Hampshire College participates in the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program. Students obtain their loans through the College. We work directly with the federal government to process the loan paperwork on the student’s behalf. The student’s lender is, and will remain, the U.S. Department of Education for as long as the student has the loan.

Federal Direct student loans are in the student’s name only. The student borrower is solely responsible for the repayment of the loan. Loan funds are applied to the student's college bill. We receive one half of the loan less the loan fee for the fall term and the other half less the loan fee for the spring term. Repayment begins six months after the student leaves school, graduates, or changes enrollment to less than half-time. Students are responsible for notifying their loan servicer of any name, address, or phone changes. Students in repayment should contact their loan servicer if they are experiencing any financial problems that may affect their ability to make timely monthly payments.

Total annual Direct loan amounts cannot exceed the following limits for undergraduate students:
$3,500 for a first-year student;
$4,500 for the second-year; and
$5,500 for each subsequent undergraduate year. 

Students may borrow up to an additional $2,000 per year in an unsubsidized loan. 

The total aggregate amount of all debt, including both subsidized and unsubsidized loans, is $31,000 for undergraduate students. No more than $23,000 of these loans may be subsidized. 

The average federal loan debt for Hampshire College's February and May 2012 graduates who borrowed a federal student loan was $19,904.

Loans borrowed on or after July 1, 2006 have fixed interest rates. Interest is not charged on subsidized loans while the student is enrolled at least half-time, during the six month grace period, and during future deferments. Unsubsidized Direct student loans have a fixed interest rate of 6.8 percent (6.80%). Interest is always being charged on unsubsidized Direct loans. Click here to learn about the current fixed interest rate for subsidized Direct loans.

Current loans with variable interest rates that were disbursed PRIOR to July 1, 2006, will continue to be variable, with rates changing annually on July 1. The variable interest rate will never exceed 8.25 percent. The rate is set to the 91 day Treasury bill rate plus 1.70 during in-school, grace, and deferment periods, and the 91 day Treasury bill rate plus 2.30 during a forbearance period and during repayment. If these variable interest rate loans are consolidated into a federal Direct Consolidation loan, the interest rate will change to a fixed rate.

Borrowers will receive a disclosure statement from the Loan Origination Center (LOC) listing the amount borrowed, interest rate, type of loan, fees, and rebate amounts. This document is sent to the borrower’s home address and should be kept for future reference.