Loans are often included in the award package. Loans allow students to defer the cost of their education by borrowing now and paying later. Cumberland University is a borrower-based institution.

• Federal Perkins Loans, formerly National Direct Student Loans, are low-interest (5%) loans available to undergraduate students who demonstrate financial need. Repayment and interest charges begin after the student drops below half-time status. All Perkins Loan recipients must participate in an exit interview if they do not plan to return to Cumberland University the following academic year. Pell Grant recipients receive priority in Perkins Loan awards.

• The Federal Subsidized Stafford Loan Program (GSL) allows undergraduate and graduate students to borrow money from a lender to help pay for college expenses. These low-interest rate loans are usually insured by the guarantee agency in the student's resident state and reinsured by the Federal Government. Repayment does not begin, nor does interest accrue, until six months after the student ceases to be enrolled as at least a half-time student. As of October 1986, the Federal Stafford Loan program became a need-based program.

• The Federal Unsubsidized Stafford Loan allows students who do not qualify for Federal interest subsidies under the Federal Stafford Loan Program to borrow money for college expenses. The combination of subsidized and unsubsidized Federal loans for a borrower may not exceed the annual and aggregate limits for loans under the Federal Stafford Loan Program.

• Stafford Loan Entrance Counseling. The Federal Government requires that before receiving a Federal Stafford Loan, borrowers must complete an entrance counseling session. This quick and easy interactive counseling session provides useful tips and tools to help you develop a budget for managing your educational expenses and helps you to understand your loan responsibilities. Please visit the Mapping Your Future website to complete the required Entrance counseling. In addition to completing the loan counseling, you will need to complete a Stafford Loan Application. You can request a loan application be mailed to you by contacting the Student Financial Services office at financialaid@cumberland.edu.

• Stafford Loan Exit Counseling. The Federal Government requires that prior to graduating or leaving college, borrowers must complete an exit counseling session. This online exit counseling session has been created to make sure that you understand your rights and responsibilities as a Stafford Loan borrower. Please visit the Mapping Your Future website to complete the required Exit Counseling.

• The Federal PLUS Loan Program offers parents of dependent students another option in financing their students' education. Repayment begins immediately.
  

• Alternative Loans are available for students from a number of different lenders who participate with the University. These loans generally do not require the completion of the Federal Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), may be based upon ability to repay and may carry a slightly higher rate of interest than Federal Subsidized or Unsubsidized Stafford Loans.