Category: Student Loans

There are two main ways to get Parent PLUS Loan forgiveness. First, you can get Parent PLUS Loan forgiveness through an income-driven repayment plan known as Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR). Second, you can get Parent PLUS Loan Forgiveness through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. However, neither option may be the fastest way to pay off Parent PLUS Loans. The fastest way to pay off Parent PLUS Loans is to refinance Parent PLUS Loans. The second fastest way to pay off Parent PLUS Loans is to remain on the Standard Repayment Plan.

In this guide, we will discuss the following:

• How to get Parent PLUS forgiveness through Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR)
• How to get Parent PLUS forgiveness through Public Service Loan Forgiveness
• How to refinance Parent PLUS Loans
• How to discharge Parent PLUS Loans

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How to Get Parent PLUS Forgiveness Through Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR)

Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR) is an income-driven repayment plan that can lower your monthly Parent PLUS Loan payments and offer Parent PLUS forgiveness. ICR is the only income-driven repayment plan that is available to Parent PLUS Loan borrowers. Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR) caps your monthly payment at the lesser of:

• 20% of your discretionary income, and
• The amount of your fixed monthly payments on a 12-year repayment term.

When you enroll in ICR, your loan term will become 25 years. This is 15 years longer than the Standard Repayment Term for Parent PLUS Loans, which is 10 years. To enroll in ICR, your must first consolidate your Parent PLUS Loans into a Direct Consolidation Loan. To determine your monthly payment, you must certify your income. Each year, you will recertify your income, which could change your monthly payment.

After 25 years of on-time monthly payments, your remaining Parent PLUS Loan balance will be forgiven. It is important to note that the amount of Parent PLUS Loan forgiveness you receive is subject to income tax.

How to Get Parent PLUS Forgiveness Through Public Service Loan Forgiveness

The Public Service Loan Forgiveness program is a federal program that offers student loan forgiveness to employees who work for the government or a non-profit and make 120 monthly payments. To get Parent PLUS Loan forgiveness, the parent borrower’s employment is what matters; not your child’s employment.

It is important to understand all the requirements of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. To qualify for public service loan forgiveness, you must first consolidate your Parent PLUS Loans into a Direct Consolidation Loan. Then, you must make a majority of your loan payments while enrolled in an income-driven repayment plan such as Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR).

Each year or whenever you change employers, you must submit an Employment Certification Form to the U.S. Department of Education. After you complete all 120 monthly payments, you can submit an application for public service loan forgiveness. If you are approved, you will receive student loan forgiveness on your remaining balance. The amount of student loan debt forgiven is not taxable.

This Public Service Loan Forgiveness calculator shows you how much student loan forgiveness you can get with public service loan forgiveness.

How to Refinance Parent PLUS Loans

It can take a long time to get Parent PLUS Loan forgiveness, and your options are limited to Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR) and Public Service Loan Forgiveness. One option to consider is to refinance Parent PLUS Loans.

Can you refinance Parent PLUS Loans? The answer is yes. Like student loan refinancing, you can refinance Parent PLUS Loans to save money, lower your interest rate and pay off debt more quickly. There are two ways to refinance Parent PLUS Loans:

• Refinance Parent PLUS Loans in your name only
• Refinance Parent PLUS Loans in your child’s name

Refinance Parent PLUS Loans in your name only​

Refinancing Parent PLUS Loans in your name only is the standard way that borrowers refinance Parent PLUS Loans. When you refinance Parent PLUS Loans, the process is similar to how to refinance student loans. To qualify for Parent PLUS Loan refinancing, you will need good credit, stable and recurring monthly income, and a low debt-to-income ratio. Lenders want to ensure that you can afford your monthly living expenses, plus debt payments for mortgages, student loans and credit cards. When you refinance Parent PLUS Loans, a private lender pays off your existing Parent PLUS Loans, which means you no longer will have the benefits of a federal government loan.

The process to refinance Parent PLUS Loans is simple. You can compare Parent PLUS Loans refinance lenders and then check your new interest rate for free in about two minutes with no impact to your credit score. Then, you can apply online in about 10-15 minutes

Refinance Parent PLUS Loans in your child’s name

Can a Parent PLUS Loan be transferred to the student? Many Parent PLUS Loans borrowers ask whether they can transfer Parent PLUS Loans to their child. The short answer is no, you can’t directly transfer Parent PLUS Loans to a child. However, you can refinance Parent PLUS Loans in your child’s name with certain private lenders. To qualify, the student must qualify for student loan refinancing. That means your child must have good credit (at least 650 or higher), stable and recurring income, and a low debt-to-income ratio.

How to Discharge Parent PLUS Loans

There are certain circumstances when you Parent PLUS Loans can be discharged. They include, among others:

• You, as the Parent PLUS Loan borrower, die
• Your child, for whom you borrowed a Parent PLUS Loan, dies
• You become totally and permanently disabled
• Your Parent PLUS Loans are discharged in bankruptcy
• The school that your child attended closed before your child completed a degree
• The school improperly said you were eligible to receive a Parent PLUS Loan

Parent PLUS Forgiveness: Final Thoughts

While you can get Parent PLUS forgiveness, the options are limited. You can consolidate your Parent PLUS Loans, enroll in Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR), and receive forgiveness after 25 years. Alternatively, you could consolidate your Parent PLUS Loans, enroll in ICR, make 120 monthly payments, and receive Parent PLUS Loan forgiveness after 10 years.

If neither option is appealing, you could remain on the Standard Repayment Plan and pay off Parent PLUS Loans after 10 years. Alternatively, you could pay off your student loans faster when you refinance Parent PLUS Loans.

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Revised Pay As You Earn (REPAYE) is the newest income-driven repayment plan for your federal student loans. The U.S. Department of Education offers income-driven repayment plans for your federal student loans, and they can lower your monthly student loan payment to as little as $0. There are four income-driven repayment plans:Income-Based Repayment (IBR), Pay As You Earn (PAYE), Revised Pay As You Earn (REPAYE) and Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR).

Before you enroll in REPAYE, it’s important to understand the advantages and disadvantages of income-driven repayment plans. This will help ensure that you choose the income-driven payment plan that is best for you. In this guide, we will address everything you need to know about Revised Pay As You Earn (REPAYE).

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How Does Revised Pay as You Earn Work?

Revised Pay As You Earn (PAYE) is an income-driven repayment plan that caps your monthly federal student loan payment at 10% of your monthly discretionary income and forgives your remaining federal student loan balance after 20 years (undergraduate student loans) or 25 years (graduate student loans).

Payment Amount: 10% of your discretionary income.

Your discretionary income is equal to the difference between your adjusted gross income and 150% of the federal poverty guidelines based on your family size and state of residence.

You can use this Revised Pay As You Earn (PAYE) calculator to determine what your monthly payment and student loan forgiveness would be under REPAYE.

Repayment period: 20 – 25 years.

The repayment period for undergraduate student loans is 20 years. The repayment period for graduate student loans is 25 years.

Advantages:

• You can receive lower monthly payments based on what you earn
• REPAYE offers one of the lowest monthly payments of any income-driven repayment plan
• You can receive student loan forgiveness after 20 or 25 years

Disadvantages:

• You may pay more student loan interest
• You may pay off your student loans before you receive student loan forgiveness
• Any student loan forgiveness you receive may be taxable

How Do You Qualify For REPAYE?

