How many loans you can get

There's a limit to how many Student Loans you can get in your lifetime.

Usually, you can only get enough Student Loans to pay for up to 7 EFTS of study. This includes all loans you got since 2010.

What are EFTS?

7 EFTS is:

  • around 840 points/credits, or
  • about 7 or 8 years of full-time study.

If you've nearly completed 7 EFTS of study, you may be able to get another Student Loan when:

  • you haven't studied 7 EFTS yet, and
  • your next course or paper will take you over the 7 EFTS limit.

Example

You've studied 6.5 EFTS and enrolled for another course which is 1 EFTS. Although this takes you over the 7 EFTS limit to 7.5 EFTS, you may be able to get another Student Loan for this course.

Criteria for Student Loan

  • Already studied 7 EFTS

    If you've already studied 7 EFTS, you may be able to get another Student Loan. You'll need to meet the criteria for an EFTS extension. This means you need to be studying either a:

    • post graduate qualification
    • long undergraduate qualification
    • doctorate.

    Post graduate qualification

    If you're completing a post graduate qualification, you may be able to get an EFTS extension for up to an extra 1 EFTS of study. 1 EFTS is around 120 credits/points.

    For example, a Bachelor with Honours Degree or a Masters Degree.

    Dental Surgery

    If you're completing a Bachelor of Dental Surgery with Honours at University of Otago, you may be able to get up to an extra 3 EFTS of study.

    If you've already used extra EFTS, the amount you can get for this Bachelor with Honours reduces. For example, if you've already used 1 EFTS for other post graduate study, you can only get 2 EFTS.

    Long undergraduate qualification

    If you're studying a long undergraduate qualification, you may be able to get an EFTS extension for up to an extra 3 EFTS of study. 3 EFTS is around 360 credits/points.

    You must be studying either:

    • Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery at either the:
      • University of Auckland
      • University of Otago
    • Bachelor of Optometry at the University of Auckland
    • Bachelor of Veterinary Science at Massey University
    • Bachelor of Dental Surgery at the University of Otago.

    If you've already used extra EFTS, the amount you can get for a long undergraduate qualification reduces. For example, if you've already used:

    • 1 EFTS for a long undergraduate qualification, you can only get 2 EFTS
    • 1 EFTS for post graduate study, you can only get 2 EFTS.

    Doctorate

    If you're doing a doctorate, you may be able to get an EFTS extension for up to an extra 3 EFTS of study. But if you've already used extra EFTS for other study, the amount you can get for a doctorate reduces. For example, if you've already used:

    • 1 EFTS for a long undergraduate qualification, you can only get 2 EFTS
    • 1 EFTS for postgraduate study, you can only get 2 EFTS.

    What you need to do

    1. Apply online for a Student Loan (if you haven't already).
    2. Fill out a Student Loan 7 EFTS extension application form
    3. Log in to Connect and upload your form.
    linksStudent Loan 7 EFTS extension application form (PDF 281.95KB)

  • Withdrew from study

    If you completely withdrew from a course and there was a full fee refund from your education provider, we won’t the count the EFTS for that course as part of the 7 EFTS.

  • Don't know how many EFTS you've used

    You can check how many EFTS you've used online, in MyStudyLink.

    Find out about MyStudyLink