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Ascent Student Loans Review
Updated On September 5, 2023
Editorial Note: This content is based solely on the author's opinions and is not provided, approved, endorsed or reviewed by any financial institution or partner.
Company Overview: Ascent
Ascent is an innovative private student loan program that provides access to higher education funding for an expanded population of students, while encouraging the financial wellness of students and their families through financial literacy. Ascent offers three repayment options for its student loans. Ascent Student Loans are funded by Bank of Lake Mills, Member FDIC. Campus Door administers the student loan application processing activities for Ascent Student Loans.
Ascent Student Loans Overview
Ascent offers attractive rates and terms compared with other top lenders of student loans. There are two types of Ascent student loans:
Ascent Cosigned Loan
The Ascent Cosigned Loan is cosigned graduate or undergraduate student loan. Therefore, you can apply for the Ascent Cosigned Loan if you need to apply with a qualified and creditworthy cosigner. The rates on an Ascent Cosigned Loan are lower than the rates on an Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan because with an Ascent Cosigned Loan, you would have a qualified, creditworthy cosigner.
How Ascent Cosigned Loans Compare: Key Benefits
Here are some of the reasons that Ascent Cosigned Loan borrowers love Ascent Cosigned Loans:
- Lower Rate With Cosigner: If you apply with a credit worthy cosigner, Ascent Cosigned Loan includes a lower interest rate compared to the interest rate you could get on your own with the Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan.
- International Students: International students and non-U.S. citizens can qualify for an Ascent student loan with a qualified, creditworthy cosigner who is a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.
- Deferment: Ascent permits forbearance and deferment options for active duty military deferment, in-school deferment and residency/internship deferment.
- Hardship Forbearance: Ascent offers temporary hardship forbearance. You can apply up to four (4) months at a time for a maximum of 24 months, which is one of the longest forbearance programs in the student loans industry.
- Student Loan Servicer: Ascent uses University Account Services as its student loan servicer.
- 1% Cash Back Reward: 1% Cash Back Reward to students on their loan principle amount upon graduation
Eligibility Criteria
To apply for Ascent Cosigned Loans, you need to meet the following eligibility criteria:
Requirements To Apply For Ascent Cosigned Loans
Minimum Age: At least age of majority in your state
Minimum Income: Your co-signer must have at least $24,000 of annual income
Citizenship/Residency: Students may be a U.S. citizen, U.S. permanent resident, DACA recipient, or U.S. temporary resident.
Education: Must be enrolled at least half time in a Title IV school
Cosigner: Requires a creditworthy co-signer
Generally, Ascent Cosigned Loans are only for borrowers (or cosigners) with good to excellent credit. Loan approval may depend on a number of additional factors, including, but not limited to, your (or your co-signer’s) financial history, employment experience, and monthly income vs. expenses. Ascent will also consider your degree program, major, cost of attendance and expected graduation date.
As part of the application process, Ascent will ask you and your co-signer to take a short online financial literacy course. The good news is that the Ascent Cosigned Loan comes with co-signer release. A co-signer release with Ascent Cosigned Loans means that after you make 12 consecutive on-time payments, you can request that your co-signer be released. Once your co-signer is released, you will assume sole financial responsibility for your student loans.
Ascent Cosigned Loans: Repayment Options
There are three repayment options for Ascent Cosigned Loan:
- In-School Interest-Only Repayment: You can make interest-only payments on your student loans while enrolled at least half time at a qualified school.
- Deferred repayment: You can begin student loan payments up to six months after graduation or leaving school.
- $25 minimum repayment: You can make monthly student loan payment amounts of at least $25 while enrolled at least half time at a qualified school.
Bottom Line: Is Ascent Cosigned loan right for you?
Ascent has an excellent reputation in the student loan industry. The Ascent student loan is created specifically for student loan borrowers who need a cosigner. If you are a college student, it is likely you will need a cosigner, which makes Ascent Cosigned Loans a potentially good fit for you.
Next Steps: How To Apply To Ascent Cosigned Loan
You can apply for an Ascent Cosigned Loans in 3 easy steps.
Step 1: Check your personalized Ascent Cosigned Loan rate in just 2 minutes.
Step 2: Complete application and upload documents.
Step 3: Accept loan terms and get funded.
The good news is that you can check your personalized student loan rate online with Ascent in 2 minutes. This way, you’ll know whether you can be approved for Ascent student loans before you complete the full application. Therefore, Ascent will provide you with a personalized student loan rate estimate. The pre-approval is only a soft credit pull so there is no impact to your credit.
If you have been pre-approved, the online application only takes 10-15 minutes to complete.
When you apply with a cosigner, you may need at least the following documentation:
- Driver’s license or other government identification
- Social Security Number
- Proof of income
- Proof of employment
- Information about your school, including degree program, major, cost of attendance and expected graduation date
- A personal reference from a family member or friend
Applying is super easy – get your personalized rate in 2 minutes
Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans
The Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan is a non-cosigned graduate or undergraduate student loan. Therefore, you cannot apply for an Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan with a cosigner. If you need to apply with a cosigner, you should apply for the Ascent Cosigned Loan. Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans are best for junior, seniors and graduate student loans who do not need a cosigner. Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans are a good way to build credit in your own name.
