Has anyone had experience with TERI loans?

Hi!

Has anyone had experience with the TERI loan program(s). Any thoughts on this or other non-government financing?

 

We really wanted to offer them to Heriot-Watt MBA students. The rules say (or said) you have to be at least a half-time student, and the TERI people could not be persuaded that a distance learning student in a course that had no required completion date could be considered halftime -- even if the student was taking 8 or 12 or even 16 semester units of courses. TERI said, "Yes, but they don't have to finish in one semester; they could take 5 or 6 years; and therefore they are not halftime. I suspect this situation would prevail in other flexible DL programs, more's the pity, for it is a fine program.

 

Well! This is disappointing to hear. I can get a federal school loan (TESC) but have to wait for the Fall semester to enroll!

 

I just took another look at their website and notice they have a program for part-time students. I wonder why that would not have worked? I suppose it is still the course completion date that could be a problem. I have a couple of thoughts I will try on them.

I wonder what other loan programs might have possibities?

 

My advice is to NOT deal with TERI or take any loans they guarantee, particularly their "private" loans, such as the ones they offer for business and law studies. IMHO, they border on a criminal manipulation of the federal loan statutes, claiming that TERi is a non-profit organization which means the loans are not dischargeable in bankruptcy, etc. (certain federal loans may be dischargeable on a showing of extreme hardship after 7 years of repayment, but the rules hange if the guarantor is a non-profit). In addition, the loans will not discharge in the event of your death (like normal federal student loans) and their website explicitly states that they will pursue the debt against your estate.

Some time ago a classmate of mine mentioned how they are abusive in collections, and unlike the federal loans, they are unforgiving for as much as a small late payment, and will not grant forebearances if you fall behind or suffer an economic downturn, like the federal loan servicers will routinely do. Their loans will not consolidate with other federal loans as well. Looking on Westlaw, they aggressively take people to court and will fight any attempt to discharge them in bankruptcy.

I was fortunate to not take any of their loans out, but I have heard nothing but bad news from classmates who were suckered into using them in law school. Back then, the variable interest rates were in excess of 10% as well. In short, you are stuck with a loan with a higher interest rate than regular federal loans, and it is serviced by an organization which will pursue you to the end. You're better off charging your tuition on a Mastercard.

Better yet, its much easier to wait out a year or so, and save up the money to go to school, than to mortage your future with these folks.

 

Thank you. I found that they will not loan me anything without a co-signer anyway. (I haven't been asked for a co-signer since I was a kid.) Since I have both religious and secular concerns about either being a co-signer or asking someone else to do so, the whole question of TERI becomes a moot point.