Looking at the educational loan eligibility and documents.

An education loan is truly very helpful for students who wish to seek higher studies at an esteemed university. A study loan pays for the university tuition fees along with other overhead costs that incur during the course duration.

To apply for a student loan, candidates must qualify certain eligibility norms set by the lender of choice. Additionally, candidates are also required to produce certain documents at the time of availing of an education loan. To help you, here’s the list of educational loan eligibility criteria and documents required by most lenders.

Student Eligibility

Students must qualify certain eligibility criteria in order to avail of a student loan. These general guidelines set by lenders are the following;

• The student must be an Indian citizen
• The student must be aged a minimum of 18 years or else their parent or guardian will have to apply for a loan on their behalf
• The student must have a good academic score
• The student must have secured admission to a university recognized by the financial institution or bank
• The student must have secured admission in a course that is job oriented.  The course should be a technical or professional one. For instance, Masters in Medicine, Masters in Engineering, Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Post Graduate Diploma Courses (PGDM), Masters in Business Administration (MBA), etc.

Co-guarantor’s Eligibility

A co-guarantor is a person who guarantees the loan repayment on time. When a student applies for a full-time program, then the lenders usually ask them to have a co-guarantor in order to avail of a loan. Financial institutions and banks generally have specific eligibility criteria for co-guarantors. Here are the most common educational loan eligibility norms set by lenders.

• The co-guarantor should be a citizen of India
• The co-guarantor should have a good  creditworthiness
• The co-guarantor should have a good credit score
• The co-guarantor should have a stable income source
• The co-guarantor should either be the parent, guardian, or spouse of the     student

Student’s Documents

Along with meeting the educational loan eligibility, students also need to produce the following documents to their lenders. These documents generally vary a little among different lenders, but here are the common documents required by the majority of the lenders:

• A filled application form
• 2 passport sized photographs
• Proof of residence (Electricity bill/Phone bill/Gas bill)
• Proof of identity (Aadhaar card/Passport/PAN card/ Voter ID)
• Admission letter from the university
• Entrance exam score (GRE/IELTS/GATE/TOEFL/CET/CAT/)
• Marksheets of 10th, 12th & graduation
• Schedule of expenses

Co-guarantor’s Documents

The co-guarantor is also required to submit some documents in order to get the student’s loan approved. Here are the common documents required by most lenders;

• 2 passport sized photographs
• Proof of residence (Electricity bill/Phone bill/Gas bill)
• Proof of identity (Aadhaar card/Passport/PAN card/ Voter ID)
• Statements of bank account for the last 1 year if the co-guarantor has taken any loan previously.
• Income tax returns
• Salary account statements of the last 6 months (for salaried employed co-guarantor)
• Business address proof (for self-employed co-guarantor)
• Bank account statements of the last 6 months (for self-employed co-guarantor)

Do bear in mind that the educational loan eligibility criteria and documentation requirements may vary between different lenders. So, it is advisable to talk to your lender about their education loan application process and the terms associated with it. Hope this article has been helpful to you.

All the best!