Publication Date: September 11, 2006 Author: G. Kay Jacks, General Manager, Application, Operations and Delivery Services, Federal Student Aid Summary: Default Prevention and Management announce the posting of a revised Cohort Default Rate Guide Posted on 09-11-2006 Federal Student Aid is pleased to announce the issuance of the August 2006 Cohort Default Rate Guide (Guide). This version of the Guide captures the changes made since its initial publication on August 2001, including those changes noted on Default Prevention & Management's webpage under the Default Rate Guide "change page information" link (http://ifap.ed.gov/DefaultManagement/DefaultManagement.html). Changes resulting from the Higher Education Reconciliation Act of 2005 (the HERA) have also been incorporated into this Guide issue. Tables and examples have been updated and some areas of information have been restructured for easier reading. As before, the Guide is the primary reference tool for schools to use in understanding the complete cohort default rate process-from the calculation through the challenge/appeal processes. The Guide is effective until the Department withdraws it, changes it or publishes other guidance. The information found in the Guide does not supersede or alter any regulations or statutes requirements that are in effect. If information in the Guide conflicts with the regulations and statutes, the regulations and/or statutes take precedence. Like the previous version of the Guide, the Guide's material is organized into four parts. Each part is further divided into chapters: Part I, Introduction; Part II General Information; Part III Strategy and Part IV Challenges, Adjustments and Appeals. The Guide has a Glossary to help the reader locate specific topics. The main changes to this version of the Guide compared to the previous version, include:
Default Prevention and Management will update the Guide each year, to coincide with the issuance of the cohort default rates in September; however, revisions to the Guide, as they occur, will be announced on the Guide homepage and changed within the Guide itself to keep it current. The previous years version will be archived under Archived Guide 2001. The Department introduced another resource, the on October 26, 2005. The Quick Reference presents the key elements of the Cohort Default Rate Guide in a more informal, easy to understand manner. It can also be accessed from the Default Rate Guide homepage. Contact Default Prevention and Management if you have any questions about the revised Guide. Phone: 202-377-4259 E-mail: fsa.schools.default.management@ed.gov |