Knowledge on loan: how to get an educational loan

Product specifics

This year in Russia, according to Rosobrnadzor, more than 690,000 people took the USE. All of them apply for places in universities. Graduates of a number of colleges and technical schools will compete with former schoolchildren. According to the Ministry of Education and Science, in the 2022/2023 academic year, 570,314 budget places were allocated in universities. Of these, 340 thousand are reserved for bachelors. So the competition among applicants was serious. In Moscow universities, the competition for free higher education is much higher. It is no coincidence that it is in the capital that most educational loans are issued.

Yulia Ushanova, head of the retail product development department at Novikombank, told MK that now only a few banks offer educational loans. Most players give out a regular consumer loan as an alternative. “An educational loan has a number of advantages: a credit line is opened for the entire period of study, it can be used partially (for several semesters), it is possible to defer the repayment of the principal debt for the first three years of study. In addition, a student can act as a co-borrower, which is important for parents after graduation, ”explained Ushanova.

We add that you can get a targeted loan not only for the first higher education, but also for secondary special, second higher, additional professional (including obtaining an MBA degree, foreign language courses).

four roads

Today there are several ways to get money for your studies. The most favorable conditions are offered by the program of educational loans with state support. “Under this program, a student can receive an educational loan for up to 15 years at 3% per annum, while during training he will only have to pay interest, and the borrower will begin to pay the main debt only 9 months after graduation,” said MK. FG Finam analyst Igor Dodonov. To obtain a state educational loan, you do not need collateral or guarantors, a certificate of income.

Unfortunately, today you can get a loan with state support only in the largest state-owned bank. At the same time, it should be borne in mind that the preferential rate within the framework of state subsidies is maintained only for the duration of training. “If you are expelled for poor progress or you yourself want to stop studying, then you will have to repay the loan at the aggregate rate,” Olga Zhidkova, an expert in the banking services department at Banki.ru, told MK.

Second, a student loan is issued on market terms by several banks. For example, Novikombank issues student loans at 13% per annum for 6-96 months, and VTB – from 15.8% for 6-84 months. “In fact, these are targeted consumer loans for education with more favorable rates compared to ordinary consumer loans, longer repayment periods, a more suitable repayment structure for students, but also with additional requirements in the form of guarantees, insurance, etc. They can be used by those students who, for some reason, could not get a loan under the state program,” Dodonov explained.

You can apply for a targeted loan from the age of 18 and with proof of income. To approve a loan, you need to have a total work experience of at least 1 year (for citizens from 18 to 22 years old inclusive, 3 months at the last place of work is usually enough). And a non-working student needs to attract a co-borrower – a relative. For the contract, only a passport, SNILS and information about the university are needed.

Thirdly, you can take a regular consumer loan on suitable conditions. Note that a number of banks provide bonuses when applying for a cash loan online. For example, in Rosbank you can get a 0.5% discount on your rate if you log in to the State Services portal.

“The rates for other educational loans, as well as for consumer loans, are determined by the general level of rates in the economy. Currently, they vary widely, from 5–6% to 17–18% per annum, depending on the availability of insurance, the borrower’s willingness to subscribe to other services and products of the bank, etc.,” says Dodonov.

According to Zhidkova, from March to June 2022, the average rate on educational loans decreased by 3.32 p.p. On consumer loans, the rate decreased by 7.81 percentage points, which corresponds to the dynamics of the decrease in the key rate of the Central Bank for the period from March to June 2022.

Fourthly, it is possible to pay for tuition with the help of maternity capital. “Today, at the birth of the first child, it is equal to 524.5 thousand rubles, at the birth of the second child, the payment will be 693.1 thousand rubles, if the family did not receive maternity capital for the first child, and 168.6 thousand rubles, if it was designed, ”added Zhidkova.

First experience

In recent months, there has been a trend towards a gradual recovery in the segment of consumer loans, Alexey Volkov, Marketing Director of the National Bureau of Credit Histories, told MK. In his opinion, this was largely due to deferred demand from borrowers. In addition, the Bank of Russia is actively reducing the key rate, which reduces the cost of consumer loans. “The level of approval of consumer loans after the fall in March 2022 is gradually increasing. This suggests that “good credit quality” borrowers with a high Personal Credit Rating (PCR) are returning to the market,” the analyst added.

“For most students or applicants, an education loan is the first loan in life. It is with this product that they begin to write their credit history and develop a sufficient level of RCC. So, almost immediately after the repayment of such a loan, the level of a university graduate’s credit rating will be high enough to qualify, for example, for a large car loan or mortgage,” Volkov emphasized.

With an eye on the Central Bank

The demand of young Russians for educational loans is gradually growing. After another reduction in the key rate of the Central Bank, a number of banks improved their programs. So, from August 8, Novikombank reduced the target loan rate. And Sberbank offered to apply for a preferential educational loan directly at the university. Income certificate, collateral or guarantor is not required. 634 higher educational institutions participate in the program “Loan for education with state support”. According to Sergey Shirokov, director of the Borrow and Save division of Sberbank, in the first half of this year, the bank issued 8,672 educational loans worth 1.1 billion rubles.

According to bankers, interest in niche products can be raised by employing companies that, through their corporate programs, provide employment for student borrowers. In the United States, where this approach is popular, 44 million student loans have been issued, and the total amount of student debt exceeds $1.5 trillion.

In Russia, of course, such indicators are still far away.

“We will not see new players in the market of targeted educational loans until the end of 2022,” Olga Zhidkova is sure. – And if there are players who want to join the state program, the list will be updated only in 2023. As for their own programs, banks will continue to issue ordinary consumer loans without targeted confirmation, which citizens often take to pay for education. The subsidized rate under the state program is unlikely to be revised, and rates on ordinary consumer loans will slightly decrease following the key rate of the Central Bank.