To qualify for REPAYE, you don’t have to demonstrate financial need nor does it matter when you borrowed federal student loans. REPAYE is one of the easiest of the four income-driven repayment plans for which you can qualify.

What Student Loans Are Eligible For REPAYE?

There are several student loans that are eligible for REPAYE. Importantly, REPAYE is available only for Direct Loan borrowers.

Eligible Student Loans:

• Direct Loans (subsidized and unsubsidized)
• Direct PLUS Loans made to graduate or professional students (but not made to parents)
• Direct Consolidation Loans that did not repay any PLUS loans made to parents

Eligible Student Loans, if consolidated:

• Federal Stafford Loans (subsidized and unsubsidized)
• FFEL PLUS Loans made to graduate or professional students (but not made to parents)
• FFEL Consolidation Loans that did not repay any PLUS loans made to parents
• Federal Perkins Loans

How do you know if you have federal student loans?

If you have federal student loans, you can enroll in REPAYE at StudentLoans.gov. You can enroll in an income-driven repayment plan, including REPAYE, at any time. Alternatively, you can complete a paper form through your student loan servicer.

How do you know if you have federal student loans? Follow these steps:

1. Check the National Student Loan Data System.
2. You will need for Federal Student Aid ID, which you created when you applied for the Free Application For Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®).
3. All your federal student loans will be listed in the National Student Loan Data System.

Alternatively, you can contact your student loan servicer, who can tell you whether you have federal student loans, private student loans or both. If you only have private student loans, you won’t qualify for an income-driven repayment plan. However, you can lower your interest rate and lower your monthly payment through student loan refinancing.

How Do You Enroll in REPAYE?

Once you verify that you have federal student loans, it’s time to enroll in REPAYE. You will need the following:

• Your Federal Student Aid ID
• Your social security number
• If you are married, your spouse’s social security number
• Recent pay stubs or a signed letter on company letterhead from within the last 90 days showing dates and hours worked
• Your spouse’s income and whether you spouse has student loans

Once you have this information, you will be asked several questions. Make sure to follow these steps:

1. Enter Personal Information

You will be asked to enter basic personal information.

2. Choose REPAYE

You can either choose an income-driven repayment plan, or you can have your student loan lender help choose the income-driven repayment plan that qualifies you for the lowest monthly payment. If you are ready to choose Revised Pay As You Earn, you should indicate whether you want to enroll in a new income-driven repayment plan, switch to a different income-driven repayment plan or resubmit the same information.

3. Enter information about your spouse and family

First, you will provide information about your family, including your children and dependents. Then, you will provide information about your spouse, including your spouse’s social security number, date of birth, income, whether your spouse has student loans and tax filing status. If you are not married, you will provide your income information.

4. Provide your income information

Next, you will provide your income information, which is supported by either a pay stub or letter from your employer. You can verify your adjusted gross income from your most recent federal tax returns. Alternatively, you can use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool, which will add your income information directly to your income-driven repayment plan application. If you did not file an income tax return, you can provide a paystub. If you are unemployed, you can provide documentation that shows your unemployment benefits.

5. Certify your request to enroll in REPAYE

Certify that you are requesting to enroll in REPAYE.

What Is the Best Income-Driven Repayment Plan?

The best income-driven repayment plan depends on your unique financial situation, circumstances and goals. The best income-driven repayment plan is typically the repayment plan with the lowest monthly payment. Rather than choose your own income-driven repayment plan, you can let your student loan servicer enroll you in the plan you qualify for with the lowest monthly payment. You can select this option when directly on the income-driven repayment plan application.

Is REPAYE Right for Me?

Revised Pay As You Earn (REPAYE) is the best income-driven repayment plan when:

• You are not married
• You expect your income to increase over time
• You do not have graduate school student loans
• You want to minimize interest accrual on your student loans

Is REPAYE A Good Idea?

The major difference between REPAYE and other income-driven repayment plans is REPAYE has an advantageous student loan interest subsidy. Here’s why. Income-driven repayment plans enable you to lower your monthly student loan payment to as low as $0. However, even though your monthly payment may be lower, student loan interest still accrues on your student loans. Income-driven repayment plans help to subsidize student loan interest while you repay your student loans.

REPAYE has the most generous student loan interest subsidy compared to other income-driven repayment plans. Here’s how REPAYE covers your student loan interest:

• REPAYE will pay all the difference on subsidized student loans.
• REPAYE will pay 50% of the difference on subsidized student loans during your first three years of student loan repayment.
• After three years, REPAYE will cover 50% of your student loan interest on both subsidized student loans and unsubsidized student loans.

What Are the Disadvantages of Revised Pay as You Earn?

There are several disadvantages of choosing Revised Pay As You Earn (REPAYE). However,it’s important to note that REPAYE offers relatively more favorable interest subsidies than other income-driven repayment plans such as Pay As You Earn (PAYE) and Income-Based Repayment (IBR).

Here are some disadvantage of Revised Pay As You Earn (REPAYE) and income-driven repayment plans:

• You might pay more for your student loans
• You may not receive student loan forgiveness
• You must recertify income each year
• Your student loan payments can increase
• You may owe income tax

You might pay more for your student loans

Income-driven repayment plans such as REPAYE do not lower your interest rate. Interest will accrue on your federal student loans, even if you pay less each month. Therefore, you could pay more in total interest with an income-driven repayment plan than you would under the Standard Repayment Plan. If you want to lower your interest rate, then consider student loan refinancing.

You may not receive student loan forgiveness

Revised Pay As You earn offers federal student loan forgiveness after 20 or 25 years. However, you may pay off your student loans before you receive any student loan forgiveness.

You must recertify income each year

When you enroll in Revised Pay As You Earn, you must recertify your income annually to determine your monthly payment and to ensure that you qualify for the same income-driven repayment plan. Annual recertification of income can take more time from your schedule.

Your student loan payments can increase

With Revised Pay As You Earn, your monthly payment may change. With a Standard Repayment Plan, you make the same fixed monthly student loan payment. With an income-driven repayment plan, however, your payments may increase over time if your income increases.

You may owe income tax

You may be liable for income tax on the amount of student loan forgiveness that you receive, since the federal government considers this income. An exception to this rule is if you enroll in Public Service Loan Forgiveness. If you receive federal student loan forgiveness through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, then you are not liable for income tax on the amount of student loan forgiveness that you receive.

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Company Overview: LendKey

LendKey is a unique platform based in New York City that has served over 65,000 borrowers with almost $2 billion in approved loans across all 50 states. While not a direct lender, LendKey compares offers from more than 265 community banks and credit unions to find you the best one. By financing your student loan with a community bank or credit union, you also may get access to checking and savings accounts, as well as auto, personal and home loans.

