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The Biden administration's new IDR plan, called SAVE, is going to be a sweetheart deal for many borrowers. If you are a borrower of federal student loans, especially undergraduate ones, this episode is worth a listen.

Since our last episode, quite a few things have occurred in the college and student loan planning space. In this episode, I mention a few of those changes, including the IDR payment adjustment and Biden's SAVE plan. More episodes - with more detail - are coming!

This is the third of a three-part series explaining Biden’s student loan debt relief announcement.

This is the second of a three-part segment explaining Biden’s student loan debt relief announcement.

This is the first of a three-part segment explaining Biden’s student loan debt relief announcement.

Clergy now qualify for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), so they might need to take action under the new PSLF waiver program. Forward this episode long to any clergy you know when your life, and let them know that they can reach out to me at [email protected] if they have any questions.

Yesterday, the Biden-Harris administration announced sweeping loan forgiveness for federal student loan borrowers. This unprecedented program will allow up to $20,000 of loan forgiveness based on income levels and financial need. Specifically, households with an individual income of less than $125,000 or a household income of $250,000 will get $10,000 in debt cancellation. Borrowers who received Pell Grants while in college will get $20,000 in loan forgiveness.

Teacher Loan Forgiveness is a program designed for teachers with federal student loans. Public Service Loan Forgiveness (commonly shortened to PSLF) is the more commonly recognized of the two programs. According to the Department of Education, borrowers cannot pursue both of these programs simultaneously. Under the new PSLF waiver program, the double-counting restriction is temporarily waived, as are many other normal PSLF requirements. Check out the full blog post here: https://gradmetrics.com/teacher-loan-forgiveness-and-pslf/. 

Will the Biden administration offer blanket loan forgiveness? Hear my thoughts in this most recent episode of the Gradcentric podcast.

If you are going to take out student loan debt, it is best to do so for a field with good earning potential and high demand. Nursing is one of those fields. The Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook reports nurses had a median pay of $75,330/year and the field was growing at 9% in 2020. Not bad at all. In addition to great earning potential and career opportunities, nursing has lucrative loan forgiveness programs available to those willing to meet the requirements. Check out the blog post with links at: https://gradmetrics.com/nurse-loan-forgiveness Check out the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/umHAn5IZ7KY

As you might imagine, doctors exit their education with a lot of student loan debt. This debt load is exacerbated with the elongated timeframe between graduation and becoming a practicing physician. These intervening years are extremely important for managing debt over the long haul. Doctors will generally take one of two pathways in dealing with their student loan debt. The first is payoff outright. The second is loan forgiveness in its many forms, most notably Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF). Luckily, most doctors will make a very respectable income after training is complete. In other words, they have options other borrowers do not in terms of payoff. This does not mean, however, that mistakes will not be costly. In fact, since doctors are working with larger loan balances, missteps can easily cost thousands.

A common question I get from families is: can my student can gain residency and qualify for in-state tuition? The answer is, unfortunately, it depends. The rules vary state-to-state and college-to-college. Some states make this an easier process whereas some make it near impossible. Also, keep in mind that state (i.e. public) colleges are primarily concerned with serving the residents in their state so typically make it hard for out-of-state students to qualify for in-state tuition rates. This is especially true if the student is without some type of merit or affiliation. Read more at: https://gradmetrics.com/establishing-residency/ Watch the video at: https://youtu.be/HRwN8EOlg3w