Perkins Loans

What is a Federal Perkins Loan?
A Federal Perkins Loan is a low-interest loan for both undergraduate freshmen and sophomores and graduate students with financial need. UC Berkeley is your lender. The loan is made with government funds, and UC Berkeley contributes a share. You repay this loan to UC Berkeley. If you have left the University and have questions about your Perkins Loan, please send them to accountconsultants@berkeley.edu.

How to Receive a Perkins Loan
To receive a Federal Perkins Loan at Berkeley, take the following steps:

1) Make sure your financial aid file is complete. If any documents are missing, your Perkins Loan will not pay. To find out if you have any missing documents, go to MyFinAid and look in the Required Documents section.

2) Accept your Federal Perkins Loan in MyFinAid. Review your awards to see if the Financial Aid and Scholarships Office has offered you a Federal Perkins Loan. Not all students are eligible for this type of loan. Accept your loan in MyFinAid and be sure to type in the actual dollar amount that you are accepting for each semester.  Note: If you wish to decline your loan, simply select "Decline" from the drop-down menu.

3) Complete a Federal Perkins Loan Entrance Counseling Session. The US Department of Education (ED) requires borrowers to complete a Loan Entrance Counseling session, including loan-repayment obligations and the consequences of default, before Perkins Loan funds are disbursed.

You may complete entrance counseling online: go directly to Financial Counselor and click on the "Entrance Interview" link. The results will be submitted electronically to the Financial Aid and Scholarships Office within 48 hours. If you cannot successfully complete the Entrance Counseling, contact Billing and Payment Services for assistance by sending an email to entrance_mpn@berkeley.edu or calling (510) 642-3190. Include your UC Berkeley student identification number.

4) Complete and sign the required Federal Perkins Loan Master Promissory Note (MPN).
You complete the MPN process online. A few days after you have accepted your loan and completed your Entrance Counseling, ACS, the servicer of your Perkins Loan, will send you an email. Use the link provided in the ACS email to go online and complete your Master Promissory Note. If you try to complete your MPN prior to receiving the email from ACS, you will get an error mesage that reads: "We're sorry, we are unable to match your information to our database."  Once you have received the email, you may proceed with completing your MPN.

You will be required to use your U.S. Department of Education-issued personal identification number (PIN) to complete your electronic MPN. For additional information or to ask general PIN questions, visit the official PIN website at pin.ed.gov. After entering all of the required information for the MPN, print the MPN for your records. Be sure to click on the last “Submit“ button to finalize the process.

If you cannot successfully complete the online MPN, contact Billing and Payment Services for assistance by sending an email to entrance_mpn@berkeley.edu. Include your UC Berkeley student identification number.

NOTE: This email address is only for MPNs and Loan Entrance Counseling. Any questions about financial aid should be directed to the graduate/professional email address at fao_grad@berkeley.edu or the undergraduate email address at fao_ugr@berkeley.edu.

5) Be enrolled at least half-time. For your Federal Perkins Loan funds to be disbursed, you must also be enrolled at least half-time (6 units) and have no registration or financial blocks. The Federal Perkins Loan funds will be transferred to your Campus Accounts Receivable System (CARS) account, where they will pay any outstanding balances, and/or you will receive a CARS refund.