LendKey Private Student Loans Overview

LendKey offers attractive rates and terms compared with other top lenders of student loans:

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How LendKey Compares: Key Benefits For Student Loans

Here are some of the reasons that LendKey borrowers love LendKey student loans:

• Low Rates: LendKey gives you access to community banks and credit unions that compete to give you the lowest rate for student loans.
• Lower Rate With Cosigner: If you apply with a creditworthy cosigner, LendKey may give you a lower interest rate compared to the interest rate you could get on your own.
• Undergraduate & Graduate:With LendKey,you can borrow undergraduate student loans or graduate student loans.
• Cosigner Release: If you have made consecutive, full on-time principal and interest payments, then LendKey offers co-signer release to creditworthy borrowers.
• Unemployment Protection: LendKey offers one of the longest unemployment protection periods of all student loan companies. LendKey enables you to pause payments for up to 18 months if you become unemployed.
• Ability To Lower Interest Rate: If you repay 10% of your loan by the time your loan enters the full repayment period, 1.0% APR is dropped from your current interest rate!

Eligibility Criteria

To apply for LendKey student loans, you need to meet the following eligibility criteria:

Requirements To Apply For LendKey Student Loans

Minimum Age: At least age of majority in your state

Citizenship/Residency: U.S. citizen or permanent resident (applies to co-signer too, if any)

Eligible Schools: You plan to attend a Title IV accredited university or graduate program

Generally, LendKey lends only to borrowers (or cosigners) with good to excellent credit. Loan approval may depend on a number of additional factors, including, but not limited to, your (or your cosigner’s) financial history, employment experience, and monthly income vs. expenses.

Bottom Line: Is LendKey right for you?

LendKey has an excellent reputation and is a leader in the student loan industry. LendKey caters to borrowers (including cosigners) with good to strong credit. The average LendKey borrower has an average credit score of at least 680. Minimum income for an LendKey borrower is $24,000 and minimum credit score is 660. However, the typical borrower has 700+ credit score and an average income of at least $70,000. The average LendKey member earns enough income to pay student loans, other debt obligations and monthly living expenses.

When you apply through LendKey, your student loans will be originated by one of its partner banks or credit unions. You will get to become a member of the credit union or bank that funds your student loans. Community banks and credit unions are known for high-touch customer service, low rates and personalized service, since they don’t have the bureaucracy of larger banks. LendKey will still service your student loans through LendKey’s platform so they are always available to answer your questions.

Next Steps: How To Apply To LendKey

You can apply for LendKey student loans in 3 easy steps:

Step 1: Check your personalized LendKey student loan rate in just 2 minutes.

Step 2: Complete application and upload documents.

Step 3: Accept loan terms and get funded.

The good news is that you can check your personalized student loan rate online with LendKey in 2 minutes. This way, you’ll know whether you can be approved for LendKey student loans before you complete the full application. Therefore, LendKey will provide you with a personalized student loan rate estimate. The pre-approval is only a soft credit pull so there is no impact to your credit.

If you have been pre-approved, the online application only takes 10-15 minutes to complete.

Applying is super easy – get your personalized rate in 2 minutes

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Company Overview: College Ave

Founded in 2014 and based in Washington, D.C., College Ave is a student loan company was founded by former Sallie Mae executives. College Ave positions itself as having flexible repayment terms and helps borrowers obtain a lower monthly student payment (not just a lower interest rate). College Ave offers undergraduate student loans, graduate student loans and parent loans as well as student loan refinancing.

College Ave Private Student Loans Overview

College Ave offers attractive rates and terms for student loans compared with other top lenders of student loans:

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How College Ave Compares: Key Benefits For Student Loans

Here are some of the reasons that College Ave borrowers love College Ave student loans:

• Loan Customization: College Ave has a useful tool that helps you choose your loan term length, interest rate and repayment plan.
• Lower Rate With Cosigner: If you apply with a creditworthy cosigner, College Ave may give you a lower interest rate compared to the interest rate you could get on your own.
• Deferment and Forbearance: College Ave may allow borrowers to pause their student loan payments if you return to school or enter the military. College Ave may also let you pause your student loan payments through a forbearance.
• Repayment Flexibility: College Ave offers multiple, flexible repayment plans so you can determine which student loan repayment plan is right for you.

Eligibility Criteria

To apply for College Ave student loans, you need to meet the following eligibility criteria:

Requirements To Apply For College Ave Student Loans

Minimum Age: At least age of majority in your state

Citizenship/Residency: U.S. citizen or permanent resident (applies to co-signer too, if any)

Education: Attend school at least half-time at a qualifying school

Loan approval may depend on a number of additional factors, including, but not limited to, your (or your cosigner’s) financial history, credit profile, and monthly income vs. expenses.

College Ave Repayment Plans

College Ave provides several flexible repayment plans for your student loans while you are in school:

1. Full Principal & Interest Payment: Start repaying your principal and interest right away to save the most money. This yields the highest in-school payment, but results in the lowest overall cost.
2. Interest-Only Payment: Pay interest only each month while you are in school. This results in moderate in-school payment.
3. Flat Payment: Make $25 payments each month while in school to reduce your accrued interest. This yields the lowest in-school payment.
4. Deferred Payments: No in-school payments required, and you defer your student loan payment until six months after you leave school. You will pay more in interest over the life of your student loan. This yields no student loan payment while you are in school, but will result in the highest overall cost.

Bottom Line: Is College Ave right for you?

College Ave has an excellent reputation in the student loan industry. The minimum credit score for College Ave student loans are typically in the mid-600’s, although many borrowers have a credit score above 700. Atypical College Ave borrower with a cosigner has an annual income of at least $80,000 (including the income of the cosigner).

Next Steps: How To Apply To College Ave

You can apply for a College Ave student loan in 3 easy steps.

Step 1: Check your personalized student loan rate in just 2 minutes.

Step 2: Complete application and upload documents.

Step 3: Accept loan terms and get funded.

The good news is that you can check your personalized student loan rate online with College Ave in 2 minutes. This way, you’ll know whether you can be approved for College Ave student loans before you complete the full application. Therefore, College Ave will provide you with a personalized student loan rate estimate. The pre- approval is only a soft credit pull so there is no impact to your credit.

If you have been pre-approved, the online application only takes 10-15 minutes to complete.

Applying is super easy – Get your personalized rate in 2 minutes

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Company Overview: Ascent

Ascent is an innovative private student loan program that provides access to higher education funding for an expanded population of students, while encouraging the financial wellness of students and their families through financial literacy. Ascent offers three repayment options for its student loans. Ascent Student Loans are funded by Bank of Lake Mills, Member FDIC. Campus Door administers the student loan application processing activities for Ascent Student Loans.

Ascent Student Loans Overview

Ascent offers attractive rates and terms compared with other top lenders of student loans. There are two types of Ascent student loans:

1. Ascent Cosigned Loan
2. Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan

Ascent Cosigned Loan

The Ascent Cosigned Loan is cosigned graduate or undergraduate student loan. Therefore, you can apply for the Ascent Cosigned Loan if you need to apply with a qualified and creditworthy cosigner. The rates on an Ascent Cosigned Loan are lower than the rates on an Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan because with an Ascent Cosigned Loan, you would have a qualified, creditworthy cosigner.

