Posted Date:March 25, 2013
| Author: | William Leith, Service Director, Program Management, Federal Student Aid |
Subject: StudentLoans.gov Resources - Availability of Enhanced Loan Counseling Modules and New Repayment Estimator (Updated April 5, 2013)
Note: On April 5, 2013, we posted an Electronic Announcement that addresses key clarification needs related to the enhanced loan counseling modules available for borrower use on the StudentLoans.gov Web site. For this additional information, refer to http://ifap.ed.gov/eannouncements/041513StudentLoansgovResourcesEnhancedLoanCounselingClarifications.html.
We are pleased to announce the availability of enhanced loan counseling modules and a new repayment estimator on the StudentLoans.gov Web site. We implemented these borrower resources on March 24, 2013.
In two attachments to this announcement, we summarize the loan counseling and repayment estimator resources from the borrower standpoint. In addition, we provide new URLs that offer borrowers direct access to these resources on StudentLoans.gov.
In the attachment to this announcement titled “Enhanced Loan Counseling Modules on StudentLoans.gov,” we provide a high-level summary of our enhanced loan counseling modules. The three modules are Entrance Counseling, Financial Awareness Counseling, and Exit Counseling. Two modules—Entrance Counseling and Financial Awareness Counseling—were already located on StudentLoans.gov. One module—Exit Counseling—was moved from the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) Student Access Web site to StudentLoans.gov on March 24, 2013.
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In the attachment to this announcement titled “Repayment Estimator on StudentLoans.gov,” we provide a high-level summary of our new repayment estimator. The estimator is a tool that William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) and Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) program borrowers can use to obtain preliminary repayment plan eligibility information and estimated repayment amounts. The estimator is not intended to replace a borrower’s consultation with his or her loan servicer; however, this easy-to-use tool offers borrowers the opportunity to obtain preliminary repayment information across all of the repayment plans.
Contact Information
We understand that borrowers will contact their schools and members of the financial aid community with questions about the enhanced loan counseling modules and the new repayment estimator. We hope you find the attached information helpful in answering borrower questions.
A borrower who is signed in to StudentLoans.gov and completing one of the loan counseling modules or using the repayment estimator may request technical assistance by clicking on the Contact Us tab in the top menu bar of StudentLoans.gov. The borrower can 1) complete and submit the feedback form or 2) click on Additional Information and contact the Student Loan Support Center at the phone number provided.