Overview
Details
- Student loan repayment while in school
- 1% cash back on student loan principal at graduation
- Co-signer release after 12 consecutive payments
- Financial hardship forbearance available
- No minimum income or credit score
- Apply with or without a co-signer
How Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans Compare: Key Benefits
Here are some of the reasons that Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan borrowers love Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans:
- No cosigner required: Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans do not require a cosigner.
- International Students: International students and non-U.S. citizens can qualify for an Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan with a qualified, creditworthy cosigner who is a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.
- Deferment: Ascent permits forbearance and deferment options for active duty military deferment, in-school deferment and residency/internship deferment.
- Hardship Forbearance: Ascent offers temporary hardship forbearance. You can apply up to four (4) months at a time for a maximum of 24 months, which is one of the longest forbearance programs in the student loans industry.
- Student Loan Servicer: Ascent uses University Account Services as its student loan servicer.
- 1% Cash Back Reward: 1% Cash Back Reward to students on their loan principle amount upon graduation
Eligibility Criteria
To apply for Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans, you need to meet the following eligibility criteria:
Requirements To Apply For Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans
Minimum Age: At least age of majority in your state
Citizenship/Residency: Must be a U.S. citizen, U.S. permanent resident, or DACA recipient
Education: Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan borrowers must have a Satisfactory Academic Performance of 2.9 GPA, will only be available to students who are Junior status or higher, and must be enrolled full-time.
Loan approval may depend on a number of additional factors, including your degree program, major, creditworthiness, cost of attendance, future earnings and expected graduation date.As part of the application process, Ascent will ask you to take a short online financial literacy course to ensure you understand how student loans work.
Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans: Repayment Options
There are three repayment options for Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans:
- In-School Interest-Only Repayment: You can make interest-only payments on your student loans while enrolled at least half time at a qualified school.
- Deferred repayment: You can begin student loan payments up to six months after graduation or leaving school.
- $25 minimum repayment: You can make monthly student loan payment amounts of at least $25 while enrolled at least half time at a qualified school.
Bottom Line: Is Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan right for you?
Ascent has an excellent reputation in the student loan industry. The Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan is created specifically for student loan borrowers who do not need a cosigner. If you are a college junior or senior, or graduate student, then the Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan may be best for you.
Next Steps: How To Apply To Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan
You can apply for an Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan in 3 easy steps.
Step 1: Check your personalized Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan rate in just 2 minutes.
Step 2: Complete application and upload documents.
Step 3: Accept loan terms and get funded.
The good news is that you can check your personalized student loan rate online with Ascent in 2 minutes. This way, you’ll know whether you can be approved for Ascent student loans before you complete the full application. Therefore, Ascent will provide you with a personalized student loan rate estimate. The pre-approval is only a soft credit pull so there is no impact to your credit.
If you have been pre-approved, the online application only takes 10-15 minutes to complete.
When you apply with a cosigner, you may need at least the following documentation:
- Driver’s license or other government identification
- Social Security Number
- Proof of employment, if applicable
- Information about your school, including degree program, major, cost of attendance and expected graduation date
- A personal reference from a family member or friend
Applying is super easy – get your personalized rate in 2 minutes
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Overview
Details
- Student loans available to graduate, bachelors and associates degrees
- Deferment and forbearance options may be available
- Grace period for undergraduates: 6 months
- Grace period for graduate students: 9 months
- Flexible student loan repayment options
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Overview
Details
- Offer college, graduate school, law school, MBA and Parent student loans
- Flexible repayment options
- No late fees
- Autopay rate discount
- Free perks such as career planning and job search assistance
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Overview
Details
- Low rates from community lenders like credit unions and community banks
- Get lower rates with a co-signer
- Ability to pause payments for up to 18 months if you become unemployed
- May consider your academic credentials to help you get a lower rate
- If you repay 10% of your loan before your loan enters full repayment period, 1.0% APR is dropped from your current interest rate
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Overview
Details
- Offer student loans for undergraduates, career training, and graduate students.
- Provide private student loans to full-time, half-time and less the half-time students.
- Non-U.S. citizens are eligible for student loans with a qualified U.S. citizen co-signer.
- Multiple repayment options.
- Borrow from $1,000 up to 100% of the school-certified expenses.
View Details
Overview
Details
- Student loans for college, graduate, medical/dental, law, MBA and Parent Loans
- Flexible repayment options
- Multi-year approval: no need to apply annually
- Cosigner option
- Forbearance and deferment options
View Details
Overview
Details
- Student loan repayment while in school
- 1% cash back on student loan principal at graduation
- Co-signer release after 12 consecutive payments
- Financial hardship forbearance available
- No minimum income or credit score
- Apply with or without a co-signer
Review:
Disclosures: College Ave | SoFi | LendKey | Sallie Mae | Citizens | Ascent
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