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How Ascent Cosigned Loans Compare: Key Benefits

Here are some of the reasons that Ascent Cosigned Loan borrowers love Ascent Cosigned Loans:

• Lower Rate With Cosigner: If you apply with a credit worthy cosigner, Ascent Cosigned Loan includes a lower interest rate compared to the interest rate you could get on your own with the Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan.
• International Students: International students and non-U.S. citizens can qualify for an Ascent student loan with a qualified, creditworthy cosigner who is a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.
• Deferment: Ascent permits forbearance and deferment options for active duty military deferment, in-school deferment and residency/internship deferment.
• Hardship Forbearance: Ascent offers temporary hardship forbearance. You can apply up to four (4) months at a time for a maximum of 24 months, which is one of the longest forbearance programs in the student loans industry.
• Student Loan Servicer: Ascent uses University Account Services as its student loan servicer.
• 1% Cash Back Reward: 1% Cash Back Reward to students on their loan principle amount upon graduation

Eligibility Criteria

To apply for Ascent Cosigned Loans, you need to meet the following eligibility criteria:

Requirements To Apply For Ascent Cosigned Loans

Minimum Age: At least age of majority in your state

Minimum Income: Your co-signer must have at least $24,000 of annual income

Citizenship/Residency: Students may be a U.S. citizen, U.S. permanent resident, DACA recipient, or U.S. temporary resident.

Education: Must be enrolled at least half time in a Title IV school

Cosigner: Requires a creditworthy co-signer

Generally, Ascent Cosigned Loans are only for borrowers (or cosigners) with good to excellent credit. Loan approval may depend on a number of additional factors, including, but not limited to, your (or your co-signer’s) financial history, employment experience, and monthly income vs. expenses. Ascent will also consider your degree program, major, cost of attendance and expected graduation date.

As part of the application process, Ascent will ask you and your co-signer to take a short online financial literacy course. The good news is that the Ascent Cosigned Loan comes with co-signer release. A co-signer release with Ascent Cosigned Loans means that after you make 12 consecutive on-time payments, you can request that your co-signer be released. Once your co-signer is released, you will assume sole financial responsibility for your student loans.

Ascent Cosigned Loans: Repayment Options

There are three repayment options for Ascent Cosigned Loan:

1. In-School Interest-Only Repayment: You can make interest-only payments on your student loans while enrolled at least half time at a qualified school.
2. Deferred repayment: You can begin student loan payments up to six months after graduation or leaving school.
3. $25 minimum repayment: You can make monthly student loan payment amounts of at least $25 while enrolled at least half time at a qualified school.

Bottom Line: Is Ascent Cosigned loan right for you?

Ascent has an excellent reputation in the student loan industry. The Ascent student loan is created specifically for student loan borrowers who need a cosigner. If you are a college student, it is likely you will need a cosigner, which makes Ascent Cosigned Loans a potentially good fit for you.

Next Steps: How To Apply To Ascent Cosigned Loan

You can apply for an Ascent Cosigned Loans in 3 easy steps.

Step 1: Check your personalized Ascent Cosigned Loan rate in just 2 minutes.

Step 2: Complete application and upload documents.

Step 3: Accept loan terms and get funded.

The good news is that you can check your personalized student loan rate online with Ascent in 2 minutes. This way, you’ll know whether you can be approved for Ascent student loans before you complete the full application. Therefore, Ascent will provide you with a personalized student loan rate estimate. The pre-approval is only a soft credit pull so there is no impact to your credit.

If you have been pre-approved, the online application only takes 10-15 minutes to complete.

When you apply with a cosigner, you may need at least the following documentation:

• Driver’s license or other government identification
• Social Security Number
• Proof of income
• Proof of employment
• Information about your school, including degree program, major, cost of attendance and expected graduation date
• A personal reference from a family member or friend

Applying is super easy – get your personalized rate in 2 minutes

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Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans

The Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan is a non-cosigned graduate or undergraduate student loan. Therefore, you cannot apply for an Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan with a cosigner. If you need to apply with a cosigner, you should apply for the Ascent Cosigned Loan. Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans are best for junior, seniors and graduate student loans who do not need a cosigner. Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans are a good way to build credit in your own name.

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How Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans Compare: Key Benefits

Here are some of the reasons that Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan borrowers love Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans:

• No cosigner required: Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans do not require a cosigner.
• International Students: International students and non-U.S. citizens can qualify for an Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan with a qualified, creditworthy cosigner who is a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.
• Deferment: Ascent permits forbearance and deferment options for active duty military deferment, in-school deferment and residency/internship deferment.
• Hardship Forbearance: Ascent offers temporary hardship forbearance. You can apply up to four (4) months at a time for a maximum of 24 months, which is one of the longest forbearance programs in the student loans industry.
• Student Loan Servicer: Ascent uses University Account Services as its student loan servicer.
• 1% Cash Back Reward: 1% Cash Back Reward to students on their loan principle amount upon graduation

Eligibility Criteria

To apply for Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans, you need to meet the following eligibility criteria:

Requirements To Apply For Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans

Minimum Age: At least age of majority in your state

Citizenship/Residency: Must be a U.S. citizen, U.S. permanent resident, or DACA recipient 

Education: Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan borrowers must have a Satisfactory Academic Performance of 2.9 GPA, will only be available to students who are Junior status or higher, and must be enrolled full-time.

Loan approval may depend on a number of additional factors, including your degree program, major, creditworthiness, cost of attendance, future earnings and expected graduation date.As part of the application process, Ascent will ask you to take a short online financial literacy course to ensure you understand how student loans work.

Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans: Repayment Options

There are three repayment options for Ascent Non-Cosigned Loans:

1. In-School Interest-Only Repayment: You can make interest-only payments on your student loans while enrolled at least half time at a qualified school.
2. Deferred repayment: You can begin student loan payments up to six months after graduation or leaving school.
3. $25 minimum repayment: You can make monthly student loan payment amounts of at least $25 while enrolled at least half time at a qualified school.

Bottom Line: Is Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan right for you?

Ascent has an excellent reputation in the student loan industry. The Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan is created specifically for student loan borrowers who do not need a cosigner. If you are a college junior or senior, or graduate student, then the Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan may be best for you.

Next Steps: How To Apply To Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan

You can apply for an Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan in 3 easy steps.

Step 1: Check your personalized Ascent Non-Cosigned Loan rate in just 2 minutes.

Step 2: Complete application and upload documents.

Step 3: Accept loan terms and get funded.

The good news is that you can check your personalized student loan rate online with Ascent in 2 minutes. This way, you’ll know whether you can be approved for Ascent student loans before you complete the full application. Therefore, Ascent will provide you with a personalized student loan rate estimate. The pre-approval is only a soft credit pull so there is no impact to your credit.

If you have been pre-approved, the online application only takes 10-15 minutes to complete.

When you apply with a cosigner, you may need at least the following documentation:

• Driver’s license or other government identification
• Social Security Number
• Proof of employment, if applicable
• Information about your school, including degree program, major, cost of attendance and expected graduation date
• A personal reference from a family member or friend

Applying is super easy – get your personalized rate in 2 minutes

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This ultimate guide to student loan repayment for doctors will help physicians know how to refinance medical student loans and conquer student loan debt.

Student loan debt for medical students is on the rise. According to the; Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), the average medical school debt is $200,000 for medical school graduates from the Class of 2021. When you combine that with undergraduate student loan debt, the numbers are even higher.

Medical Student Loan Refinancing Guide: Introduction

This student loan refinance guide for doctors covers the key aspects of how to refinance medical student loans and save significant money in the process.

Student loan help comes in many shapes and sizes – student loan refinance, student loan consolidation, student loan forgiveness as well as student loan deferment and student loan forbearance.

This medical student loan refinancing guide will explain how you can save more money with student loan refinance and pay off medical student loans faster.

