Resources for Parents and Families

Welcome! Whether you are the parent of a prospective, newly admitted, or current Northwestern student, we look forward to helping you and your student navigate the financial aid process.

If you have questions that are not addressed on our website, you are welcome to contact us to speak with a financial aid counselor.

Northwestern is need-blind for domestic students and meets 100% of demonstrated financial need. Admission is not impacted by your financial circumstances.

Parent Loan Options

The student is the primary borrower for most loans offered as part of a financial aid package. However, there are financing options available for parents, including:

Federal Direct PLUS Loan: Unsubsidized federal loan program for the parents of dependent undergraduate students
NU Loan: Loan for parents of Northwestern undergraduates
Private Loans: Education loans available through private lenders for which the parent can co-sign

Parent Loan Options Comparison
Loan Feature	Federal Parent PLUS Loan	Northwestern Parent Loan
Borrower	Parents of dependent students can borrow this federal credit-based loan. The U.S. Department of Education is the lender.	Parents or legal guardians are the primary borrowers of this credit-based loan, which is administered by Northwestern University's Student Finance Loan Department.
Minimum/Maximum Loan Amount	No minimum loan amount The maximum loan amount is changing as of July 1, 2026, and new borrowers have different limits than legacy borrowers. Learn more about the changes on our PLUS Loan info. New borrower loan limit: $20,000 per year. Legacy borrower loan limit: Up to Northwestern’s annual cost of attendance less other financial aid received.	There is a minimum loan amount of $2,000 for this loan. The NU Parent Loan has a maximum yearly amount of $65,000. The maximum offered will be $65,000 or the remaining cost of attendance after other aid the student has received, whichever value is lower.
Interest Rate	Fixed variable and rate is announced June 1 for the upcoming academic year. 8.94% for 2025-26.	The rate is variable and may change each year on September 1. 2025-26: The interest rate is 7.5%.
Fees	4.228% of the total loan amount as an origination fee on loans first disbursed after October 1, 2020 and before October 1, 2026.	There are no application or origination fees
Repayment/Deferment	Repayment begins 60 days after the final disbursement. Parents may choose to defer payments on a PLUS loan until six months after the date the student ceases to be enrolled at least half time. Accruing interest could either be paid by the parent borrower monthly or quarterly, or be capitalized quarterly.	Deferment not available. Repayment begins 45 days after the initial disbursement
Denial Options	If the parent is denied a PLUS loan, the student may be eligible to borrow additional funds through the Federal Unsubsidized Stafford Loan program.	None
Aggregate Limit	The aggregate limit is changing as of July 1, 2026, and new borrowers have different limits than legacy borrowers. Learn more about the changes on our PLUS Loan info. New borrower aggregate limit: $65,000 Legacy borrower aggregate limit: None	Families of undergraduate students are not to exceed an aggregate loan debt equal to the maximum yearly limit each year for four years.
Consolidation	Eligible for Federal Loan Consolidation	None

Billing and Payments

Northwestern's Office of Student Finance will issue an invoice for tuition, fees, and room and board (if applicable) before the start of each quarter. If you receive financial aid and/or loans and have completed all necessary requirements, these funds will credit automatically to your invoice each term. More information about billing and payments can be found on the Student Finance website.

Viewing Student Account Information

The Family Educational Rights & Privacy Act (FERPA) is a federal law which requires students to provide consent before aid and account information can be shared with parents or others. Current students can provide guest access to their CAESAR account and the University's electronic billing system, so parents can view financial aid, pay invoices online, and access other student information.

Billing and Financial Aid Correspondence

The invoice for each term will be issued on the following schedule:

Billing and financial aid correspondence schedule
Term	eBill Available Online	Payment Deadline
Fall	August 10	September 1
Winter	December 10	January 1
Spring	March 10	April 1

An email will be sent to the student's official Northwestern email address notifying them that their bill is available for viewing online. If your student has granted you permission through guest access, you may be able to view and pay invoices online.

Bill Questions

If you have questions about a particular item or amount on your invoice, refer to the specific department for contact information on your paper invoice, or contact the Student Finance office for assistance.

Financial Aid Refunds

If the amount of financial aid and/or loans your student receives is greater than the amount billed by the University, a credit balance will result on the student's account. This credit may be requested as a refund (through CAESAR) by the student as early as the first day of classes for the student to use toward indirect costs.

529 Plans

If you have a state-operated education savings account, such as a 529 Plan, you should notify the agency that your student will be attending Northwestern. If the disbursement of funds from the 529 Plan requires any action from the University, such as certification of enrollment or cost of attendance, your plan administrator should forward the required documents to the attention of our scholarship coordinator. You can use our general email address (undergradaid@u.northwestern.edu) or current mailing address to send the documents, and we will ensure the information reaches the correct person. Once our office has received the document for the fall term, we will automatically process the fund requests for subsequent terms during that academic year. See 529 plan FAQs.

Divorced/Separated Parents

Determination of institutional financial aid eligibility is based on the expectation that both biological/adoptive parents will contribute financially to their student's education, regardless of their marital status to each other. The University requires information from both parents when applying for need-based financial aid.

The custodial parent (and stepparent, if applicable) should complete the FAFSA and College Scholarship Service (CSS) Profile with their information. Please see Apply for Aid for more information.

Once the CSS Profile is completed indicated that the biological parents are divorced, separated, or were never married, this will initiate a requirement for the CSS Noncustodial Profile. CSS will send an email with information and a link to complete the Non-Custodial Parent Profile. This will need to be forwarded to the parent.