Federal Direct: Subsidized, Unsubsidized and PLUS Loans
Your loan funds will be disbursed to apply to your student account only after you complete all of your aid requirements.
- Students must accept their loans every year in Pitt's Student Information System under the Self-Service menu.
- Students who are borrowing for the first time at Pitt must also log onto StudentAid.gov to complete both the Master Promissory Note and Entrance Counseling.
- Parents borrowing Direct PLUS Loans for the first time at Pitt must log onto StudentAid.gov to complete a Master Promissory Note.
Once all aid requirements are complete, the Department of Education can disburse (release) the loan funds to be applied to your student account. The earliest loan funds can be applied is 10 days before the start of classes for any term. In the meantime, the loans will appear as Anticipated Aid on the Account Activity tab in PittPAY, reducing the amount you owe. Anticipated Aid is indicated by the word “Anticipated” in the date column of the activity details. The credit you are given for Anticipated Aid will expire if you wait too long to complete all of your loan requirements.
Mulert, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Professions, and Institutional Loans
Each year that you are awarded these loans, you must accept your loans in the Student Information System in the Self-Service menu AND complete entrance counseling and a promissory note on the Heartland ECSI website. Your loan funds will be disbursed to apply your student account only after you complete all of these processes. If you don’t, your loan funds will not be available to help pay the charges on your account.
- Learn how to accept your loans here.
- To complete your entrance counseling and promissory note, wait for an email addressed to your Pitt email address from webmaster@ecsi.net (your loan servicer) with instructions for completing the process online. You will need to validate your identity by entering information about yourself. For some loans, you will also need a PIN number to complete the process. If a PIN is required, it will be provided to you after you validate your identity. You will also be asked to provide complete reference information for yourself, a relative, and two additional references. Failure to complete all information accurately will delay disbursement of your loans.
Once you complete each of these steps, the loan funds can be released to apply to your student account. The earliest any loan funds can be disbursed is 10 days before the start of classes for any term. In the meantime, the loans will appear as Anticipated Aid on the Account Activity tab in PittPAY, reducing the amount you owe. Anticipated Aid is indicated by the word “Anticipated” in the date column of the Account Activity details. The credit you are given for Anticipated Aid will expire you if wait too long to complete all of your loan requirements.