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What is the best way how to refinance medical student loans?

One of the most frequently asked questions at Mentor Money is how to refinance medical student loans.The goal of this medical student loan refinance guide is to get you a better deal on your medical student loans so you can pay them faster and save money as you do it. Student loan refinance is also about getting you a lower interest rate based on your financial profile, and not just the same fixed interest rate that the federal government offers regardless of your financial profile.

There are multiple benefits to refinancing medical school student loans:

• Lower interest rate. Get a lower interest rate
• Lower payment. Lower your monthly medical school student loan payments
• Change loan term. Shorten or extend your medical school student loan term
• Fixed vs Variable. Switch from a fixed interest rate to a variable interest rate, or vice versa
• Simplify payments. Simplify your monthly student loan payment with a single student loan repayment

You can use the Mentor Money Student Loan Refinancing Calculator to calculate your potential savings when you refinance your medical school student loans. For example, let’s assume that you have $200,000 of medical school student loan debt at an 8% interest rate. When you use the student loan refinancing calculator for refinancing medical student loans, you can see how much money you can save. With a strong credit and income profile, let’s assume that you can refinance medical student loans to a 3% interest rate and the same 10-year loan term. With student loan refinance, you would save $59,440 and lower your monthly payment by $495 per month. The higher your medical school student loan balance, the more money you can save with medical student loan refinancing.

Sounds great, right? You are probably asking yourself a few questions

• Why can I save so much money by refinancing medical school student loans?
• What’s the difference between student loan consolidation and student loan refinance?
• What is the eligibility criteria for refinancing medical school student loans?
• Am I a good candidate for refinancing medical school student loans?
• Who are the best student loan lenders with whom to refinance medical school student loans?

Many people have never heard of student loan refinancing and did not realize it was even an option. That’s why we put together this Mentor Money Medical School Student Loan Refinancing Guide to help you understand the basics, navigate your options, answer key questions, provide the facts and help you through the medical school student loan refinance process.

Student Loan Refinance vs Student Loan Consolidation

When it comes to refinancing medical school student loans, it is important to understand the difference between student loan refinance vs student loan consolidation.

Student Loan Consolidation: Student loan consolidation, specifically direct loan consolidation, is offered by the federal government, and applies only to federal student loans. This means that you cannot consolidate private student loans with the federal government. As the name suggests, student loan consolidation means you combine your existing federal student loans into a single student loan called a Direct Consolidation Loan. The result is one monthly payment and one interest rate. The interest rate on your new consolidated student loan is equal to a weighted average of the interest rates on your existing federal student loans, rounded up to the nearest 1/8%. Therefore, with student loan consolidation, you cannot lower your student loan interest rate, and it is possible that your student loan interest rate will increase. Student Loan Refinancing: Student loan refinance, or private student loan consolidation helps you receive a lower interest rate on your existing federal student loans, private student loans or both. When you refinance medical school loans, a private lender can give you a new student loan, pay off your existing student loans and most importantly give you a lower interest rate. With student loan refinancing, you will have one monthly payment, one student loan and one student loan servicer. Therefore, in addition to a lower interest rate, student loan refinancing is an effective tool to organize and manage your student loans.

Your new student loan interest rate will be based several factors, which may include your credit score, track record of financial responsibility, income, debt to income ratio, monthly cash flow and ability to manage debt payments.

Since the federal government does not refinance student loans, you can think of student loan refinancing as a form of private student loan consolidation – meaning that you refinance with a private student loan company rather than the federal government, with the primary goal to save money and lower your monthly payments. When you refinance your student loans, your new lender pays off your existing student loan and issues you a new private student loan. The goal is to lower your overall interest rate so you can save money on student loan interest costs.

You can compare how much money you can save with medical school student loan refinancing with this helpful student loan consolidation vs refinancing calculator.

Why do you receive a lower interest rate when refinancing medical school student loans?

As you can see in this medical student loan refinancing guide, refinancing medical student loans helps you receive a lower interest rate. Once you know how to refinance medical student loans, you will see why this is the case.

Unlike a federal student loan in which every borrower receives the same interest rate, private student loans are credit-based, which means that your credit history, income and credit score may impact the interest rate on your new student loan. Private student loan companies use different underwriting models to determine qualifications and interest rates.

When you were a medical school student, you likely had a limited credit history and income. Now that you are graduating, pursuing a residency or are working, your credit profile and income profile likely have improved. Plus, you likely have a more established, financial track record.

You can expect that the stronger your financial profile and demonstrated financial responsibility, the lower your student loan refinance interest rate will be. The good news is that some private student loan lenders enable you to have a qualified co-signer (such as a family member), who will assume financial responsibility for your student loan and can help you obtain approval for your student loan application based on their financial profile. The stronger the income profile and credit profile of your qualified co-signer, the lower the interest rate can you receive.

Why Refinance Medical School Loans?

Now that this student loan refinance guide for doctors has showed you why you can receive a lower interest rate and the difference between consolidating medical student loans and refinancing medical school student loans, let’s now discuss why to refinance medical student loans.

The primary reason to refinance student loans is the potential to receive a lower interest rate than your existing student loans. It’s likely that the interest rates on your federal and private student loans are higher than the interest rate you can now receive by refinancing medical student loans. If you have PLUS Loans, your interest rate can be even higher. Now that you are graduating or have graduated and have an income (or job offer) and can demonstrate steady employment, private student loan lenders are likely to offer you a lower interest rate than your current types of student loans. One downside of refinancing student loans is that you lose federal student loan protections such as income-driven repayment options, Perkins Loan cancellation, public service loan forgiveness, teacher-student loan forgiveness, student loan deferment and student forbearance programs, among others. So, if you think you will need these benefits for your federal student loans, then you should check for eligibility to see if you qualify before refinancing medical school student loans. However, if saving money on your student loans is your top priority, then student loan refinance for medical school loans may be your best option.

Income-Driven Repayment Plans

Federal student loans offer benefits that are not offered by private student loan lenders such as income-driven repayment plans, which allow the borrower to make student loan payments based on income. For example, a graduated student loan repayment plan enables the borrower to make low monthly payments at the beginning of the student loan repayment period and increase the student loan payments over time as the borrower’s income increases. Other income-driven repayment programs for borrowers with high debt-to-income ratios allow the borrower to make small monthly student loan payments, and then any remaining principal can be forgiven after 20 or 25 years. These student loan forgiveness programs such as PAYE or REPAYE enable you to pay a lower monthly payment and then have your student loans forgiven after 20 or 25 years. These income-driven repayment plans can be beneficial to lower your monthly student loan payments and provide flexibility, particularly if you have a lower income in the beginning of your career. The downside is that with a lower student loan payment, interest still accrues, or accumulates, on the principal balance. That means even though you are making a monthly payment for student loan repayment of your medical school student loans, your student loan balance may increase over time. This is called negative amortization. So, even though the monthly student loan payment is lower, you may end up paying more for your student loans because of the interest costs.

Student Loan Forgiveness

While this medical school student loan refinance guide focuses on student loan refinancing, federal student loans can offer student loan forgiveness benefits as Public Service Loan Forgiveness and Teacher-Student Loan Forgiveness for borrowers who work in qualifying roles in these professions. If you work in either of these professions, you may want to check whether these benefits apply to you before your refinance student loans. In the Mentor Money Public Service Loan Forgiveness Guide, you can learn that public service student loan forgiveness for qualified borrowers who work in a qualified public service role and make 120 payments (10 years of monthly payments).

