PhD Student Loans: Find Your Best Option
PhD student loans from the federal government or private lenders can be used to cover the cost of your degree or program.
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Getting your PhD is a big endeavor—and not just because of the immense amounts of work involved. You’ll also need to spend additional years in school and tens—or hundreds—of thousands of dollars while doing so.
You need to be smart about how you fund your schooling, especially if you take out PhD student loans, if you hope to earn a PhD and become debt-free within a reasonable number of years.
This guide will cover using PhD student loans—a specific type of graduate student loans—to finance your education.
In this guide:
- Compare PhD Student Loans
- Federal PhD Student Loans
- Best Private PhD Student Loans
- Alternatives to Consider
Compare PhD Student Loans
| Loan | Rates (APR) | Loan Amount |
| Grad PLUS Loan | 7.08% | Varies |
| College Ave | 1.79% – 9.75% | $1,000 – $150,000 |
| Earnest | 2.74% – 12.78% | $1,000+ |
| Citizens Bank | 1.47% – 9.49% | $1,000 – $180,000 or $350,000 depending on your degree |
| LendKey | 2.99% – 8.49% | $1,000 – $160,000 |
| Ascent | 5.71% – 11.92% | $1,000 – $200,000 |
Use Federal PhD Student Loans First
If you have to borrow using PhD student loans, always max out federal student aid as your first source of funding. Federal student loans tend to be cheaper, provide more repayment flexibility, and come with other borrower perks, such as the potential for loan forgiveness.
The Department of Education offers Direct PLUS Loans to graduate students for the purpose of covering advanced education, and if you’re eligible, you could potentially borrow up to the school-certified cost of attendance, less any grants or scholarships you’ve received.
Unlike some federal loans, however, Grad PLUS Loans aren’t available to you if you have an adverse credit history, and you’ll need to undergo a credit check to prove that you don’t.
>> Read more: How to Pay for a PhD
Best Private PhD Student Loans
After maxing out your federal student loans, you may find you still need more money to pay for your doctoral degree. If that’s the case, you’ll need to look into getting private PhD loans.
Private student loans tend to come with higher interest rates, can be harder to qualify for, and repayment plans are less flexible. However, they can cover shortfalls in funding that otherwise might make getting your PhD impossible.
The following companies are our partners that have been vetted extensively by our Editorial Team and have been rated on a scale of 0 to 5. Our partners update us of any product changes, so we can be sure to keep the information on this page accurate for our readers.
College Ave
LendEDU Rating: 5/5
Rates (APR)
1.79% – 9.95%
Loan Amounts
$1,000 – $150,000
Repayment Terms
5, 8, 10, 15, or 20 years
College Ave is an online lender offering new student loans and student loan refinancing. The company covers a variety of doctorate programs, including those for PhDs. Here’s some more information about the College Ave Medical School Loan:
- Fixed Rates (APR): 3.98% – 9.75%
- Variable Rates (APR): 1.79% – 8.69%
- Soft-Credit Check: You can prequalify for a loan after a soft credit check.
- In-school repayment options: Options include deferment, $25 monthly payments, monthly interest payments, and full payments.
- Grace Period: 36 months
- Cosigner Release: After 24 consecutive on-time payments.
- Unique benefits: You can apply and receive a credit decision within 3 minutes
Earnest
LendEDU Rating: 4.8/5
Rates (APR)
2.74% – 12.78%
Loan Amounts
$1,000 – 100% of school-certified cost of attendance
Repayment Terms
5, 7, 10, 12, or 15 years
Earnest is a popular online lender offering private student loans as well as the ability to refinance existing student loans. The Earnest Medical School Loan covers PhD programs. See below for more information on Earnest’s PhD loan:
- Fixed Rates (APR): 4.49% – 12.78%
- Variable Rates (APR): 2.79% – 11.44%
- Soft-Credit Check: You can get a quote from Earnest after a soft credit check. The company performs a hard credit check when you submit an application.
- In-school repayment options: Options include deferment, monthly interest payments, $25 monthly payments, and full payments.
- Grace Period: 9 months
- Cosigner Release: Earnest does not offer cosigner release, but you may be able to refinance without a cosigner.
- Unique benefits: You can skip one payment per year.
Citizens Bank
LendEDU Rating: 4.4/5
Rates (APR)
1.47% – 9.49%
Loan Amounts
$1,000 – $180,000 or $350,000 depending on your degree
Repayment Terms
5, 10, or 15 years
Citizens Bank is a retail bank offering loans online for many different purposes. Among these are student loans for PhD programs. Here’s more information about the Citizens Bank Health Professional Student Loan:
- Fixed APR: 4.40% – 9.49%
- Variable APR: 1.95% – 7.58%
- Soft Credit Check: You can get a rate quote with a soft credit check. If you apply for multi-year approval, you can take out loans after your first year without a hard credit check.
- In-school Repayment Options: Interest-only payments or full payments
- Grace Period: 6 months
- Cosigner Release: After 36 consecutive on-time payments.
- Unique Benefits: Multi-year approval with one application.
LendKey
LendEDU Rating: 4/5
Rates (APR)
2.99% – 8.49%
Loan Amounts
$1,000 – $160,000
Repayment Terms
5, 10, or 15 years
LendKey is an online platform that connects borrowers with lenders and credit unions. LendKey has a single student loan product that covers all degrees, whether graduate or undergraduate. Here is some more information about LendKey’s student loans:
- Fixed APR: 4.86% – 10.49%
- Variable APR: 3.84% – 10.56%
- Soft Credit Check: You can get a rate quote with a soft credit check.
- In-school Repayment Options: Options include $25 per month or monthly interest payment.
- Grace Period: 6 months
- Cosigner Release: After 12 – 36 consecutive on-time payments
Ascent
LendEDU Rating: 4/5
Rates (APR)
5.71% – 11.92%
Loan Amounts
$1,000 – $200,000
Repayment Terms
10 or 15 years
Ascent is an online student lender. The company offers the Ascent Graduate & Health Student Loan for those pursuing a PhD. See below for more information about the parameters of this loan.
- Fixed Rates (APR): 5.88% – 15.00%
- Variable Rates (APR): 5.20% – 14.18%
- Soft Credit Check: You can qualify and see your rate with a soft credit check.
- In-school Repayment Options: Your options include monthly interest payments, monthly payments of $25, or deferred repayment.
- Grace Period: 36 months
- Unique Benefits: The company offers borrowers 1% cash back upon graduation.
Alternatives to a PhD Student Loan
If you’re looking for alternatives to PhD student loans, the good news is that there are numerous scholarships and grants available to graduate and professional students who are pursuing a PhD. You can look into tuition reimbursement programs with your employer in exchange for employment contracts as well.
Bottom Line: Getting Your PhD Paid For With Student Loans is Possible
Now you know some of the best PhD student loans available. Try to make sure you borrow the minimum by first using free funding. Then, exhaust federal student loans before shopping around for private lenders.
By approaching your educational funding this way, you can make sure loan repayment isn’t a major burden after graduation.
Our top-rated lender for PhD student loans is College Ave.
Rates (APR)
1.79% – 9.95%
Loan Amounts
$1,000 – $150,000
Repayment Terms
5, 8, 10, 15, or 20 years
