Master the Basics of Student Loan Repayment
Check out below helpful tips on how to start repayment–beginning with identifying your loan servicer to understanding your monthly loan payment and due date.
Student Loan Repayment Success Tips:
- Keep Your Info Updated: Log into StudentAid.gov using your username and password to confirm your contact information is current so you don’t miss current updates.
- Know Your Loan Status: Check your loan details and balance regularly on your Dashboard or your loan servicer’s website to avoid delinquency or default.
- Explore Repayment Options: Use the Loan Simulator to find the best repayment plan option that fits your budget, or visit Repaying Student Loans 101 to learn more about repayment plans.
- Visit your Loan servicer's website for helpful resources and guidance.
- Pay your loans online through your servicer’s website. Tip: Set up autopay for hassle-free, on-time payments.
- Explore loan forgiveness options that may be available to you.
You have options for managing your student loans. If you need help, reach out to your loan servicer for assistance with payments, repayment plans, or loan forgiveness.
- Email or chat with your loan servicer for personalized support.
- Contact the Federal Student Aid Information Center for help with your StudentAid.gov account.
Income Driven Repayment (IDR) Plan and Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) Plan
Some changes are taking place with the IDR Plan and SAVE Plan. To learn more, visit IDR Plan Court Actions: Impact on Borrowers | Federal Student Aid.
Avoiding Student Loan Scams
Unfortunately, potential student loan scams are on the rise. Be aware of student aid scams and use these tips below to avoid these scams.
Play It Safe: Protect Yourself from Student Loan Scams
Here is how you can spot a scam from a student loan debt relief company:
- They ask for your FSA ID username and password.
- They want you to pay up-front costs or monthly fees.
- They promise instant and complete loan cancellation or loan forgiveness.
- They ask for you to sign and submit a third-party authorization or power of attorney.
- They want you to act right away and claim that their offer is limited.
- Any messages from them have spelling and grammatical errors.
If you are still unsure that it is a scam, visit the Federal Trade Commission for more tips.
Frequently Asked Questions
Your student loan servicer is the company assigned by the U.S. Department of Education to manage your federal student loan(s). They handle billing, answer your questions, and help you choose or adjust your repayment plan. Learn more at Loan Servicers.
If you are enrolled at least half-time, you do not need to start making payments as you have in-school deferment. If you graduate, stop attending classes or drop to less than half-time, you will need to start making student loan payments after your grace period ends.
Visit and log in to studentaid.gov. Once logged in, update your personal information and you can view your student loan servicer. You will then want to log into the loan servicer’s website and create an account.
You can log in to your loan servicer’s website and view your payment amount.
To find the interest rate of your loan(s), log in to view your “My Aid” page. Then scroll down to your Loan Breakdown and select “View Loans” under each servicer’s name. (You may have one or more loan servicers.)
Visit studentaid.gov to review Repaying Student Loans 101.
If you left school within the past 6 months, you will likely still be in your automatic grace period. For most federal student loans, after you graduate, leave school, or drop below half-time enrollment, you have a six-month grace period before you must begin making payments. Not all federal student loans have a grace period.
Pay loans through your account on your loan servicer’s website. Log in to see your loan servicer contact info.
Yes! If making your payment on another date works better for you, reach out to your loan servicer.
Under normal circumstances, your student loan is considered delinquent if you miss a payment by your due date. If no payments are made for more than 270 days, your loan may go into default. Learn more about federal student loan delinquency and default.
Possibly! You can use Loan Simulator to see which repayment plan is right for you.
There are several loan forgiveness options with very specific eligibility requirements. Student loans can be forgiven under certain programs and parameters. To learn more, visit Student Loan Forgiveness | Federal Student Aid
Contact your federal loan servicer to end any power of attorney or third-party authorization agreement. Also, make sure no unwanted changes were made on your loans.
Contact your bank or credit card company, and request that payments to the debt relief company be discontinued.
File a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
File a report of suspicious activity through Student Aid’s Feedback Center.
Most importantly, log in to your FSA account and change your password.
Florida Atlantic University is not responsible for the content on the external websites listed above, nor does FAU endorse, warrant, or guarantee the products, services or information described or offered at these external websites.
Repayment Plans
The Direct Loan Program offers loan repayment plans designed to meet the needs of almost every borrower. Direct Loans are funded by the U.S. Department of Education through your school and are managed by the Direct Loan Servicing Center, under the supervision of the Department. The Direct Loan Program allows you to choose your repayment plan and to switch your plan if your needs change.
- With the standard plan, you'll pay a fixed amount each month until your loans are paid in full. Your monthly payments will be at least $50, and you'll have up to 10 years to repay your loans.