Student Loan Deferment and Student Loan Forbearance

Most federal medical school student loans allow you to postpone making medical school student loan payments due to financial hardship. The most common benefits are student loan deferment (during which student loan interest does not accrue) and student loan forbearance (during which student loan interest does accrue). Most private student loan companies do not offer student loan forbearance but do offer some form of student loan deferment, including monthly payment postponement and help finding a new job if you lose your current job. That said, many student loan refinancing lenders today offer some form of payment plan if you face economic hardship. You can check out the latest rates and reviews from the top student loan lenders to learn more.

Where Can I Refinance Student Loans?

When it comes to refinancing medical school student loans, you can learn more about student loan lenders who can offer student loan interest rates starting as low as 2-3%. With Mentor Money’s comparison tools, you can compare the latest student loan rates, loan terms, qualification criteria, student loan refinancing reviews and more.You can also use the Mentor Money Student Loan Refinancing Calculator to calculate how much money you can save when you refinance student loans.

Plus, if you sign up for autopay with your student loan refinancing lender, you can earn a 0.25% discount on your student loan interest rate, which adds up to big savings over the course of your student loan.

Flexible Student Loan Repayment Terms

If you want to know how to refinance medical school loans, it’s helpful to know that student loan refinancing lenders offer borrowers multiple options for student loan repayment, with terms ranging typically from 5 to 20 years. You also will have an opportunity to choose between fixed and variable interest rates. If you want to pay off student loans and get out of debt as quickly as possible, then you will want to choose a shorter-term option (such as 5 years or 10 years).

While you will save on student loan interest costs (compared with a 20-year student loan, for example), your monthly interest costs will be relatively higher than with a longer-term student loan option. However, you may be able to save money depending on how much money you save with your new student loan interest rate.You can compare your monthly payment and total payment depending on your chosen student loan term for medical school student loan refinancing by using our student loan payment calculator.

Am I A Good Candidate To Refinance My Student Loans?

When you first borrowed your medical school student loans, you may have had both a federal student loan and a private student loan. Your federal student loan is likely at the same high rate as everyone else’s, since the federal government offers the same fixed rate to all borrowers. If you have a private student loan, it likely has a high interest rate. This is because when you borrowed that loan, you were in school and you may have had a limited credit history, which meant that your student loan company deemed you a higher credit risk.

Now, you may have graduated, become employed, and developed a stronger credit history. As a result, you may be able to qualify to consolidate and refinance your existing federal student loans and private student loans into a new private loan with a lower interest rate.

If your goal is to obtain a lower interest rate, lower your monthly payments, switch from a variable interest rate to a fixed interest rate (or vice versa), or change the loan term to a longer to shorter number of years to repay your loan, then you may be a good candidate for refinancing medical school student loans.

Do Federal Student Loans Offer the Lowest Interest Rates?

This is a major misconception. As noted in this student loan refinancing guide for doctors, federal student loans often are higher than the interest rates you can receive Particularly for through refinancing medical school student loans. Why? The federal government does not “underwrite” student loans based on the individual borrower. Rather, each borrower gets the same interest rate – regardless of your income, financial profile or credit score. If you score high in these categories, then you are essentially overpaying for your student loan and may be able to obtain a lower student loan interest rate through a private student loan company. This is why student loan refinance with private student loan companies has become such a popular solution for student loan repayment for medical school student loans.

Can I Combine My Federal Student Loans and Private Student Loans When Refinancing Medical School Student Loans?

One of the keys of how to refinance medical school student loans is knowing that you can combine federal and private student loans when refinancing medical school student loans. You also may be able to refinance student loans that you previously consolidated with the federal government through the U.S. Department of Education (e.g., Direct or FFEL) or a private student loan company.

With refinancing medical school student loans, you can decide to only refinance private student loans and leave your federal student loans outstanding. One reason is if you plan to pursue public service loan forgiveness or another income-driven repayment plan. When refinancing medical school student loans, you lose most flexible student loan repayment plans and other protections connected with a federal student loan. That said, some student loan companies offer flexible student loan repayment plans, including student loan deferment and student loan forbearance if you have economic hardship during student loan repayment

What Will My Monthly Payments Look Like When Refinancing Medical School Student Loans?

Hopefully lower than what you are currently paying! You are in the driver seat – so you should consider a student loan that fits your personal and financial needs. Your monthly payment is primarily a feature of your interest rate, loan term and loan amount.

• Fixed Interest Rate. If you have a fixed interest rate, your monthly student loan payment will remain constant each month for the duration of your loan.
• Variable Interest Rate. If you have a variable student loan payment, your monthly loan payment may change each month based on the underlying benchmark such as 1 Month LIBOR.
• Shorter-Term Loan. If you have a shorter-term student loan (e.g., 10 years or less), your monthly payments may be higher than if you have a longer-term loan (more than 10 years) because you have a shorter period to pay off the loan.
• Longer-Term Loan. The longer the term of your loan (e.g., the number of years to pay back your loan), the more interest that will accrue over time and the more interest you will owe.

So, you should decide how much you can afford to pay now versus over time and find the loan product that works best for your personal and financial needs. And remember – most student loan companies offer up to 0.25% discount off your interest rate if you sign up for auto pay. The autopay savings can really add up.You can use this student loan refinancing calculator to calculate your new monthly payment so you know it will look like and can compare it to your previous monthly student loan payment.

What If I Want To Know How To Refinance Medical School Student Loans During Residency?

If you want to know how to refinance medical student loans during residency, then we’ve got you covered in this medical student loan refinancing guide. The goal of refinancing medical school student loans during residency is to lower your interest rate and/or monthly payment. While you are in medical school, your medical school student loans accrue interest and enter repayment six months after graduation. As a medical resident, you’ll have a relatively low salary and high student loan debt payments.

The good news is that you have a few options:

1. Defer your medical school student loans

During your residency or fellowship, you could defer payments on your medical school student loans. However, this option should be your last choice because it is expensive. If you defer payments on your medical school student loans, interest will still accrue. While you can defer federal student loans, you may not be able to defer private student loans. This deferral option is very expensive and potentially could cost you tens of thousands of dollars in extra interest payments.

2. Select an income-driven repayment plan for public service role

If you are interested in public service loan forgiveness, then you will need to enroll in a federal student loan repayment plan. Since your monthly payment will be lowered, interest will accrue and your student loan balance could increase during your repayment period.

3. Refinance medical student loans during residency Typically, you need have high income and low debt (known as a low debt-to-income ratio) in order to be approved for refinancing medical school student loans. However, having high income and low debt is not possible while you are a resident. The good news is that some lenders such as Laurel Road;will refinance medical school student loans for residents. Refinancing medical school student loans during residency can be a good option to lower your interest rate. The good news is that you can refinance your student loans again once you complete your residency and fellowship and have a higher income. Since refinancing medical school student loans has no fees and there is no limit on the number of times that you can refinance, you should consider refinancing medical school student loans again to get a lower rate after residency.

What Key Financial Terms Do I Need To Know When Refinancing Medical School Student Loans?

