One of the biggest financial service groups in the country (South Africa) is the Standard Bank of South Africa Limited, It was established in 1862. But Standard Bank as it is known today was only made in the year 1962, under the name and influence of The Standard Bank of South Africa, as a subordinate of the British overseas bank Standard Bank.
Its headquarters is in Johannesburg, Standard Bank does not only have its operations and services in South Africa, but its services are also available in 20 other different African countries. This company (Standard Bank) is the biggest lender in Africa by assets.
Standard Bank is the leader when it comes to business and commercial banking within South Africa, they have lots of ways to achieving financial problems: some of the solutions are Borrowing; Electronic Banking; Current Accounts; Saving and Investing; Fleet Management; vehicle and Asset finance; Cash and Liquidity Management.
ABOUT THE LOAN
One of the services Standard Bank offers is the Student Loan, they offer student loans to fund full-time and part-time services, at any accredited Institution, both for overseas studies. Interested students can apply for funding to cover all the expenses concerning their studies, with a reasonable interest rate (low-interest rates).
WHAT EXPENSES DOES THE STANDARD BANK STUDENT LOAN COVER?
These are the expenses students can cover using the Standard Bank student loan service:
- Tuition fees, with no particular maximum limit – the amount that will be loaned will be based on what the student can afford and this fee will be paid directly to the institution
- Registration fees
- Textbooks and other types of equipment needed in the school which can be (laptops,tablets, and other equipment needed for study) fees up to the verge of R20 000. If students cannot provide evidence of these expenses, the maximum cover Standard Bank is willing to give is R6 000 and this fee will be paid directly to the surety or student if they are self-confident
- The minimum student loan that Standard Bank is willing to give is R5 000 for any expenses you are going to make, whether you are applying for funding to cover only your textbooks and registration fees or need to complete your tuition fees, the minimum amount remains R5 000 no changing it.
- Students who have collected loans and paid back or still existing loans with Standard bank can increase their student loan limit if they wish to.
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR THE STANDARD BANK STUDENT LOAN
Interested candidates must make sure they complete the following minimum entry criteria
N:B if you are lacking in any following requirements listed your application may not be considered or rejected by the Standard Bank student loan
- You must be a citizen of South Africa
- Your surety bank must be Standard Bank if you are traveling overseas
- You must not necessarily be banking with Standard Bank, you may be a Standard Bank user or a Standard Bank non-user
- Because it’s a Student Loan, you must be studying full-time or part-time in any year of study or choice of school
- Your duration of the course you are going to take must be 3 months and above
- Before you can apply for a student loan, you must be accepted into any accredited or certified institution, for instance: SETA, SAQA, Umalusi, DHE, and SACCA approved Flight schools
- For Private Pilot Licence (PPL): you must have been enrolled or studying at an institution accredited or certified with SACAA (South Africa Civil Aviation Authority), before applying for a student loan
Full-time students:
- You will need a guarantor or surety to co-sign your student loan application(a guarantor or surety is the person responsible for paying the fee and interest while you are schooling or the person that will be responsible for paying the fee and interest if you are at default)
- Your surety or guarantor must be earning at least R3000 a month before he or she can be accepted to be a surety
- N:B Your surety can be one or more than one
Part-time students:
- If you are a part-time student and are the one responsible for paying your fee and interest, you must at least earn R5000 a month
- The loan you took must be paid while you study
HOW TO APPLY FOR THE STANDARD BANK STUDENT LOAN
First of all, before doing any application, check if you are qualified to apply for a student loan, in the “Do I Qualify” form on the Standard Bank Student Loan Page.
After your application has been checked and approved, you can start following these steps:
There are some documents that will be required of you at the bank, make sure you have all of them before going to the bank. These are the lists of the documents required of you at the bank:
- ID documents, both of student and that of surety
- Proof of residence or rent documents that are at least less than three months old, for the surety and student
- Latest payment slips of the last three months belonging to either the surety or student if self-assured
- For a non-Standard Bank client or user, you must bring the last three months’ bank statement, the documents should be for your surety or the student if he or she is self-assured
- Proof of acceptance or proof of registration (Admission letter) from a certified or approved institution
- You have to present your latest academic results to the Bank too
- For these students interested in applying for accommodation fees, a lease agreement would be involved
- For students applying for a loan for textbooks and other school-related equipment fees, there should be a list of costs concerning the various equipment you want to buy or the fee required of you
- Matric Certificate (NSC): note that before your application can be complete and effective you must submit your Matric Certificate to the bank
- Go visit a branch, and a consultant will assist with the final stage of your application, please make sure you visit a bank within 7 days of completing the “Do I Qualify?” form online or within 15 days if the application you made was to the Student Loan Portal
- Once the pre-approval expires, you have to restart your online application process from the beginning.
REPAYING THE STANDARD BANK STUDENT LOAN
- The interest for Standard Bank student loan comes in form of monthly service, the amount to be paid is R69. You will also pay the once-off initiation fee which will be ranging from R649.75 to R1 207.50, VAT is included in this fee
- For the full-time student your surety will be required to pay fees and interest only while you are studying, and up till you start paying back the loan yourself. Students are given a six-month grace period after completing their studies before they start paying monthly repayments
- For part-time students, it is required of you to pay the loan while they study
- The time duration of the loan repayment ranges from 12 to 72 months
- The interest rate for Standard Bank Student Loan is as low as 7% and 13% maximum
EXAMPLES OF HOW THE STANDARD BANK STUDENT LOAN WORKS
- A full-time student, whose studies is currently going on will pay an estimated repayment of R512 per month, for an R50,000 loan of 7% interest per annum
- For a full-time student who is employed, he or will pay an estimated repayment of R921 per month, for an R50,000 loan of 7% per annum over a 72-month period
- For part-time student, he or she is required to pay an estimated repayment of R1 315 per month, for an R50,000 loan of 7% over 44 months
STANDARD BANK STUDENT LOAN BENEFITS
With the Standard Bank student loan, students involved in this loan will have a wider range of opportunities as well as benefits available to them, here are examples of some of the benefits you will gain from Standard Bank student loan:
- The opportunity to study abroad without sufficient funds: one of the benefits of Standard Bank student loan is the opportunity they give to their students who want to study abroad, they allow students to study abroad at any institution of their choice provided the institution is SAQA approved
- Instantaneous quotes: students will be given online quotes before they finalize their loan application
- Loan protection: students are given the option of registering their loan with Standard Bank’s Personal Protection plan, in case there is an event or case of death, illness, or extreme disease
CONTACT THE STUDENT LOAN PROVIDER
If you still have questions concerning this student loan, you can do well to contact Standard Bank directly on this line:
Telephone number: 086 012 3000
Email: Information@standardbank.co.za