- The standard plan is good for you if you can handle higher monthly payments because you'll repay your loans more quickly. Your monthly payment under the standard plan may be higher than it would be under the other plans because your loans will be repaid in the shortest time. For the same reason - the 10-year limit on repayment - you may pay the least interest.
- To be eligible for the extended plan, you must have more than $30,000 in Direct Loan debt and you must not have an outstanding balance on a Direct Loan as of October 7, 1998. Under the extended plan you have 25 years for repayment and two payment options: fixed or graduated. Fixed payments are the same amount each month, as with the standard plan, while graduated payments start low and increase every two years, as with the graduated plan below.
- This is a good plan if you will need to make smaller monthly payments. Because the repayment period will be 25 years, your monthly payments will be less than with the standard plan. However, you may pay more in interest because you're taking longer to repay the loans. Remember that the longer your loans are in repayment, the more interest you will pay.
- With this plan your payments start out low and increase every two years. The length of your repayment period will be up to ten years. If you expect your income to increase steadily over time, this plan may be right for you. Your monthly payment will never be less than the amount of interest that accrues between payments. Although your monthly payment will gradually increase, no single payment under this plan will be more than three times greater than any other payment.
- This plan gives you the flexibility to meet your Direct Loan obligations without causing undue financial hardship. Each year, your monthly payments will be calculated on the basis of your adjusted gross income (AGI, plus your spouse's income if you're married), family size, and the total amount of your Direct Loans. Under the ICR plan you will pay each month the lesser of:
- the amount you would pay if you repaid your loan in 12 years multiplied by an income percentage factor that varies with your annual income, or
- 20% of your monthly discretionary income.
- If your payments are not large enough to cover the interest that has accumulated on your loans, the unpaid amount will be capitalized once each year. However, capitalization will not exceed 10 percent of the original amount you owed when you entered repayment. Interest will continue to accumulate but will no longer be capitalized.
The maximum repayment period is 25 years. If you haven't fully repaid your loans after 25 years (time spent in deferment or forbearance does not count) under this plan, the unpaid portion will be discharged. You may, however, have to pay taxes on the amount that is discharged.
- Under this plan the required monthly payment will be based on your income during any period when you have a partial financial hardship. Your monthly payment may be adjusted annually. The maximum repayment period under this plan may exceed 10 years. If you meet certain requirements over a specified period of time, you may qualify for cancellation of any outstanding balance of your loans.
A new tool is available from the Direct Lending Student Loans web site to assist students in calculating which repayment plan works best for their individual situation. A student can use the Repayment Estimator to get an early look at which plans they may be eligible for and to see estimates for how much they would pay monthly and over the life of the loan. Sign in with your Federal Student Aid ID as the estimates will be based on your actual loan information from NSLDS. We encourage you to use this tool throughout your education, especially when you are considering accepting a loan award.
Strategies for Resolving Delinquency and Default on Your Student Loans
Top 7 Student Loan Tips for Recent Graduates
- Know what you owe. Monitor every detail about your Federal Stafford loans by going to the NSLDS: National Student Loan Data System. Keep records of your total loan amounts, the amount of your total monthly payments and know when your grace periods end.
- Stay in touch with your lender. Keep in touch with your lenders and don’t stop making your monthly payments without first discussing your situation with your lender. If you find you are unable to make payments due to unemployment, economic hardship, health problems, or other personal situations consult with your lender to find out what options are available to you. Federal student loan repayments can be temporarily postponed through deferment and forbearance. Failing to pay your student loans can have severe consequences that can last throughout your lifetime. Not paying your student loans could affect you credit rating and your ability to borrow money for other purposes, such as purchasing a car or a home.
- Pick the right repayment option for you. Compare Student Loan Repayment Plans With The Student Loan Calculator | Federal Student Aid.
- Research consolidating your federal student loans. Consolidation allows a borrower to combine multiple federal student loans into one loan and one monthly payment. Most federal student loans are eligible for consolidation including Direct Subsidized and Direct Unsubsidized and FFEL Stafford loans, Graduate Direct PLUS loans, and Perkins loans. Consider the impact of losing any borrower benefits offered under repayment for the original loans. Learn more about Things to Know Before Consolidating Federal Direct Student Loans.
- Make additional payments toward the principal loan balance, if you are in a position to do so. Paying a small amount additional each month to be applied to the principal balance will significantly reduce the total amount of interest that you pay. You must include a written request that you want the additional amount applied to the principal loan balance, otherwise your lender will apply it to a future payment.
- Consider the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. Public Service Loan Forgiveness was created as an incentive to graduates to encourage them to enter into public service jobs. After you have made 120 payments on loans under certain repayment plans while employed as a public servant, you may qualify to have your remaining loan balance forgiven. Learn more about Loan Forgiveness.