If you need additional funding to supplement your financial aid package, alternative student loans are an option. Alternative loans are private loans offered by lending institutions. They are not part of the federal government’s Direct Loan program.

We encourage you to first file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to be considered for all other available aid programs before pursuing alternative loans. Our office strongly encourages you to first utilize any grants, scholarships, work study employment and federal student loan eligibility before considering alternative loans. The interest rates and repayment terms with alternative loans are generally less favorable than those of the federal student loan programs.

Northwest Nazarene University does not recommend any specific lenders for private alternative loans. If you decide to utilize an alternative loan, we recommend comparing the loan products and lenders to find the best interest rate and repayment options for your situation. Please remember that you will have to pay back these loans with interest, so only borrow what you need.

NNU uses ELMSelect as an online, lender-neutral platform to display a historical list of lenders and education loan products that our students have used over previous years. These lenders have not been ranked and are presented in no particular order. NNU does not pay ELMSelect a fee based on loan volume generated.