or Update form, every time any personal information changes. Here are some examples of changes in personal information, but not limited to the following:
All forms pertaining to the University of Georgia Regents Scholarships Loan can be viewed and printed here.
If you have any question, please contact us by:
Mail:
Phone: 706-542-2965
Fax: 706-542-3959
Email: [email protected]
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