I an American that will be attending the Glasgow School of Art in the
fall as an MFA student. While I am eligible for federal loans (FAFSA),
I have since learned that I CANNOT take out private loans (ie, extra
money for things beyond tuition, like housing, living expenses, etc.
that the FAFSA won't cover--it only provides max $18,500) Basically,
to take out a private loan (or alternative loan, through programs like
ISLP, etc.) I need to attend a school that is TERI approved (TERI
stands for The Education Resources Insitute). If a school is not
registered with TERI (like the Glasgow School of Art) you cannot take
out a private loan. My question is: are there any loan options out
there for me? I don't want to take out a personal loan because I have
to pay those back immediately, at a very high interest rate, and
within a short amount of time (usually max 6-7 years, as opposed to
25-30 years for an education loan) and I can't take a home equity loan
because, well, I don't own a home. A second, related question is: is
TERI the only organization that banks go through to approve loans for
school?

I've done a fair amount of research, including contacting Glasgow
School of Art. They have told me that unfortunately, they are not
registered with TERI at the moment and that I won't be able to take
out a private loan. There must be some kind of alternative (aside from
applying to fellowships/scholarships, etc.) but I just can't seem to
find one. Though I've only checked with major banks (Chase, HSBC,
Wachovia, Bank One, Citibank, etc.), I haven't checked with EVERY
bank.

Thanks for your help!