You’ve done it, congratulations! You have completed your education at UA and will be embarking upon your new career. During this exciting period, if you took out student loans this is also the time to figure out your game plan for repaying them. After graduating, your student loans move into repayment. However, most federal student loans provide at least a six-month grace period, a period for you to get financially settled before you are required to start making regular payments. The grace period for private loans varies by lender, with some providing a six-month grace period, while others require payment as soon as the loan is dispersed. To determine your grace period, contact your loan servicer or check your loan agreement.
Once you begin repaying your student loans, there are various repayment plans available. For federal student loans, you can change repayment plans at any time at no cost to you. This allows you to choose the most affordable repayment plan. Federal Student Aid provides a detailed overview of the different repayment plans available and offers a Loan Simulator that can estimate future payments and suggest the best repayment plan based on individual financial needs and goals. Contact your loan servicer to discuss which repayment plan is best suited for your needs and to change plans. Private student loans offer fewer repayment plans than federal student loans. Contact your lender directly to learn about available repayment plans.
If you have federal student loans, there are certain situations where your loans can be forgiven. Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) is a program that provides loan forgiveness for individuals employed by specific entities. Qualifying employers include government organizations (e.g. U.S. federal, state, local, or tribal government), tax exempt not-for-profit organizations, and full time AmeriCorps or Peace Corps volunteers. For eligible individuals, the PSLF program forgives the remaining balance on eligible loans after making 120 qualifying monthly payments.
The Teacher Loan Forgiveness Program provides up to $17,500 in federal student loan forgiveness for qualifying individuals. To utilize this loan forgiveness program individuals must be full-time teachers for five full, consecutive academic years and work in a low-income school along with meeting other requirements.
Unfortunately, there are currently no loan forgiveness options for private student loans.
For more in-depth information about federal student loan repayment visit Federal Student Aid and for more information about your private student loan contact your lender.
