Loan Origination and Authorization

Once your Direct Loan Request Form is reviewed and your eligibility determined, a loan will be processed. The act of creating your loan is called Origination.

When the loan is originated, it is immediately visible on your Financial Aid Awards section of myChargerNet, and an electronic file is sent to the U.S. Department of Education for approval. The act of receiving approval for your loan is called Authorization.

Columbia State will receive the authorization file electronically from the U.S. Department of Education within 1-2 days after it is submitted.

Once your loan is originated there are three additional, online processes that are required by Columbia State Community College and the U.S. Department of Education in order for your loans to pay to your account: Entrance Counseling, Master Promissory Note and Financial Literacy:

  • Entrance Counseling – This is a web-based tutorial on everything you need to know about the loans you are receiving. Includes information on repaying your loans, the financial hazards of student loan default and borrower rights and responsibilities. This is a one-time requirement for borrowers at Columbia State.
  • Direct Stafford Master Promissory Note – The U.S. Department of Education requires that you sign an online Master Promissory Note before funds can be paid to your account. This master note is a binding agreement in which you promise to repay any money that you borrow from the Federal Government. Once you sign a master promissory note, it may be used to allow further borrowing up to 10 years in the future.
  • Financial Literacy – This web-based financial literacy module covers many financial issues that are not covered in Online Entrance Counseling, but affect student loan borrowers at Columbia State. This is a one-time requirement for borrowers at Columbia State.

When you complete each of the three steps listed above the Office of Financial Aid will verify within 1-2 days that the requirement has been fulfilled and update our system.

Remember, Entrance Counseling and the Master Promissory Note are REQUIRED for you to receive your loan money at Columbia State. Until all these steps are verified as completed, no Federal Direct Loan funds will be paid to your account.

You may view and track these requirements on the Financial Aid Forms Tracking page of myChargerNet.