California Dream Loan

The CA Dream Loan for the 2024-2025 school year (Fall 2024, Spring 2025, & Summer 2025) is currently being AWARDED to select Dream students!

The California Dream Loan is a subsidized loan program for undergraduate students with a valid California Dream Act Application and CA residency or AB 540/AB 2000/SB 68 eligibility.

The California Dream Loan is borrowed money you must repay with interest. The interest rate for 2024-2025 school year is 5.50% fixed.

A subsidized loan does NOT accrue interest while you are enrolled in college at least half-time and during periods of approved deferment. Deferments are an agreement between the lender and the student to postpone payments for an approved period of time. You will be responsible for the interest charged at all other times.

Repayment of your loan begins 6 months after you graduate or drop below half-time. California Dream Loans are set-up to be repaid in monthly installments over a 10-year period and have a minimum payment of $50 a month. You can pay off your loan earlier without penalty.

Before every academic year, our office will determine every qualified Dream student's elibility based on these factors:

  • CA Dream Application date - Must have successfully submitted one before the State priority deadline (May 2, 2024 for the 2024-2025 school year)
  • Graduation date
  • On-campus housing fees
  • Miscellaneous reasons as decided by the AB 540 Dream Counselor

NOTE: Funding for the California Dream Loan is limited each academic year. You will be notified directly if you are selected and awarded the Loan for the current school year.

After you have been notified of the Loan approval, you must log into your SF State Gateway. Once in your Gateway, choose the option to Accept/Decline Awards under the Finances Section. Select the correct aid year and accept your Loan offer.

NOTE: If you would like to accept a reduced amount from what you were offered, you can enter in the reduced amount manually.  Please keep in mind that the accepted amount will always be split in halves - Half for Fall & half for Spring.

Once you accept your loan, you must wait to complete the Dream Loan Requirement. This requirement will show up on your To Do List right away and be available to complete 7-10 business days after you accept your loan.  Failure to complete this requirement in a timely fashion may result in cancellation of your loan.

Once the Dream Loan Requirement is available, you will receive an email from Heartland/ECSI regarding your next steps. After you successfully complete your Dream Loan Requirement, it will drop off your To Do List.

NOTE: When asked for your Social Security Number (SSN), please provide your SFSU ID# instead. The Dream Loan Requirement will not use a SSN.