General, Login, and Profile Settings
What are the requirements for my password?
At least eight characters in length
At least one lowercase letter, one uppercase letter, and one number
No symbols or other special characters
Can I reuse my passwords?
Yes. However, for security reasons, the system will not allow you to reuse your three previous passwords.
Why does my password expire after 90 days?
To help you protect personal information about your loan, disbursements, and certification, we use SSL encryption to protect data as it travels along its path to your desktop. We also require periodic password changes as further protection. View our privacy policy to learn more.
How can I change my password?
You can change your password as often as you like through the "Change Password" link at the bottom of the right-hand sidebar. You will need your current username and password. If you have any questions, contact MEFA's College Relations Team at 800-449-6332 or mefacertify@mefa.org.
What should I do if I can't remember my password?
You can reset your password online. On the Login page, click "Forgot Your Password?" and enter your username, and then answer the security question. MEFA will email you a temporary password, and when you use this temporary password to log in we will ask you to create a new password. If you have any questions, contact MEFA's College Relations Team at 800-449-6332 or mefacertify@mefa.org for assistance.
After I apply for access to MEFA's loan certification system, how will I find out my new ID and password?
Your ID will be the email address you used to request access. MEFA will contact you with your login id and password in two separate emails, usually within 24 hours after we receive your security request form.
What does "User ID is locked out" mean?
It means that you have unsuccessfully tried to log in more than three times. Please contact MEFA's College Relations Team at 800-449-6332 or mefacertify@mefa.org to reset your password.
Can I change my security question?
Yes, you can change your security question as often as you like through the "Security Question" link at the bottom of the right-hand sidebar. You will need your username and password. If you have any questions, contact MEFA's College Relations Team at 800-449-6332 or mefacertify@mefa.org.
Certifications
Can MEFA Loans be used for summer enrollment?
Yes, students may borrow a MEFA Loan for the summer session if they are enrolled less than half time, provided they are enrolled at least half time during the academic year. Summer loans may be certified using the student's enrollment status for the current academic year.
Can a MEFA Loan be used for a prior balance?
Yes, a MEFA Loan can be used to cover a prior balance for the previous semester. At the time of certification, the student must be enrolled, intending to enroll, or have completed his/her degree.
Can I request email reminders to let me know when I have loans ready to certify?
Yes. You can request reminders by selecting "Email Notifications" in the "My Profile Settings" section on the bottom of the right-hand sidebar.
How are the records on my Certification List sorted?
Loans are sorted by name only.
What form should I use when entering Graduation Dates and Loan Periods?
Enter data for month and year only in the following format: mm/yyyy. Be sure to include the forward-slash (/) when entering the date. Note that the Loan Period Start date is always the first day of the specified month, and the Loan Period End and Graduation date is the last day of the specified month.
How do I find out who certified a loan?
On the detail page for the loan, click on the tab labeled "History." You will see a list of transactions, with a date and username included for each. Some transactions (such as cancellations) are listed as "system" transactions because they were completed by a specific system process, even though the initial request was made by a school user.
How can I be sure that my certifications were submitted successfully?
You can always check on the status of a student's loan by pulling up the record by Application ID or SSN and clicking on the name of the student to see the loan detail. Or you can view the status of loans through the Loan Status Report.
Why would I be required to log in again?
There are two possible reasons:
Your connection to the MEFA website may have been briefly interrupted due to local or external communication problems.
You may have exceeded the timeout limits for your session (more than 30 minutes without a save on the Certification or Update screens).
If you think you might be interrupted while certifying loans online, we recommend that you break up your certification entries into small groups and save your work frequently.
If a student's eligibility increases or decreases after I certify the loan, can I still make changes? Can changes be made to a loan that is fully disbursed?
At any time before the first disbursement, you can change the certified loan amount, disbursement amounts, and disbursement dates through either the View Loan Status page or Update Loan page. After the first disbursement has been sent, you can modify subsequent disbursements. Once the loan is fully disbursed, you cannot make any changes. If a student needs to increase their loan after it's been fully disbursed, they will need to apply for a new loan.
What is MEFA's Lender Code? Guarantor Code? Program Codes?
MEFA's Lender Code is 733921. MEFA's 's Guarantor Code is E10.
MEFA's Program Codes are as follows:
MEFA Undergraduate 15-yr Immediate: G67
MEFA Undergraduate 10-yr Immediate: M27
MEFA Undergraduate Interest-Only: R01
MEFA Undergraduate Deferred: G61
MEFA Undergraduate Deferred with Co-Borrower Release Provision: M26
MEFA Graduate Interest-Only: R02
MEFA Graduate Deferred: G62
Download this reference chart with MEFA's loan codes.
Disbursement
Does MEFA only disburse on Fridays?
Yes, MEFA is disbursing only on Fridays for non-NDN disbursements.
Where can I see pending disbursements?
To see pending disbursements, click on the student's name on the View Loan Status page or look up the individual loan on the Loan Update page.
Are disbursement rosters downloadable?
Yes, you may enter a disbursement date range and download disbursement details. Totals by date is for quick reference view only, and cannot be downloaded.
Can I select more than one disbursement week for display or print?
Yes. You can enter start and end dates representing a range of up to 90 days (approximately 12 weeks). Disbursement rosters are available for one year prior to today's date.
How do I reformat Social Security numbers after I download my data?
By default, any leading zeroes in Social Security Numbers will be truncated when you view the file in Excel, but the full number remains available "behind the scenes." To format this field to display all nine characters:
- Highlight the SSN column.
- Go to the Format menu and select Cells.
- Under the Number heading, choose Custom.
- Type nine zeroes in the available box (000000000).
- Click OK.
Loan Status Report
How do I find the Application ID for my students' loans?
Click on the download link at the top left-hand side of the report. Each time you download Loan Status data to your desktop via Excel, the new file will be given a different name. You will still be able to change the name of the downloaded file when you save it.
How can I download my Loan Status data into Excel?
Click on the download link at the top left-hand side of the report. Each time you download Loan Status data to your desktop via Excel, the new file will be given a different name. You will still be able to change the name of the downloaded file when you save it.
How do I change the criteria and get new results for my search?
In the right-hand corner of any light blue header bar, you will see an "Open/Close" indicator with an arrow pointing up or down. Click on the arrow to expand the section, view details, and make changes.
Can I see all search results listed on one page instead of limiting the number of rows displayed to 25, 50, or 100 records per page?
You can see a complete list on one page by downloading the data to an Excel file. We limit the number of rows per page on our website to maintain efficient system response times.
Refunds
What is the best/preferred method for processing MEFA Loan refunds?
Whether you receive funds directly from MEFA (via check or EFT) or through ELM NDN, the preferred method is an electronic refund. If utilizing NDN, you can return funds via the NDN refund process. If you receive funds through MEFA, please complete the School Refund EFT Transmittal Form.
Our school is unable to send refunds electronically. Can we send a paper check?
While we strongly encourage you to send refunds electronically via our School Refund EFT Transmittal Form, we will accept paper refunds. Please send any loan refund checks to:
MEFA
Attn: Loan Refunds
60 State Street, Suite 900
Boston, MA 02109
A student recently requested a reduction to their MEFA loan. What is the best method for adjusting that loan?
If a student has requested a loan reduction prior to disbursement, you can reduce the loan amount (and make any other adjustments) directly in the MEFA portal. If the student has requested a loan reduction after disbursement, you will need to process a refund as outlined above. All interest will be reversed on the refunded amount.
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