Graduate Student Loans

If your credit history does not meet our minimum credit criteria, you may still qualify by applying with a qualified cosigner. Additionally, even if you meet the minimum requirements, applying with a cosigner who has a stronger credit history may reduce the interest rate on your student loan even further, thereby saving you more money over the life of the loan.

Brazos Graduate Loans cover school-certified educational expenses, including:

• Tuition and fees
• Room and board
• Textbooks, supplies and equipment
• Transportation
• Other costs as certified by your school that are necessary to complete your advanced degree

Texas student loans may be requested up to the cost of attendance, less other financial aid, as certified by the school.

Texas Residents- The minimum student loan eligibility amount is $1,000.

Non-Texas Residents Attending a Texas School- The minimum student loan eligibility amount is $2,001.

We encourage all students to exhaust all forms of federal student aid, grants and scholarships before taking out a private student loan like the Brazos Student Loan.

To be eligible for a Brazos Student Loan, you must:

• Be a United States citizen or National, permanent resident, or, if applying with an Eligible Cosigner, a non-citizen with a work or student visa or a DACA Recipient.
• Be at least 18 years old.
• Texas Resident
  • Be applying to finance an undergraduate or graduate degree and be enrolled at least half-time in a degree-granting program at one of over 2,000 schools nationwide.
• Non-Texas Resident
  • Be applying to finance an undergraduate or graduate degree and be enrolled at least half-time in a degree-granting program at an eligible college in Texas.
• Apply for an amount that is certified by the school the student is attending (see the "Certifying the Cost of Attendance" section of the FAQs)
• Have a minimum annual income of $35,000, or apply with a qualified cosigner.
• Have a FICO score of at least 680, or apply with a qualified cosigner.
• Have a strong credit history and meet other credit requirements, or apply with a cosigner who meets these requirements.
• Not a Texas Resident & Not attending a Texas school? We Can Still Help!

Once you submit your application, your credit will be pulled (hard credit pull) in order to conditionally approve you for the loan. This conditional approval is typically an instant decision. Once you are conditionally approved, you may be asked to upload documents to verify income and provide other documentation that may be necessary. The process depends on the speed with which you provide the documentation and when you are applying for the loan. Having the required documentation ready when you apply will help speed up the process. Once your loan is approved, we will request certification from your school.

Once the school has certified the loan and you have accepted the loan, funds will be disbursed to the school based on the school’s disbursement schedule. Schools typically certify loan requests prior to the start of the school period in order to take into account any additional grant aid or scholarships you may receive. For a standard academic year, disbursements are typically set with half of the loan amount to be disbursed just prior to the start of the fall semester and the other half just prior to the start of the spring semester.