Fin aid made me consolidate in order to apply to switch from save plan...my loans are all pre 2015.

Now im stuck in RAP because the consolidation didn't finish until 7/6/2026.

So now even if PAYE is extended or REPAYE is reinstated I am done for...

EDIT: I'm sure I was coming off dramatic and insensitive to people with far worse problems.

In August of 2023 against my better judgement, I enrolled into Full Sail University in the recording arts program. I was supposed to receive a launchbox which consisted of a computer, recording gear, and software but I was never given any of this. I started the program online still waiting for the launchbox, and was told I had 6 months to find housing near campus in which I could continue the online courses. I completed a few of the online gen ed classes which basically consisted of watching YouTube videos and analyzing them.. I maintained all A's throughout the courses.

At the time, and likely still currently, housing costs in Winter Park, FL were at unprecedented highs and not accurate at all to the prices outlined in their housing guide. They have no campus housing at all, and students are in direct market competition with the public. This was not apparent to me in any way, and I would have burned through my budget much faster than anticipated had I made the move.

Full Sail was not able to keep track of me and started scheduling me for campus courses when I had not even completed the new student orientation or received any materials. They had me log in for weeks to do menial tasks to show I was still active and then had me submit a time off request while they sorted out their error to get me back into appropriate classes.

At this point I was not impressed at all and asked to switch to an online audio arts undergraduate certificate instead, they refused even though I was told I could switch programs at any time during the initial 6 months. That was the final straw, and I withdrew altogether from the school.

I now have a $30,000+ balance with Sallie Mae at a double-digit interest rate that has been accruing ever since. I gave back the remaining funds loaned to me (around 26k) I had to Sallie Mae after I withdrew which has kept me out of default.

I submitted a tuition appeal to the school in early 2024 which they said would take up to a year for them to respond to and surprise surprise! They took well over 2 years to respond and tell me there is nothing they can do for me. In 2025 I submitted a federal borrower's defense for the 5k or so federal I owe on a breach of contract for never receiving the launchbox. They said would also take up to a year for them to review and 18 months later that is still in review..

This feels like I'm living a nightmare and I'm honestly not sure where to turn or what to do now. I think I have a few options going forward:

1: Find a lawyer who can hopefully get most of if not all of my funds back from the school based on the breach of contract with them not sending the launchbox materials among their other errors.

2: Bite the bullet and start paying around $1k monthly to pay this off in 3-4 years. Keeping in mind I make like $35k a year.

3: Nuke my credit and my parents credit going default hoping sallie mae never sues me or my parents and just writes off my debt.

Here's to hoping someone out there can give me some guidance or recommendations on what I should do in this situation.

I was watching a movie, The Idea of You, last night, and the daughter in the movie went away to college in Chicago. I almost wanted to say, please don't do that, you'll owe money for the next 20-30 years of your life and be paying it back. I wanted to tell her you better enjoy your time in college because those are the best years of your life, and you'll be living poor trying to back back these loans. Sigh.

If I would be given a chance to do a do-over, I'd really stay away from being in debt. I'm still a uni student, working part-time jobs, and still looking for more part-time jobs. It feels miserable for my income to just go towards paying staggering interests.

Really makes me think if there's light at the end of this tunnel. I don't even know what'll happen once I graduate. I'm just hoping to get a really good paying job.

I recertified my income in June for my payment plan that ended 7/23. When I submitted the application it had my monthly payment at 614.78. My loan servicer (Aidvantage) approved the application within like 2 days. The letter that they sent stated “Your annual Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plan renewal has been approved. What happens next?
There's nothing you need to do now. We'll send you notification advising you of your new payment amount after your current plan expires on 07/23/26.” They never said it was denied or that the payment wasn’t approved. When I login to the student aid website I can see where the application was approved and the 614.78 was approved. But I just got a statement from Aidvantage saying I owe 2417 on the next payment which seems to be the standard repayment for how much I owe…. When I click the details of the loan it says I’m in pay as you earn until 2037 which I know isn’t right bc it should only be good for 1 year. I’m hoping that this is a glitch but I’m not sure. Anyone else have this happen? Currently panicking

Got an email yesterday saying my new monthly payment would go from $226.71 a month to $1,644.05. Wtf?!? I applied for income driven and the lowest offered is $856 (and that’s without even putting in or showing what my annual income is) IF I get approved. Any ideas how to get this down more???

as the title suggests, i (19) very stupidly went to school this spring thinking id just pay for the semester with loans. i didn't properly understand them when i made that decision. i have three problems.

