Accepted to your dream MS programme in the US? Now you’ll need to figure out just how you’ll fund your education.
If you’ve headed off to a bank already to check your options, you may be feeling a little discouraged. Between the co-signers and the collateral (which are steep requirements already), you may also find you can’t secure the full cost of attendance, even with a prohibitively high-interest rate.
But, there is another way.
Education loan for abroad studies without collateral is possible if you have secured admission to one of the top universities. Prodigy Finance provides loans to international masters students attending the world’s top universities for STEM programmes (including MS engineering), business, law and public policy degrees.
In the US, Prodigy Finance extends loans for masters students attending the top 100 post-graduate engineering universities.
To secure an education loan for MS in USA or other other country, apply for a Prodigy Finance loan, your first step is to check whether financing is available for your university and programme. If it is, you can provisionally secure your master’s financing within days.
If you don’t see your programme listed, send an email to info@prodigyfinance.com to register your interest.
How much can you borrow from Prodigy Finance?
First, the big question; will you be able to get a loan that covers everything? You’ll need to cover the full cost of attendance (CoA), which includes tuition, fees, books, medical insurance, and everything you need to live during your studies.
The short answer is yes.
Prodigy Finance provides loans up to 100 percent of the CoA for STEM programmes in the US. However, there are a few things that directly impact your total loan size:
1. Apply for your Prodigy Finance loan
The Prodigy Finance loan application is completely online – and it takes most students less than 30 minutes to complete. The information you provide in this step will be verified after accepting the provisional loan offer.
Information required for online application of study abroad education loan:
- University and class – the programme and study period
- Personal details - including your contact details
- Residential address – your postal address might be different, but it’s where you live, not where you pick up your post
- Budget * – the CoA for your programme and how you intend to pay for it (loans, scholarships, savings, etc); keep in mind the maximum loan limits according to your programme – and that you don’t need to accept the maximum loan amount offered by Prodigy Finance
- Income – pre-study employment and compensation, if applicable or an explanation for unemployment (work experience isn’t a factor for receiving a loan)
- Liabilities – any other debt that won’t be used towards your education
- Assets – only the assets under your name are needed; the assets of family members aren’t included in your assessment
- Additional information – any additional financial information that wasn’t specified previously in the application
*Our platform automatically adjusts currencies you input into your loan currency. The platform automatically updates the amounts given against your CoA; if there are outstanding amounts, you will need to adjust your sources before you can progress.
After completing the online application, you should expect a couple of things to happen.
First, a Prodigy Finance team member will reach out directly to let you know that your application has been received and let you know if there are questions regarding the information you provided.
Within a couple of days (usually between two and five business days), you’ll hear back about your application. In most cases, that means you’ll receive a provisional loan offer. Occasionally applicants qualify for a loan, but for a lower amount based on responsible lending practices.
What’s included in a Prodigy Finance provisional loan offer?
Your provisional loan offer is a legal, financial document, but it’s not binding until it has been accepted by both parties (you and Prodigy Finance); you can still decline the offer, and you have two weeks to accept it and move into the verification process.
Provisional prodigy loan offers include:
- Amount offered for the first year of study
- Amount pre-approved for the second year (if applicable)
- Repayment term (number of months you’ll have to repay your loan)
- Interest rate (the fixed-rate Prodigy Finance margin that floats on the US LIBOR rate)
- Your Annual Percentage Rate (APR)
What’s LIBOR and APR?
Prodigy Finance interest rates have two components: a personalised fixed-rate margin and the US LIBOR rate.
The fixed portion of your interest rate is based on your personal finances and is determined by the information you provided in your application.
US LIBOR is variable base rate, and it fluctuates quarterly - and it’s the same for every borrower. We work with quarterly rates which are updated on 8 January, 8 April, 8 July, and 8 October. All rates float so it’s important to check your local rate.
Together these form your interest rate, which is different from APR - the complete cost of your loan. It’s a transparent way to compare apples with apples (just as EMI might be in some countries). In the case of Prodigy Finance loans, APR includes your interest rate and the administration fee. There are no sanction fees, insurance charges, or other hidden fees.
Fixed monthly repayment costs (EMI) aren’t provided, because:
- US LIBOR rates fluctuate quarterly, adjusting your monthly payments accordingly, and
- There’s no penalty for early repayment of your loan. You can make larger payments or extra payments which will reduce the interest paid over time.
2. Confirming your documents (and getting your loan letter)
Once we verify your documents, you’ll receive an electronic copy of your confirmed loan letter (a sanction letter) for your first-year loan. If applicable, it will also include your pre-approval amount for your second year of study. You’ll use this letter to secure the I-20 form from the school (which is required to apply for your F-1 study visa). You’ll also take this letter to your visa interview at the embassy.
But first, you’ll need to accept your Prodigy Finance provisional loan offer and provide proof of the details given in the application phase. Electronic copies are simply uploaded to your dashboard; there’s no need to send original copies anywhere.
Education loan for abroad studies -Mandatory documents required:
- Passport – as proof of identity.
- Proof of admission - admit letter to the programme for the corresponding provisional loan offer.
- Credit Report – obtained from CIBIL or Paisabazaar. If you have no credit history, you can provide a screenshot which says ‘no hit’ as long as it provides your details (name and PAN) with a timestamp.
- Proof of address - credit card statements, electricity bills, and rent agreements are examples of proof; if these are in your parents’ or landlords’ names, you will also need to provide their passports. TIP: your passport or Aadhar aren’t accepted as they aren’t proof of a permanent address.
Optional documents:
- Proof of income – pay slips, if you have previous work experience.
- Proof of other funding sources – bank statements, mutual fund (or other investment) statements, scholarship letters, details of financial reductions provided by the university, etc.
If you have any questions regarding your documents, or you’re experiencing difficulties obtaining a particular document, it’s important to reach out to Prodigy Finance as soon as possible to avoid the expiration of your provisional loan offer.
3. Finalising your loan and join the Prodigy Finance community
After you’ve received your Prodigy Finance loan letter, gotten your visa, and headed off to campus, it’s time to sign your official loan agreement. It’s an e-signature, but it’s important to do it on campus for legal reasons. Because we’re an international lender you’ll need to sign your loan in the country where you’ll be studying – not to worry though, we’ll have reached out to your university well in advance to ensure they understand you’ll be financed by us.
We’ll disburse your loan directly to your university and we’ll send you a signed and sealed copy of your loan. We reach out to Financial Aid Office of your university, well in advance of you reaching campus to manage disbursements for you as per their deadlines. Plus, you’ll be able to take advantage of all the membership benefits that come with the Prodigy Finance community.
The prodigy finance community offers:
- Discounts and assistance setting up a local US phone through an exclusive partnership with ATT
- New student info sessions on campus
- Networking sessions
- Careers course and coaching
We’re constantly adding benefits, so there may even be something new by the time you accept your Prodigy Finance loan. So, what are you waiting for?
Learn more on other education loan options!
