WONDERING WHERE the money will be coming from to pay the tuition fees? Well, the Students' Loan Bureau (SLB) has launched two revolutionary student loan products that will increase access to higher education for students at the undergraduate and post-graduate levels.
The 'SLB Parent Plus' and 'SLB PostGrad' are now available at an interest rate of 13.5 per cent (add-on).
'SLB Parent Plus' will assist applicants who fall outside of the SLB's target of needy students. In addition students may apply for Parent Plus loans to supplement existing loans, scholarships, bursaries and grants.
One of the key features of the 'SLB Parent Plus' loan is that parents and guardians are eligible to apply for financing on behalf of children who are fully maintained by them for undergraduate study programmes.
'SLB Parent Plus' loans are available to students at the University of the West Indies, University of Technology, Northern Caribbean University, as well as some foreign-based universities.
Spouses of married undergraduate students and employed part-time undergraduate students are eligible to apply for financing.
Each loan is for a period of one to 15 months and the principal borrower can access a maximum of five Parent Plus loans during the beneficiary's programme of study.
The 'SLB PostGrad' will lend up to $300,000 per annum with a maximum of $600,000 for the respective programme of study.
The repayment period is one to 12 months at an interest rate of 13.5 per cent (add-on) or 13 to 24 months at 15 per cent add-on.
There is no moratorium on 'SLB PostGrad loans', which are available for study at all three local universities and select foreign-based universities operating in Jamaica.