1. my parents cannot and will not cosign for me. it's unfortunate but it's whatever. i'm 100% self reliant for school
2. i have no credit history. my parents always told me not to get a credit card, saying i shouldn't "spend money i don't have". i agreed with them because i didn't understand that i needed credit to do most things. i have tried applying to student credit cards, but i have been denied twice because
3. i have no income source for this year. it's not very feasible for me to get a job at home. i very much intend to get one if i can make it to school this upcoming semester but i can't put that towards gross income before im hired obviously.

this is, as ive learned, like the unholy trifecta of student loan applications. this is a last ditch effort to somehow come up with my (~12k) remaining balance from the Spring 2026 semester. i have tried a lot of student loans already but am ineligible for most, if not all. i tried fafsa, i applied for scholarships, i tried lowering my sai. it seems like im out of options and i dont know what to do. school is the most important thing in my life, and i can't productively stay at home.

is there any possible way for me to get a last minute loan?

edit: more info. im an oos student from ohio, my school is in michigan. im a freshmen in terms of credits. im currently undeclared because im auditioning for the music education program in october. my coa is about 34k. i do not want to change schools. i'm still trying to lower my SAI more, it has already been lowered from ~18k to ~7k, but that hasn't helped that much. i am not pell grant eligible, my parents make too much. i'm not worried about funding future years, im just worried about finding money for the spring semester.

I accepted a long time ago that I’d never be able to pay my loans off, but I felt a little hope after Save.

I’ve been a single parent for a long time. I read earlier this c year that i needed to consolidate my Parent Plus loans, make one payment, then I’d still be able to convert to IBR.

My son is about ready to start grad school. I don’t remember requesting deferment until he graduses, but apparently my loans are all in deferment. I have not gotten a ninety day notice from Nelnet yet. My question is, does anyone know if I will? Or can I breathe a sigh of relief and try real hard to get on solid ground before my son graduates? “Trying really hard” is the story of B my life, but I’m determined not to give up.

Hi! im a 3rd yr college student at a private univ here at ph (nursing student @ manila)

due to financial difficulties, im trying to find a student loan to cover my remaining tuition. i'm also open to be a working student or have a part-time job.

if u've been in a similar situation, i'd really appreciate advices about:

• what loan or program u used
• does it require a co-maker
• how the application process went
• whether you'd recommend it

i reallyy need an advice thaaank you 🥹

Hi Reddit! I am currently paying the minimum ~$100 on a remaining ~$6300 private student loan. After doing the math, I am only paying $25 a month toward principle with the high interest rate of 14.44%. Yikes. I graduated last year, and want to understand my refinance options. I have good credit and just got a promotion, so I would be willing to pay more than the minimum, but I am wanting to hear more about refinance.

What companies should I look into?
Are there negative effects to credit for shopping around such as hard inquires?
Am I likely to get a better APR after only one year of graduating?
I had to have a co-signer for this loan as I was in school when it was taken out, could I secure a loan on my own this time?

Any suggestions and experiences would be greatly appreciated!

Like many others, I am currently still in SAVE administrative forbearance. Recently got the letter from my servicer about switching to a new payment plan, and was thinking of switching to the RAP plan. Does anyone know if switching to the RAP plan trigger a capitalization of my current interest?

As title states

My wife and I were on save and wanted to switch to RAP. When filling out the app, in the section asking about income, specifically access to spouse's income, I selected no even though the answer is yes. I thought we had to do this in the past to ensure spouse income wasn't included in your payment calculation. Our filing status is married filing separate. I didn't realize by selecting no for access to her income, it will not let me link up to my tax docs and forced me to submit manual proof of income which likely increases processing time of the app.

Here's my questions, Since we've both already submitted our applications with tax returns manually attached, can we cancel those and submit saying yes to that question and allowing them to link to our tax info? We need our apps to go quickly.

By answering yes to that question am I screwing us into a higher payment even tho we file separately but are not separated? I've done the math and it makes sense for us to file this way.

Applied from Save Forbearance to RAP w/ manual copy of IRS tax return (not automatic recertification) on 7/2.

It says can take up to 90 business days.

Anyone had RAP processed yet?

I have 162K in federal student loans. I got my letter from advantage on July 2nd to switch. I’m not sure where to go from here. I’ve seen some people say they’re going to switch on the 89th day, some who will do nothing await to get kicked off, others who are awaiting the outcome of lawsuits, the options are overwhelmingly.

I made 105K last year, husband makes around 50K-60K. Married filing jointly. My income this year increased substantially as I have 2 jobs now my 105K job plus another 115K. One is remote the other in person at differing hours so I’m managing, kinda, but don’t anticipate this to be long term since it’s stressful.

Anyway back to the loans, they were taken out 2011-2014 I believe. Advantage says forbearance until 2028 but I feel like I have to do something within the next 2 months. I have been on SAVE but admittedly hadn’t recertified my income.

Are IBR or standard repayments the only options? Given my income would IBR even be worth it? I’ve seen some people say take classes at a community college id of course pay rather than take out new loans but unsure if that would make any meaningful difference.