Principal: The original amount of money that you borrowed, plus any capitalized interest (from an origination fee). Term: Also known as the loan term, this is the amount of time that your student loan will be in repayment.APR: APR refers to the annual percentage yield. APR is the cost of borrowing and is listed as a percentage. APR includes the interest rate plus any origination fees, if any.

Interest: Interest will accrue on your student loans based on your interest rate.

Accrued Interest: The amount of interest that has accumulated on your student loan since your last student loan payment.

Capitalized Interest: This is when accrued interest is added to the principal balance of your student loan. This typically occurs after forbearance or another period in which you temporarily paused your student loan payments.

ACH Payment: ACH stands for automated clearing house and is used to make automatic payments for your student loans, which typically can result in a 0.25% discount on your interest rate.

Prepayment: Student loan prepayment means you pay more than the monthly minimum student loan payment. The good news is that there is no prepayment penalty for student loans so you can pay them off early anytime at no additional cost. Plus, you will save money in the form of interest costs when you prepay student loans. You can use this student loan prepayment calculator to see how much money you can save.

Origination Fee: When you borrowed your federal student loans, the federal government charged you an origination fee, which is an upfront fee for processing your application. The good news is that there are no origination fees when refinancing medical school student loans.

Deferment: This is when you postpone (temporarily) your student loan payments typically due to financial or other hardship. During this time, interest may or may not accrue. For example, if you have federal student loans, the federal government may pay interest on your Direct subsidized student loans, subsidized Stafford Loans or your Perkins Loans.

Forbearance: This is when you postpone your student loans (temporarily), but interest typically continues to accrue.

What Happens To Your Student Loan Interest Rate With Student Loan Consolidation?

This is the biggest difference between student loan consolidation and student loan refinancing. When refinancing medical school student loans,the goal is to receive a lower interest rate or better overall terms for your student loan repayment. However, with a Direct Loan Consolidation, your interest rate will be calculated based on the weighted average of the interest rates on the loans being consolidated, rounded up to the nearest 1/8%.While most federal student loans are eligible for student loan consolidation – private loans are not. Also worth remembering – if you’re a parent with Parent PLUS loan, you cannot transfer that Parent PLUS loan to the student (now graduate) when he or she consolidates.

Do I Qualify For Student Loan Refinance?

To qualify for refinancing medical school student loans, you usually need to show a few things.

1. You need to have graduated from a qualified degree program or university, which is typically a Title IV accredited school.
2. You need to have a steady stream of income (or a written job offer)
3. You need a history of financial responsibility.

Each lender has different criteria for eligibility.

Typically, eligibility criteria for refinancing medical school student loans include:

• Healthy credit
• Strong monthly cash flow
• Demonstrated financial responsibility
• Currently employed or have written job offer
• Degree from Title IV accredited university or degree program

Of course, eligibility criteria vary by student loan company, but this should give you a general framework. The stronger your financial metrics – for example, credit score, income, historical financial responsibility, current outstanding debt – the lower student loan interest rate you may be able to obtain.

Student Loan Refinance Process: How To Refinance Medical School Student Loans

How to refinance medical school student loans is one of the top questions we receive at Mentor Money. Now that you have made the decision to refinance your student loans, it is time to understand the process for refinancing medical school student loans. Over the past five years, the process for refinancing medical school student loans has been simplified considerably. Gone are the days of piles of paperwork, long wait times and bureaucracy.

So, what does the process for refinancing medical school student loans look like?

1. Easy Online Application Process

• All the student loan refinance applications are online and you receive a student loan interest rate offer for free with no impact to your credit score typically within 2 minutes
• The total refinancing medical student loans application takes 10-15 minutes to complete
• Co-signers can also apply online as well

2. Select Your Student Loan

• You can choose a fixed or variable student loan interest rate
• You can choose your loan term and decide how fast you want to pay off your student loan
• Typical loan terms are 5-20 years with medical school student loan refinancing

3. Submit Your Student Loan Documentation

• You can submit your student loan documentation online
• Some lenders will allow you to take a photo of your documents, or even submit via text
• Key documents may include your:
  • Driver’s license or passport (or government issued ID)
  • Transcript / Diploma to verify your degree
  • Payoff statement from your current lender
  • Monthly rentor mortgage statement
  • Two most recent pay stubs or tax returns (or offer letter of employment)

4. Student Loan Lender Underwriting Review

• The lender will review your submitted documents and credit report
• The lender will apply its proprietary credit model to ensure that you meet all its underwriting criteria

5. You’re Approved!

6. Review Disclosures & Sign Loan Documentation

• Review truth in lending and other disclosure statements
• Sign your student loan documentation

7. Your Student Loan Is Disbursed

• If you refinance, your lender will issue you a new student loan and directly pay off your existing student loan from your existing lender
• If you borrow a new student loan, your lender will send the funds directly to your school

Top 10 Must Haves From Your Student Loan Company When Refinancing Medical School Student Loans

When you refinance medical school student loans, here are the Top 10 benefits:

1. Lower interest rate
2. Flexible loan terms
3. Significant savings compared to existing medical school student loans
4. Fixed and variable interest rates
5. Dedicated and available customer service
6. Ability to refinance federal and private medical school student loans
7. Online application
8. Forbearance options in case of economic hardship
9. Autopay discount
10. Other benefits

I am interested in refinancing medical school student loans. How do I sign up?

While it used to be a cumbersome process that involved mountains of paperwork and hours of your time, now in just two minutes, you could learn what your new student loan interest rate could be – for free and with no impact to your credit score. The reason your credit score is not impacted because lenders only do a soft credit check, which is not the same as a hard credit pull. To learn more about student loan refinance options, you can compare the latest rates to refinance medical school student loans.

Compare student loan refinancing rates and pay off medical student loans faster

Find a new student loan interest rate in only 2 minutes. Your credit score is not impacted when you view a new rate.

These are our highest-rated options to refinance medical school loans.

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If California Assembly Democrats have their way, California college students may benefit from the nation’s most ambitious plan to date for students to avoid student loan debt.

The Degrees Not Debt program, which California Democratic lawmakers proposed Monday, would assist nearly 400,000 University of California and California State University students pay for tuition and living expenses – with the ultimate goal to help students avoid student loan debt.

According to student loan debt statistics from Mentor, the average student loan debt per graduate in California is $22,191. Student loan debt per capita in California is $4,160 compared with the average student loan debt per capita in the U.S. of $4,920.

According to the California Assembly Democratic Caucus, the program would be implemented over five years and cost $1.6 billion.

“It’s by far the most comprehensive and wide-reaching proposal in the country,” Lupita Cortez Alcalá, executive director of the California Student Aid Commission, told the Los Angeles Times.

The plan also increases grants to community college students and would make the first year of community college tuition-free.

Students would still have access to Pell Grants, Middle-Class Scholarships, and other university scholarships. Students whose parents earn more than $60,000 per year would be expected to help pay for college, and students would be expected to hold a part-time job to help cover college costs.

The remaining tuition costs – about $33,000 at University of California schools and $22,000 at California State schools – would be covered by the program.

According to the California Legislative Office, more than 60% of Cal State students and approximately 50% of University of California and community college students have their tuition fully covered by existing California aid programs, which total about $2 billion.

