A Parent PLUS loan is a federal loan that’s available only to parents of dependent undergraduate students. Parent PLUS loans come with a loan fee, which is a percentage of the loan amount and is dependent on the date on which the loan is first disbursed. Your dependent student should take advantage of scholarships and grants first, and max out on Subsidized Loans (the federal government pays the interest under certain conditions and interest rate is lower than for Parent PLUS loans) and Unsubsidized Loans (the interest rate is the same as for Subsidized Loans).