This Braille publication explores available options on federal student loans so that borrowers can avoid repayment problems and manage and repay their debts. The guide contains information on repayment plans for Perkins loans, Direct Loans, and Federal Family Education Loans. The repayment options discussed include consolidation, deferment, and…

The Guaranteed Student Loan program is big business and risky for everyone except the lending institutions. Students who default on their loans now risk tougher penalties, and the federal government must foot the bill when students don't repay. The default problem varies by state and lending institution. Some California figures are provided. (MLH)

Most college students who default on federal loans come from low-income families and drop out of school within a year. Borrowers from more affluent families take out bigger loans, but stay in school longer, and are likely to secure steady employment and repay their loans. The Guaranteed Student Loan program seems designed for borrowers least…

This report examines the relationship between student loan debt and the manner in which that debt is described. It focuses on three forms of description: (1) monthly payments, (2) total debt, and (3) income after graduation. The authors used the term elasticity to describe the relationship between consumers' college choices and the retention…

As the number and volume of student loans increase nationally, lenders and policymakers look more closely at the use of loan forbearance. This paper examines whether forbearance really cuts the risk of loan default by reporting on a study of more than 9,800 Stafford loans in forbearance in December 1996. That research shows that the default rate…

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)

The text of "Student Loans: Are They Overburdening a Generation?", the report of the Joint Economic Committee of Congress concerning the impact of large student debts on the national economy, individual borrowers, education, and society in general is presented. (MSE)

This guide for college students in Alberta, Canada, discusses paying back students loans. While it may be the last thing a student wants to think about as he or she leaves college, it is a good idea to plan how to pay back the loan. A Canadian student has 6 months free of payments on graduation, but then must begin paying student loans, principal…

The U.S. Congress has mandated that the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) produce an annual report to help inform policymakers about the progress of education in the United States. Using data from across the center and from other sources of education data, "The Condition of Education 2015" presents 42 key indicators on…

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…

Perspectives on defaults occurring under the two major federal student loan programs, Guaranteed Student Loans (GSL) and National Direct Student Loans (NDSL), are presented. Attention is directed to differences in the size and mode of operation of these programs, the extent and costs of default, comparisons with other types of loans, and the…

College students are leaving their higher education institutions with more educational loan debt than ever before. From academic year 1994-1997 to 1999-2000, the amount postsecondary education students borrowed through federal student loan programs jumped from $24 billion to $33.7 billion, and total debt for borrowers who received master's and…

A recent Education Department report reveals the nation's student loan default rate was the lowest ever in 1994, at less than half the rate of 1990. New enforcement power, improved collections, and an improving economy are credited with the change. However, high default rates threaten the right of over 300 colleges and universities to participate…

Survey of college students who managed credit cards wisely and those who did not (N=310), revealed that responsible users were more likely to have acquired credit cards before matriculating in college. Discusses implications for future personal-debt management and for institutions of higher education with regard to credit-card vendors. (EMK)

This fourth edition of the "ES Review" brings together, in one setting, some of the best work from 2009-10. It features: (1) Teacher Quality (Teachers at Work: Improving Teacher Quality Through School Design (Elena Silva); Understanding Teachers Contracts (Andrew J. Rotherham); How Teachers Unions Lost the Media (Richard Whitmire and…