The latest California proposal differs from other tuition-free college proposals in New York, San Francisco, Oregon and Tennessee by providing more assistance to cover living expenses for college students.

At University of California schools, for example, living expenses can account for about 60% of college costs. However, this proposal would not cover the cost of living expenses for community college students.

Democratic lawmakers face an uphill battle to gain the support of California Governor Jerry Brown, a fellow Democrat. Brown has been opposed to increased spending so the likelihood of including the proposal in the state budget, which is due this June, remains slim.

California legislators have proposed over 30 bills this year to make college for affordable for Californians. This latest proposal comes after University of California regents this January approved a 2.5% tuition increase and California State trustees are considering a 5% tuition increase.

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San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee announced at a press conference yesterday that, starting next fall, the community college will be tuition-free for all San Francisco residents through the City College of San Francisco.

As first reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco would become the first city in the nation to make community college free to all city residents. Any student who has lived in San Francisco for at least one year – regardless of income – is eligible.

“To California residents who are living in San Francisco, your community college is now free,” Lee said at the press conference.

The announcement follows a plan introduced by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to provide free tuition to New York residents whose families earn less than $125,000 per year to any of New York’s state universities (State University of New York, or SUNY), city colleges (City University of New York, or CUNY) or community colleges.

However, the New York and San Francisco plans differ in several ways. While Cuomo’s tuition-free plan is income-based and includes all New York public universities, city colleges and community colleges, the San Francisco plan only applies to community colleges. Unlike Cuomo’s plan, the San Francisco plan will cover tuition for both full-time and part-time students and provide $500 for books and supplies for full-time, low-income students (whose tuition fees are currently waived) and $200 for part-time, low-income students.

San Francisco will fund tuition through Proposition W, which San Francisco voters approved last November. Proposition W imposes a transfer tax on properties that sell for $5 million or higher. The expected annual cost is $5.4 million, which the mayor committed to spend for the next two years. Of that total, $2.1 million is designated for tuition and $3.3 million for student expenses for current students as well as a 20% increase in enrollment.

Argus Institutional Headcount estimates that the City College of San Francisco serves approximately 60,000 students (about 36,000 of whom are considered credit headcount) each year, down from a high of over 100,000 students from the 2002-2003 academic year. According to the San Francisco Examiner, the school lost about one-third of its enrollment due to an issue regarding accreditation, which has since been resolved and last month was re-accredited for seven years.

Mentor can help you learn more about student loan options:

• Student Loan Refinancing
• Federal Student Loan Consolidation
• Income-Driven Repayment Plans
• Student Loan Forgiveness

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If you have, or will have, student loans, the name Betsy DeVos is someone that you should know.

DeVos is President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for U.S. Secretary of Education and, if confirmed by the U.S. Senate following her confirmation hearing on Tuesday, will have significant impact on your student loans over the next four years.

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Who Is Betsy DeVos?

DeVos is a billionaire businesswoman, philanthropist and former chairwoman of the Michigan Republican Party. She is the daughter-in-law of Richard DeVos, the founder of Amway. DeVos is also the chairwoman of Windquest Group, a privately held operating group of companies that invests in technology, manufacturing and clean energy. Before she was nominated on November 23, 2016, DeVos supported Jeb Bush, Carly Fiorina and Marco Rubio in the Republican primary.

DeVos is a strong proponent of charter schools and school vouchers (which allow students to attend private schools with public funding) and believes in increased choice within the education system. Her detractors, including teachers’ unions such as the National Education Association, believe that DeVos wants to privatize the education market. Further, they note that unlike previous education secretaries, DeVos lacks the requisite experience for the role because she has never: been an educator, directed a state department of education, attended public school or had children who attended public school.

Why Did President-Elect Trump Pick DeVos?

“Betsy DeVos is a brilliant and passionate education advocate,” Trump said in a statement after nominating DeVos. “Under her leadership we will reform the U.S. education system and break the bureaucracy that is holding our children back so that we can deliver world-class education and school choice to all families.”

While DeVos’ public views on charter schools and school vouchers are well known, there is more to learn regarding her position on student loans.

Here are five questions that would help provide more insights for current and prospective student loan borrowers:

Student Loan Questions

1. What role should private banks play in student loans compared with the federal government?

Trump has called for the potential reduction of the federal government’s role in student lending and a corresponding increase in the role of private lenders in the issuance of federal student loans. He has criticized the amount of “profit” that the government generates from student loans, which may signal a reduction of interest rates for federal student loans.

If both the federal government and private lenders originate student loans, this would mark a return to the pre-2010 era when the federal government issued student loans and private banks issued federally-backed student loans. In 2010, the Obama administration began originating all federal student loans through the Direct Loan program.

• Would the federal government lower student loan interest rates for federal student loans?
• What is your perspective on the private sector expanding its role in student loan refinancing?

2. What is the proper amount of risk sharing between the federal government and universities with respect to student loan defaults?

While universities set tuition rates, the federal government currently takes all the risk when a student defaults on his or her federal student loans.

• Is this fair? Should colleges and universities assume a portion of this risk?

Trump has also called on colleges and universities with large endowments to help lower the cost of tuition (or face potential loss of tax exempt status).

• Do you agree?
• How would this be measured?

3. What is the future of the Public Service and Teacher Loan Forgiveness Program?

The federal government currently provides student loan forgiveness for public servants and teachers who meet certain qualifications. Public servants, for example, can have 100% of their student loans forgiven after 120 eligible on-time monthly payments.

• What are your perspectives on the Public Service and Teacher Loan Forgiveness Programs?
• Do you believe that these should remain standalone programs?
• Or do you believe that they should be combined into a single income-based repayment program for all student loan borrowers?
• Do you believe that public servants and teachers who are now in repayment will be grandfathered in under the current programs as these programs are presently constructed, since they borrowed with the expectation of entering public service and qualifying for loan forgiveness?

4. What immediate relief, if any, do you think should be available for the millions of borrowers who are afflicted by the student loan crisis in this country?

Last October, Trump proposed an income-based repayment plan that allows borrowers to cap their monthly student loan payments based on their income and then have their student loans forgiven after a certain period of time.

Under Trump’s plan, if you are a student loan borrower, your monthly student loan payments would be capped at 12.5% of your income. After 15 years of monthly payments, your remaining student loan debt would be forgiven.

Today, the standard federal government student loan repayment period is 10 years. Under the Pay As You Earn (PAYE) and Revised Pay As You Earn (REPAYE) income-driven repayment plans, you pay 10% of your discretionary income each month toward your federal undergraduate student loans for 20 years, at which point any remaining balance on your federal undergraduate student loan is forgiven. Under REPAYE, if you have graduate school student loan debt, the repayment period is 25 years before your remaining student loan debt is forgiven.

• In addition to shortening the student loan repayment period, are there other immediate relief measures for student loan borrowers that can be implemented to lessen their financial burden?

5. What do you think of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s plan to offer free college tuition?

Earlier this month, Cuomo introduced a plan to provide free tuition to New York residents whose families earn less than $125,000 per year to any of New York’s state universities (State University of New York or SUNY), city colleges (City University of New York or CUNY) or community colleges.

New York would be the first state to offer free tuition at all its public colleges and universities.

• Do you think this plan should be a model for other states to follow?
• If not, do you believe that there are alternative plans that can achieve greater impact?

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