Tag: Student Loans

Students

Student Loan Service FedLoan Will Not Renew Federal Contract

Student loan servicer The Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA)— also known as FedLoan — will not renew its contract with the federal government when it expires in December, The New York Times reported. FedLoan oversees loans of 8.5 million student borrowers. It is one of the companies the Education Department pays to manage the […]

July 9, 2021

Students

U.S. Department of Education Updates College Scorecard

In the interest of transparency, the U.S. Department of Education is updating College Scorecard to have it provide prospective students with “information on how well borrowers from individual colleges and universities are progressing in repaying their federal student loans, as well as how overall borrower cohorts are faring at certain intervals in the repayment process,” […]

January 13, 2021

Students

Department of Education Extends Student Loan Suspensions Through End of January 2021

U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos said that federal student loan repayment forbearance, including suspension of interest accrual and collections activity has been extended through January 31, 2021. DeVos made the announcement on Friday. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, borrowers haven’t had to make payment since March. But the relief was slated to expire on […]

December 4, 2020

Students

CED Provides Recommendations for Higher Education Reform After COVID-19

New research conducted by the Committee for Economic Development of the Conference Board (CED) provides recommendations to policymakers for how to mitigate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the higher education system.

August 5, 2020

Students

Survey: 30% of High School Students Plan to Delay Their College Start Date

A new survey reveals that 30% of high school students are delaying their college start date while 13% plan to change their original chosen institution due to the coronavirus pandemic.

May 1, 2020

Students

Policy Brief Suggests Reforms to Address Student Debt Crisis During the Pandemic

In the first draft of the $2 trillion United States federal government stimulus package, a cancellation of $10,000 for any loan borrower’s student debt was proposed. However, Congress ultimately voted to give each student borrower a six-month interest-free break on making payments on federal loans. Meaning, individuals do not have to make a student loan payment until October 2020 and there will be not an accrual of interest and penalties during this time.

April 22, 2020

Students

Report: Congress Needs to do a Lot More to Ensure Educational Equity During the Pandemic

To help small businesses, higher education institutions and individuals recover from the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic, Congress recently passed a $2 trillion stimulus package.

April 7, 2020

Students

Ascendium Partially Halts Collection on Defaulted Student Loans For 60 Days

Ascendium, a nonprofit loan guarantor, said in a statement yesterday it is partially halting collection on all defaulted student loans in its portfolio, effective March 26 for at least 60 days. The move follows a March 25 announcement by the Department of Education, which instituted similar relief for federal student loan borrowers to alleviate the […]

March 31, 2020

Students

Education Department Suspends Collection on Late Student Loans Amid Coronavirus Pandemic

Federal student loan borrowers late on their payments have been granted some relief by the Department of Education, which won’t garnish their wages or withhold money from their federal benefits or tax refunds for at least 60 days starting March 13 to alleviate the financial stress caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

March 25, 2020

Students

Report: Almost Half of Student Debt is Being Repaid Through Income-Driven Plans

As of 2017, approximately half of student debt is being repaid through income-driven plans, says a report issued by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) this month. The report, titled “Income-Driven Repayment Plans for Student Loans: Budgetary Cost and Policy Options,” examines the budgetary costs and policy options of income-driven student loan repayment plans. These plans […]

February 17, 2020

Students

Policy Brief Recommends Changes to Federal Aid Requirements

More than one million students default on loans each year with student loan debt reaching $1.5 trillion, according to a policy brief released by Higher Learning Advocates.

November 20, 2019

Students

Can We Fix How We Judge and Pay for College?

You can get a rating on everything — from an Uber driver to a fast food place. But for a recent college graduate like me, finding out things that matter to us about where to go to school and how to pay for it is getting harder, not easier.

September 23, 2019