In recent years, the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program has garnered more attention among student loan borrowers in the United States as a potential source of loan relief. However--at least prior to the PSLF Program Overhaul introduced in October 2021--arduous eligibility criteria, opaque communication on the part of the U.S. Department of…

The Biden administration is implementing a new income-driven repayment (IDR) plan for federal student loans called Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE). The SAVE plan adds to existing IDR plans and reduces borrowers' monthly payments and shortens the time certain borrowers must repay before their debts are forgiven compared with current options.…

Income-driven repayment (IDR) plans are a subset of student loan repayment plans that cap a borrower's monthly payment at a percentage of their discretionary income, which is defined as a portion of a borrower's adjusted gross income (AGI) that exceeds a specified multiple of the federal poverty line (FPL) for the borrower's family size. A…

Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA; P.L. 89-329, as amended) authorizes the operation of three federal student loan programs: the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) program, the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) program, and the Federal Perkins Loan program. While new loans are currently authorized to be made only…

Over the last three decades, the Direct Loan program has grown in size and complexity, with almost $1.4 trillion in outstanding federal student loans. The Direct Loan program provides financial assistance to students and their parents to help pay for postsecondary education. The US Government Accountability Office (GAO) was asked to review changes…

About half of the more than $1 trillion in outstanding federal student Direct Loans are being repaid by borrowers using IDR plans. Some borrowers in IDR plans are now potentially eligible for forgiveness of their remaining loan balances after 20 or 25 years of payments. GAO was asked to review IDR forgiveness. This report examines: (1) how many…

The Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA; P.L. 89-329, as amended) authorizes the operation of three federal student loan programs: (1) the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) program; (2) the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) program; and (3) the Federal Perkins Loan program. While new loans are currently authorized to be made only…

Given the skyrocketing costs of higher education, some borrowers -- particularly those with low incomes and those who were scammed by for-profit colleges -- genuinely need assistance. But portraying student loan forgiveness as a working-class issue is highly misleading. In fact, data on student borrowing shows that debt relief benefits few…

Evidence shows that what students study matters as much as, if not more than, where they study. Program-level measures can provide important data on student outcomes, which will allow policymakers to hold institutions and programs that receive federal funding accountable. This fact sheet highlights some of the most frequently discussed measures…

Rising college prices and student debt, the growth and collapse of online for-profit colleges, and expansions of federal grant, loan, and loan forgiveness policies have increased calls for more accountability in our higher education system. And there is significant consensus among lawmakers that the existing set of quality assurance policies for…

When a college closes, it can derail the education of many students, leaving them with loans but no degree. Those who cannot complete their education may be eligible to have their federal student loans forgiven through a "closed school discharge" from the Department of Education (Education), but this process has changed in recent years.…

The volume and number of federal student loans, which provide financing to make higher education more accessible, have grown over the past few decades. In 2017, the most recent year for which detailed information was available, $96 billion in new federal student loans was disbursed to 8.6 million students, compared with $36 billion (in 2017…

Students increasingly borrow money to attend postsecondary education. Yet, little attention in the literature has been paid to the repayment of student loans, aside from failure indicators like default. This study examines a nationally representative sample of bachelor's degree recipients and the time it takes to reach different repayment…

National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators' (NASFAA's) National Student Aid Profile is an annual publication designed to give a high-level overview of the federal student financial aid programs that provide funding to millions of students each year. This profile includes an overview of: (1) The Federal Pell Grant Program; (2) The…

National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators' (NASFAA's) National Student Aid Profile is an annual publication designed to give a high-level overview of the federal student financial aid programs that provide funding to millions of students each year. This profile includes an overview of: (1) The Federal Pell Grant Program; (2) The…