This guide is intended for college financial aid administrators and counselors who help students begin the aid process--filing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form, verifying information, and making corrections and other changes to the information reported on the FAFSA. The Federal Student Aid Handbook consists of the…

This guide is intended for college financial aid administrators and counselors who help students begin the aid process--filing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form, verifying information, and making corrections and other changes to the information reported on the FAFSA. The Federal Student Aid Handbook consists of the…

A quality education is the primary instrument of social and economic mobility in the United States. As open-access institutions, community colleges are the gateway to postsecondary education for millions of Americans. Many of these students would be unable to afford college without federal resources, such as student financial aid and tax credits.…

The means by which students can discharge loan obligations through bankruptcy are reviewed, and issues and procedures for the institution-creditor to consider are presented. (MSE)

Provisions of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code that affect the right of colleges to withhold transcripts as a means of collecting student debts are considered. Automatic stay provisions state that the filing of a petition for bankruptcy relief prohibits actions to collect obligations of the debtor. The discharge injunction provides that once a discharge…

A guide for college administrators who are responsible for loan collection in the repayment of National Direct Student Loans (NDSL) is presented. Attention is focused on the difficulties created by loans with different terms and conditions. Repayment terms are discussed, and formulas are presented that are necessary to calculate the number and…

A discussion of debt burden, particularly for college students and graduates, looks at recent research, discusses borrower perceptions of debt burdens and excessive debt, analyzes debt-to-income ratios, and synthesizes these ideas into a universal model. Data from a 1990 state survey of borrowers by the Iowa College Student Aid Commission.…

Debtors seeking discharge in bankruptcy of student loans should be aware of certain arguments in their favor: that the burden of persuasion should remain on the creditor throughout; the standard of proof should be the preponderance-of-the-evidence standard; and that burden of production is, for the most part, the creditor's. Recent case law is…

Guidelines are provided to assist in the interpretation of the regulatory requirements regarding disbursement of funds to students under Title IV student aid programs. Attention is also directed to the higher education community's self-regulation initiatives regarding refund and repayment, as well as the Department of Education's regulations in…

It is more important than ever for colleges and universities to manage the resources they have and guard against unnecessary loss. Student bad debt is one loss that can be resolved. A study identified certain predictors of student bad debt, including academic indicators and student characteristics, and offers suggestions to institutions for…

This report examines issues relevant to establishing an Office of Student Financial Assistance (OSFA) ombudsman office within the Department of Education. The OSFA ombudsman office came out of the need to improve student lending program services and to mitigate the impact of loan default on students. It was determined that students involved in…

Based on a survey of former California State University students who repaid (224) or defaulted on (128) loans, an analysis found high levels of significance in postsecondary outcome variables (graduation, employment and income patterns), institutional practices and characteristics, student background characteristics, and understanding of rights…

This report discusses problems reported by lenders participating in the Federal Direct Loan Program (FDLP) and the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP). The study examined the nature and the source of the problems experienced by the lenders, how they affected lenders, and what steps the Department of Education and Electronic Data Systems…

Background and legal requirements for disclosure and counseling of students receiving loans under the federal student loan programs are discussed. A definition of loan counseling, a decision-making model for creating an institutional program, and information on loan consolidation are provided. Following introductory and background sections, the…

Guidelines for loan collection staff who award/service college student loans are presented. Attention is directed to sound collection procedures, three specific loan programs, suing a defaulted borrower, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act and the use of credit bureaus, and student loan borrower bankruptcy. Loan collection procedures for…