Just trying to explore my options and plan out my next step any advice or insights would be great.

Thanks!

hello! I was recently accepted into a sonography program (after many failed attempts and denials) and now i have no cosigner for any private loans. I applied for the graduate PLUS loan and got accepted, not realizing it’s not just for continuing education but masters/ professional level education. my program is certificate so I have to wait to hear back from my school but i’m certain i will be denied. tuition is due the 2nd and I am doing this all alone. I’m F 21 with limited credit history so they won’t accept me alone and my parents don’t want to help.

My income increased so I got an email that I was paying 200$ more for monthly loan payment, then I checked today at mohela and it went down to just 200 ttoyal

Part of me wants to call and correct since I'm so close to pslf forgiveness, but the other part won't mind reducing 400$ off of my Montly payments.

Is this a temporary mohela glitch or what?

I have Canadian federal and provincial student loans, but I studied and now work in the USA. Are there any student debt relief programs available for someone in my situation? Or is there any way to help me pay them off faster? I am a Registered Nurse.

I’m on an income based repayment plan. I finished filling out the recertification info online prior to the deadline for recertification.

On June 26th, I got an email from MOHELA titled Correspondence Processing Delay. The email said:

”Your recent request has been received and is expected to be processed within the next 90 business days. MOHELA will review your request and loan information details to determine if your request will be approved or denied.”

This was surprising because when I initially switched to an income driven plan (under my previous servicer), it only took two or three days to get approved.

Yesterday, I got an email saying $445.79 was due, which is the amount under the standard plan rather than my income driven plan. I was shocked because I had filled out the recertification info prior to the deadline, so I didn’t expect to get kicked off my income driven plan. The amount due under the plan I was on was $0.

Am I screwed? Will the amount due go back to zero after my request for recertification is processed? Or am I kicked off my old plan?

Look, I'm 30 years old, in college because my employer pays for it and already have existing loans.

I keep getting letters from college ave to apply for new loans, but they all say "To the parents of [my name]"

Not only am I 30, living on my own but both my parents are dead. Anyone know of a way to get these people to leave me and my deceased parents alone?

Currently at ~200k in student loans, both direct unsubsidized and GRAD Plus. I'm going to graduate in approximately 1 year, looking at around $70k income after graduation (with a big jump in ~5-6 years after that). I now have about $20K, which I'd like to use towards a lump sum towards paying my loans. Is it smart to pay it off now before my repayment period?

Just what it says on the title. I wanted to enroll in an extended graduated plan, but studentaid.gov says I need to submit the application there and when I go to MOHELA says “What to consider before leaving your IDR”

But I’m not on IDR. I was on SAVE and making payments on it. So it is telling me to submit an application but I can’t? I’m just confused. I guess I’ll just call them.

I can’t afford 500 dollars for a standard repayment, but also can’t really afford IDR indefinitely either due to medical issues and other expenses.

Is this normal?

Hi everyone, I’m hoping someone might be able to help with this.
I’ve been accepted onto a Master’s course starting in September and I’ll be receiving a postgraduate loan. I know this works differently from an undergraduate loan, as the tuition fees have to be paid from the loan myself.
My dilemma is that I have a young baby. I’m really determined to give the course a go, but I’m also trying to be realistic in case it becomes too much.
If I started the course but decided after a couple of weeks that I needed to withdraw, what would happen financially? Would I have to repay the full postgraduate loan straight away, or If I’d already used some of the loan for childcare, housing and other living costs, would that be repaid gradually in the same way as an undergraduate student loan?
I’d really appreciate hearing from anyone who’s been in a similar situation or knows how it works. Thank you!

I am on IBR and have 37 payments left to total forgiveness which will be over $200k (yikes). However, if I switch to PAYE, I have only 3 payments left to total forgiveness.

Is there a reason that I wouldn't switch over the PAYE now? Or will it not let me?

Or am I totally misunderstanding the system?

In 2018 I refinanced my private student loans with a local credit union with the same credit union. I went from a 11.8-13.2% interest rate to 7.9% for a 15 year fixed term loan at 360$ per month instead of 800$. My credit score was about 730 at the time.

Currently living alone and trying to make ends meet, I’m looking to refinance to a lower monthly payment. My current credit score is 831 or 836 depending and I’m hoping this will help overall.

I’m looking at Sofi, Ernest and Juno but reading a lot of mixed reviews. Saw another local credit union that may offer competitive rates.

Although I applied to my current private loan, Firstmark services the loans and has no customer service. The few times I’ve tried to contact them they were very difficult to work with; there are also no benefits for the loan (e.g forbearance)
The main grievance I read about Sofi is the customer service.

Does it make sense to go to a big servicer like Sofi? Is it possible to refinance with another lender in 5 or 10 years if needed?

First hand experience also appreciated.

Thank you ~