Alternative Loans

You must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.

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You must submit the FAFSA for the school year you will be attending.

You must have a complete and cleared financial aid file at SBCC. If you have unsatisfied requirements in your account, you must submit all required documents and complete all tasks. You can find PDF instructions on how to view unsatisfied requirements in the campus portal and submit all documents here.

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SBCC must receive your alternative loan request from the lender 3-4 weeks before the end of the fall, spring or summer semester(s) for which the loan is intended. Check Deadlines for specific dates.

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You must be enrolled in 6, or more units, per semester (half time).

This includes the summer sessions. Summer I and Summer II count as separate semesters. Student will need to be enrolled in 6 for each summer session to maintain eligibility.

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Effective Spring 2023 alternative loans are not subject to Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP). 

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• Sallie Mae Student Loans
• 1-800-472-5543
• Application and Solicitation Disclosures for Student borrowers
  • SallieMae.com/LASD

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• Yes. Lenders recognize that occasionally students need to borrow more money than is available through the federal loan programs.
• These loans are referred to as alternative loans or private loans.

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• Prior to processing an alternative loan at SBCC, you must file the FAFSA and complete your financial aid file.   SBCC’s Federal School Code for FAFSA is 001285.
• Review your eligibility for aid in your campus account for financial aid programs including federal loans.
• Select the alternative lender you want to use and review their requirements and terms.  Please be aware that you may need a co-signer.
• You can apply on-line or by mail. Go to the lender’s website and complete their application on-line. 
• Be sure to list Santa Barbara City College as the school you are attending. SBCC’s School Code is 001285.
• You have to tell the lender how much you want to borrow.  Please refer to  “How much can I borrow?” below to help you decide on a loan amount.
• You have to select the loan period.  SBCC Financial Aid Office processes alternative loans for the fall, spring and summer semesters of each academic year.

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• Notification emails will be sent to the student's campus account regarding the various stages of the loan certification process. Please monitor your Pipeline email for an email from altloans@sbcc.edu. All communications regarding alternative loans is done via email. 
• Once the lender approves the loan, your lender will send a loan certification to the SBCC Financial Aid Office.  If your file is complete, SBCC will certify the loan.  If your file is incomplete, the certification will be placed on hold until your file is complete. You will be notified what is missing via your campus email.
• You must be enrolled in at least 6 units (half time) for the loan to be certified by SBCC.

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• The lender will mail a check made payable to SBCC only.  Loan disbursements are divided into two equal payments over the fall/spring academic year.***
• Once our office receives the loan check, we will verify your enrollment and post the alternative loan to you Award Letter. Students will be notified via email once the alternative loan has been posted to their Award Letter. A disbursement will go out 1-2 weeks after it has been posted to your Award Letter. If you have a balance on your student account, the alternative loan will first be credited to that balance. If anything of your alternative loan remains, you will receive a disbursement for the difference. 

Please note!  Alternative loan funds are disbursed through the school system and pay any charges on the student account. The difference, if any will be disbursed to the student.***

***Direct Deposit*** 
To sign up for Direct Deposit follow the steps below:
1) Log into the campus portal
2) Click on the Student tab
3) Click on Financial Aid
4) Click on Direct Deposit

***Mailing Address*** 
To view your current mailing address in the campus portal follow the steps below:
1) Log into the campus portal
2) Click on Personal Information
3) Click on My Addresses and Phone Numbers

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• Processing can take up to 3 to 4 weeks.
• Alternative loan are disbursed to students no earlier than 10 days prior to the beginning of a semester.

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• The minimum alternative loan amount you can request is $1,000.
• The maximum you can borrow is your Cost of Attendance budget minus any offered financial aid, which includes all offered aid through the SBCC Financial Aid Office and any scholarships.  
• To find your Cost of Attendance, please select the appropriate budget from our website at Cost of Attendance.

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Yes, Alternative loans are credit-based loans.  If denied, contact your lender for information concerning any resolution options available to you.Back to Top

The interest rate varies by lender.  Please refer to your lender’s website for information.Back to Top

Loan fees vary by lender.  Please refer to your lender’s website for complete information.Back to Top

Please refer to your lender’s website for detailed information on repayment.Back to Top