AfterSchoolAfrica has officially partnered with MPOWER Financing, a leading US-based international study financing organization, to provide student loans to international students in our community to study at over 400 universities in the US and Canada.
You don’t need collateral. You don’t need a cosigner. And you don’t need a credit history.
Sounds too good to be true, right?
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MPower Financing is a social benefit corporation by international students for international students. Therefore, you receive loans based on your potential, not those you know or your family’s assets or income.
You get fixed-rate loans from $2,001 to $100,000 to cover your tuition fees, accommodation, living expenses, etc.
Note: You should have applied, been accepted, or enrolled in one of the eligible 400+ partner universities and colleges in the US or Canada to apply for a loan.
As an official MPOWER partner, we advise and guide students applying for MPOWER loans, right from selecting schools and courses to maximizing their loan eligibility to completing the loan application form.
We answer any questions you may have before or during the process of applying for a loan. We help you avoid common errors that disqualify most students.
You get our service at no cost to you.
To get started with the loan application, if you have applied for, been accepted for, or are enrolled to study in the US or Canada, fill out the Loan Qualification Form.
Once you complete the form, we will send you the full details to apply if you qualify.
If you have a friend or family member who has admission to study in the US or Canada and is looking for a loan to fund their studies, kindly forward this link to them. You may save a dream!
Here are answers to some of the frequently asked questions:
No. After School Africa (or our parent company, Edxtra.com), does not offer loans of any kind. All loans are provided by MPOWER Financing. Our part is to guide eligible students through the loan application process successfully.
Of course not. Different criteria are put under consideration before they make a loan decision. MPOWER makes the final decision for each applicant.
Loans can be for university-related expenses, including tuition, books, meal plans, housing, and health insurance at most schools when studying in the U.S. We suggest reaching out to your school with any concerns about funds allocation.
You do not require a credit history or cosigner to apply because loan decisions are based on your future potential. If you have a credit history, they will review it, looking for things like late payments and collections.
Yes! MPOWER offers free support letters to all approved students to assist with their visa process. For students studying in the US, support letters will help you receive your I-20 from your school and the visa application afterward. For those studying in Canada, a support letter can help prove that you have enough funds to support your education at your school and with the Canadian government.
MPOWER supports 400+ schools across the U.S. and Canada. View the complete school list to check your admission status.
You can request funding if you’ve applied to, been accepted, or are currently enrolled in an eligible school. But you can not finalize your application until you have acceptance into your program. You can apply for funding up to 12 months before your program starts. The loans don’t cover students with more than two years remaining in their program.
MPOWER loans can be between US$2,001 and US$50,000 per academic period, with a lifetime limit of US$100,000. For example, a student might borrow US$50,000 in their fall semester and another US$50,000 in their spring semester.
Interest rates are fixed. This means it won’t change as market interest rates change. The current rate for a graduate student loan is 12.99% (13.98% APR). If you opt for automatic payment, you’ll get a 0.25% discount (Fixed Interest Rate After Discount: 12.74% (13.72% APR))
While in school (and six months after graduating), you only need to make monthly interest-only payments 45 days after loan disbursement. That way, you can focus on your studies while building credit and knowing how to make on-time payments! Six months after you graduate, your 10-year repayment term begins. At this point, you’ll start making full principal and interest payments each month until you pay off the entire balance. There’s no prepayment penalty if you pay off part or all of your loan ahead of time!
Sure. Why not? Here is an example.
As a graduate student, you can borrow with a fixed interest rate of 12.99% (13.98% APR). This is the maximum rate and will not increase. However, you can qualify for a 0.25% discount if you make your loan payments through automatic withdrawals from your bank account.
If you qualify for this discount, your rate will be 12.74% (13.72% APR²).
Example 1: [International graduate student with regular interest rate] The APR is calculated using the following assumptions: A loan is approved for US$10,000. The student will start making payments 45 days after the loan disbursement. Payments will be interest only until graduation, plus an additional 6-month grace period. They calculate the remaining months of repayment using a 120-month amortization schedule.
At an APR of 13.98%, the monthly payment amount is US$113.66 for the first 30 months. For the next 120 months, the monthly payment amount is about $156.71.
Example 2: [International graduate student with discounted interest rate] The APRs with discounts are calculated using the following assumptions: A loan is approved for $10,000. The student will start making payments 45 days after the loan disbursement. The borrower signs up for automatic debit immediately after collecting the loan and remains on it for the life of the loan, which reduces the rate by 0.25%.
At an APR of 13.72%, the monthly payment is US$111.47 for the first 30 months. For the last 120 payments, the monthly amount is US$155.17.
You’ll need your passport or other national ID to submit your application. You’ll also need to submit information about your program and how you’ll fund it in addition to a loan. Once you submit your application, you’ll upload additional documents to your account. We’re happy to help if you have any issues uploading your documents.
We’re sorry if your application does not get approval. Please know that each application is reviewed carefully before making a loan decision. The specific reason for the decline would have been communicated to you through your registered email with the subject line “We are sorry, your loan application was not approved”. If you need additional information, please reach out to us. To start a new loan application, begin a new application process online.
These are some top highlights when funding your education with MPOWER:
Fill out the Loan Qualification Form.
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This post was last modified on January 8, 2024 1:19 pm