The student loans and processes have been getting more complicated. Most of us don’t know what MPN. It stands for Master promissory Note. The MPN is a promissory note that can be used to make one or more loans for one or more academic years (up to 10 years). There are two types of MPNs in the Direct Loan Program: one for student loans and one for parent PLUS loans.
If you are a student borrower under the Direct Loan Program attending a school that is authorized and chooses to make multiple loans under the same MPN for more than one academic year, you will only sign one MPN for student loans. It will be used for all of your Direct Subsidized Loans and Direct Unsubsidized Loans over multiple academic years. For example, if you enroll in college as a freshman and borrow under the Direct Loan Program for all years of study, you may be able to borrow under this one MPN for all years.
If you are a parent borrower under the Direct Loan Program whose child is attending a school that is authorized and chooses to make multiple loans under the same MPN for more than one academic year, you will only sign one MPN for parent PLUS loans. It will be used for all of your Direct PLUS Loans for that particular child over multiple academic years.
Source: U.S. Department of Education