Almost time to start paying back your student loans? Contrary to popular belief, your student loan payments don’t have to stop you from living your life. You just have to weigh your options and find a strategy that works within your budget. Here are some steps to get you started.
The 2020–21 FAFSA® will be available October 1! If you plan to attend college between July 1, 2020, and June 30, 2021, you should fill out your FAFSA form as soon as possible!
Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) is a program that could eliminate some of your federal student loan debt if you meet all the requirements. This program was created to benefit individuals whose debt would be unaffordable without loan payments tied to income because they are working in lower-paying, but vitally important public sector jobs such government service or non-profit work.
“Loan discharge” means you don’t have to pay back some or all of your loan(s). A total and permanent disability (TPD) discharge relieves you from having to repay any of your federal student loan(s) and from completing any TEACH Grant service obligation.
Ah, deadlines. The sworn enemy of students across the nation. When you’re busy with classes, extracurricular activities, and a social life in whatever time you’ve got left, it’s easy to lose track and let due dates start whooshing by. All of a sudden, your 10-page term paper is due in an hour, and you’re only on page 5 (with the help of 26-point type and triple line spacing). We get it.
If you need financial aid to help you pay for college, you must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form. The 2020–21 FAFSA form will be available on Oct. 1, 2019. You should fill it out as soon as possible on or after Oct. 1 at the official government site, fafsa.gov.
A recent post, covers the concern of “summer melt,” where up to one-third of the students who graduate high school with plans to go to college never make it to a college campus. The post discussed how educators can help keep someone on track—but there’s also plenty that a student can do to make sure their college plans don’t get derailed during a summer break.
Chances are that you’ve at least heard of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program, but do you know if your loans qualify? How to apply? If not, we’re here to help!
First, what is PSLF? PSLF is a program that forgives the remaining balance on your Direct Loans after you have made 120 qualifying monthly payments under a qualifying repayment plan while working full-time for a qualifying employer. However, your loan will only be forgiven if you meet all the PSLF Program eligibility conditions.
Your child is going to college or career school—that’s great! But you may have questions about how to pay for it. If your child hasn’t completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®), ask your child to complete it today. Completing and submitting the FAFSA is free and quick, and it gives your child access to the largest source of financial aid to pay for college or career school, including loans YOU can receive.
In my senior year of high school, as college decisions were released, opening the financial aid award letters was scarier than the decisions themselves: the final number, or net cost, could make or break my ability to attend university. To confuse matters, without an understanding of financial aid terms, award letters can be hard to read; each school’s letter can look different and are full of ambiguous terms and unexplained costs. No matter how well a particular award letter was laid out, I was unsure what exactly I would have to pay. If you are a senior in high school planning to go to college, becoming financially literate is incredibly important.
Every year, incoming and current college students have to file a FAFSA in order to determine their potential and continued eligibility for federal financial aid. Students may also have to file institution-based financial aid applications every year, along with institution-based or outside scholarships. Offer letters are key tools used by colleges and universities to notify students of their eligibility for federal, state, and institutional financial aid. Students and families use these letters to determine what the cost of attending that particular institution will be.
Recent research such as the “Decoding the Cost of College” joint research report by New America and uAspire, and the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators Issue Brief on Financial Aid Award Notifications have determined that offer letters are often hard to understand, and can lead students and families to misinterpret financial aid packages. Consequently, students and families end up borrowing more loans than they should, the students decide not to attend a particular institution, or the greatest consequence is that many students do not realize the true cost of attendance, which can lead to negative outcomes like not being able to afford to finish.
Between the high costs of tuition, living expenses, meal plans and textbooks, it is easy to see why college students are increasingly stressed about their finances. A 2015 survey found that around 70% of college students feel stressed about their personal finances in general. As a current student at UCLA, I too have felt the financial strain of an undergraduate education. Luckily, I have found that there are many simple actions college students can take to reduce the cost of postsecondary education. Here are 5 tips from a current college student on how to make college more affordable:
