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A Guide to Military Spouse Student Loan Forgiveness

Most military spouses understand going in that their married life will come with a distinct set of challenges.

When a husband or wife who serves is deployed, many of the duties married couples expect to share—from caring for children to running the household and making ends meet—fall to the one who stays behind. And the frequent moves military couples typically experience can be disruptive to careers, families, and friendships.

The federal government provides many forms of financial assistance and other benefits to personnel and their partners to make military life easier, including help with moving, job hunting, child care, and health care.

There are some educational benefits for military spouses as well. The Department of Defense’s My Career Advancement Account (MyCAA) Scholarship Program currently provides up to $4,000 in tuition assistance to eligible military spouses who wish to pursue certain associate degrees, certifications, or licenses for in-demand portable careers.

And the transferability option of the Post-9/11 GI Bill allows service members to assign all or some of their unused benefits to a spouse or dependent children.

Those benefits don’t cover past college debt, however. There isn’t a designated military spouse student loan forgiveness program or a military spouse school loan repayment plan.

There are options, though, for those who are struggling with student loan debt. Here are just a few options you may consider looking into:

Public Service Loan Forgiveness

Military spouses who share their loved one’s passion for helping others and want to have a career in public service—at a nonprofit organization, in public health, education, law enforcement, or government, for example—may want to check out the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program (PSLF).

This program forgives the remaining balance on some federal loans after the borrower has made 120 on-time monthly payments under a qualifying repayment plan while working full time for a qualifying employer.

Private student loans are not included in the program, and only federal loans received under the William D. Ford Direct Loan Program are eligible for PSLF.

Those who have loans under other federal student loan programs, such as a Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) or a Federal Perkins Loan, may become eligible if they consolidate them into a Direct Consolidation Loan.

However, only qualifying payments made on the new Direct Consolidation Loan can be counted toward the 120 payments required for PSLF.

The program has its pros and cons, and it certainly isn’t a quick fix. Applicants must be vigilant about tracking their employment through the years, and getting certified can be complicated.

According to the June 2019 PSLF Report Other Sources of Assistance

Those who don’t qualify for PSLF may be able to find career-based repayment assistance from other sources.

Under the Teacher Loan Forgiveness Program, for example, someone who teaches full time for five complete and consecutive academic years in a low-income school or educational service agency—and meets certain other qualifications—may be eligible for forgiveness of up to $17,500 on Direct/Federal Stafford Loans.

Nurses also may be eligible for help with their student loans through federal programs like the Nurse Corps Loan Repayment Program or the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program.

The amount of repayment in those programs can vary depending on the nurse or nurse practitioner’s length of service at a qualifying facility, but they could knock thousands of dollars off an eligible person’s debt.

Many industries and professional associations also offer student loan repayment assistance, with programs for lawyers, doctors, medical researchers, and others. And there may be opportunities to apply for student loan help through state and local programs as well.

Federal Repayment Plans

For borrowers who don’t necessarily qualify for those career-related forgiveness and repayment programs, there are other options out there for those who apply and meet certain criteria.

The government offers four income-driven repayment plans that could lower a military spouse’s payments: the Revised Pay As You Earn Repayment Plan (REPAYE), the Pay As You Earn Repayment Plan (PAYE), the Income-Based Repayment Plan (IBR), and the Income-Contingent Repayment Plan (ICR).

Under all four plans, after making qualifying monthly payments, borrowers will be eligible for forgiveness on remaining loan balances. Keep in mind that lowering your monthly payment will likely mean paying more in interest over the life of the loan.

Military spouses can get an idea of what their payment will look like by logging in and using the Repayment Estimator at StudentLoans.gov. This tool can compare payments under different federal repayment plans to help find which one is right for you and your situation.

One thing to remember is that under an income-driven plan, the amount that’s forgiven is sometimes treated as taxable income—so a borrower may end up with a tax bill in the year the debt is forgiven.

Refinancing to a More Manageable Payment

You may have noticed that most of the options listed above are limited to borrowers with certain types of federal student loans and who are willing to do a bit of legwork.

But those who don’t have qualifying loans—or those who think they can find a workable repayment plan elsewhere with a more competitive interest rate—may want to check into refinancing student loans through a private lender.

Refinancing offers borrowers a chance to adjust their monthly payments and choose new repayment terms. And military spouses with multiple loans may find they like the idea of combining them into one manageable payment.

Lenders may offer both fixed and variable interest rates, varying loan lengths, and autopay options so borrowers can tailor a loan to suit their specific needs. Finding rates and applying online for a refinancing loan usually only takes a few minutes.

Before shopping for offers, however, it’s important to note that refinancing federal student loans turns them into private loans, which means losing access to all federal forgiveness programs, repayment plans, and other federal benefits and protections.

Once a borrower refinances with a private lender, there’s no going back to a federal loan or the advantages it may offer.

But borrowers who have good credit and solid employment (among other factors) may find they can qualify for a lower interest rate and/or a shorter repayment period—or to lower their monthly payments via extending their repayment terms—as well as other perks by refinancing with a private lender.

For example, SoFi offers member benefits that include career counseling, networking events and a referral program. And some private lenders, including SoFi, will combine and refinance both federal and private loans so there’s just one student loan bill to pay every month.

Dealing with life as a military spouse can be difficult enough without also having to grapple with the stress of student debt. Though there currently aren’t any student loan forgiveness or repayment programs designed specifically with military spouses in mind, there are ways to help get rid of that extra burden.

Are you a military spouse who wants to give student debt its marching orders? See if refinancing with SoFi could work for you.


External Websites: The information and analysis provided through hyperlinks to third-party websites, while believed to be accurate, cannot be guaranteed by SoFi. Links are provided for informational purposes and should not be viewed as an endorsement.

Financial Tips & Strategies: The tips provided on this website are of a general nature and do not take into account your specific objectives, financial situation, and needs. You should always consider their appropriateness given your own circumstances.

Tax Information: This article provides general background information only and is not intended to serve as legal or tax advice or as a substitute for legal counsel. You should consult your own attorney and/or tax advisor if you have a question requiring legal or tax advice.

SoFi Loan Products
SoFi loans are originated by SoFi Bank, N.A., NMLS #696891 (Member FDIC). For additional product-specific legal and licensing information, see SoFi.com/legal. Equal Housing Lender.


SoFi Student Loan Refinance
If you are a federal student loan borrower, you should consider all of your repayment opportunities including the opportunity to refinance your student loan debt at a lower APR or to extend your term to achieve a lower monthly payment. Please note that once you refinance federal student loans you will no longer be eligible for current or future flexible payment options available to federal loan borrowers, including but not limited to income-based repayment plans or extended repayment plans.


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Why Student Debt May Be Worse For Women

According to the American Association of University Women , using data from the Department of Education, women currently hold almost two-thirds of the country’s student loan debt, nearly $929 billion of the total outstanding amounts of nearly $1.5 trillion.

That’s a shocking disparity—and, when looking specifically at people who complete bachelor’s degrees, it’s black women, the Chronicle of Higher Education reports, who hold the greatest amount of debt of “any racial, ethnic, and gender group.”

To add to the challenging situation, women who hold more than one degree tend to earn as much as men who hold one educational degree less than they do.

Because of this gender-based gap in salaries, women may have less disposable income, which means they typically need more time to pay back their student loans—which in turn means they’re often paying significantly more in interest because of their longer loan terms.

This situation raises numerous questions, including how women can get themselves out of education-based debt more quickly. This post will take a deep dive on those subjects and offer some tips that could help anyone facing student loan debt.

Average Student Loan Debt: Crisis in America

Before we delve into gender-specific information, the reality is that the average amount of student loan debt is troublesome for more than just women. Average student loan debt hovers around $28,500, and the amount of debt continues to grow.

Student loan debt in the United States, in total, is greater than all of the credit card debt in our country. It’s greater than the sum total of our car loans. In fact, it’s the second highest form of debt in the United States today, only behind home mortgages.

And, not everyone can keep up with their student loans payments, so it’s not surprising that many people are delinquent on them, or even in default. Lenders can define “default” in somewhat different ways; borrowers in the Federal Direct Loan program or the Federal Family Education Loan program, for example, are considered in default after missing nine month’s worth of payments.

Multiple consequences can exist for people with loans in default, including suffering from substandard credit, having tax refunds garnished and more. Your lender can sue you and, in some cases, you would also be responsible for court fees.

Delinquency can also have a negative impact on your credit, which can make it difficult to get a mortgage, a car loan, a credit card and the like. It may even be challenging to get utilities in your name or to buy homeowners’ insurance.

Student Loan Disparity: Why Are Women in Debt?

As AAUW.org (the website for the American Association of University Women) reports, 57% of today’s college students are female, which would by itself mean that more women have the potential to need more in student loans. But their report, titled Deeper in Debt: Women and Student Loans, goes much further in their explanations about why women owe more.

The cost to attend college, according to AAUW, has increased by 148% since 1976, while the median household income since then has only gone up by 21%.

This explains why increasing numbers of students take out loans to fund their education, although these particular statistics apply to men and women alike.

More specific to women, in 2017, T. Rowe Price shared study results indicating how parents who have only sons “are going to greater lengths to support their kids’ college education than parents of all girls.”

Parents of all boys were found to be more willing to save more, pay more, and borrow more funds to pay for their children’s education, suggesting that “antiquated expectations based on gender” may still be in existence more than we might realize.

Here are statistics from that report:

•  When it comes to money saved for their children’s education:

◦  50% of parents of all boys have saved some money

◦  39% of parents of all girls have saved some money

•  When it comes to contributing towards college:

◦  83% of parents of all boys give money at least monthly

◦  70% of parents of all girls give money at this regularity

•  17% of parents of all boys say they plan to cover all college expenses for their children, while only 7% of parents of all the girls say that.

•  When presented with this statement: “I would consider sending my kids to a less expensive college to avoid taking on student loans”:

◦  60% of parents of all boys agree

◦  72% of parents of all girls agree

•  When asked if they’d personally take on $75,000 or more in student loans to help children with college expenses:

◦  23% of parents of all boys would

◦  12% of parents of all girls would

This indicates that boys receive more familial help with college funding than girls. And, when women get jobs to help with college expenses, pay disparity can play a role in their overall ability to contribute.

Then, when it’s time for repayment, this gender pay disparity means that women often have less disposable income. Whether women have children or not, or take time off from work to be with them or not, a tighter financial situation can cause them to choose longer terms for their student loan repayments, which means they could be paying down their balances more slowly and pay more in interest, overall—neither of which is desirable for financial wellness, much less for growth of wealth.

Ideas for Solving the Problem of Higher Education Loan Debt for Women

AAUW shared a five-prong solution they believe will help facilitate college funding for women, which includes:

•  Congress should expand Pell Grant availability for students with low incomes to reduce how much they’ll need to take on debt to finance a degree.

•  Legislators, both state and federal, should boost funding for public colleges/universities and otherwise support ways to provide debt-free options for students.

•  Lawmakers, including the Department of Education, should make income-driven repayment options easier to obtain.

•  Institutions should provide services, including child care, and otherwise address academic and financial needs of female students.

•  Individuals should join organizations that support closing the gender pay gap.

There’s another way to pay down student loans more quickly: consolidating them and refinancing them into one low-interest loan. Not all lenders will consolidate private and federal loans together, but SoFi does. Here’s more!

Refinancing Your Student Loans

Refinancing your student loans into one at a lower interest rate can mean you could pay less, over the life of the loan. How much you pay overall depends largely on the length of your term. So, for example, if it would help with cash flow to have lower monthly payments, choosing a longer term can help—but that could mean you pay more in interest. If you’d like to pay off your debt sooner and pay back less, overall, you can select a shorter term.

And, since SoFi doesn’t have a prepayment penalty, if you choose a longer term and end up with extra cash through a raise or a bonus, for example, you can put that windfall toward your refinanced loan payment and help pay down your loan faster.

To find out how you could benefit from refinancing, you simply need to know your outstanding balances, plus the interest rates you’re being charged.
At SoFi, you’ll also have access to live customer support. There are no application fees. No origination fees. No prepayment penalties.

Whenever you’re ready to refinance your student loans, we’re here to help. It’s fast and convenient.


External Websites: The information and analysis provided through hyperlinks to third-party websites, while believed to be accurate, cannot be guaranteed by SoFi. Links are provided for informational purposes and should not be viewed as an endorsement.

SoFi Student Loan Refinance
If you are a federal student loan borrower, you should consider all of your repayment opportunities including the opportunity to refinance your student loan debt at a lower APR or to extend your term to achieve a lower monthly payment. Please note that once you refinance federal student loans you will no longer be eligible for current or future flexible payment options available to federal loan borrowers, including but not limited to income-based repayment plans or extended repayment plans.


SoFi Loan Products
SoFi loans are originated by SoFi Bank, N.A., NMLS #696891 (Member FDIC). For additional product-specific legal and licensing information, see SoFi.com/legal. Equal Housing Lender.

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A Guide To Student Loan Amortization

Ever have a friend complain about how the payments they’re making towards their loans aren’t actually going to pay off…well, the freakin’ loans? Your friend is onto something.

At the beginning stages of a loan, a big proportion of the loan payments that a borrower makes are applied towards the loan’s interest as opposed to the principal balance. Especially if the loan is spread out over a long time-frame such as many years, most early payments are applied almost totally to interest.

Due to a method of calculation called amortization, loan payments are split between interest and principal, heavy on the interest in the beginning stages. Towards the end, the effect usually reverses. When an amortization calculation is displayed visually, it is called an amortization schedule and graph.

We’re going to get into some of the nitty-gritty amortization info, but before we go there, we just want to be straight with you: This is an incredibly complex topic. We’re going to try to break it down the best we can, but please understand that this info is general in nature and does not take into account your specific objectives, financial situation, and needs; it should not be considered advice. SoFi always recommends that you speak to a professional about your unique situation. Okay, and we’re back in.

Amortization is calculated on all installment loans, which are loans that have regular, predetermined monthly payments, such as mortgages and student loans. Below, we will discuss how amortization is calculated, take a closer look at student loan amortization and a student loan amortization schedule, and explore some ideas for borrowers who want to lessen the amount they’ll pay in interest over time.

Understanding Amortization

Before we dive into a student loan amortization calculation and schedule, it is helpful to first understand the basics of calculating the cost of a loan. You’ll need to know these three variables:

1. The value of the loan, also known as the principal
2. The interest rate on the loan (and whether it is fixed or variable)
3. The duration, or length, of the loan (usually given in months or years)

With this information, it is possible to determine both the monthly payment on the loan and the total interest paid during the life of the loan, assuming all payments are made. Although the math itself is difficult, it is easy to plug the information into an online student loan interest calculator.

The next step is to determine how much of each monthly payment is going towards both interest and principal. This is where the amortization calculation and the amortization schedule come in. As mentioned, amortization happens only on “installment” loans, and all student loans are installment loans.

There are two types of loans: installment loans and revolving credit. A mortgage, student loan, or car loan are all examples of installment loans. With an installment loan, the borrower is loaned an amount of money (called the principal) to be paid back over a designated amount of time, with interest.

Revolving credit, on the other hand, is not a loan disbursed in one lump sum, but is a certain amount of credit to be used as the borrower pleases, up to a designated limit. A credit card and a line of credit are forms of revolving credit.

A borrower’s monthly payment on revolving credit is determined by how much of the available credit they are using at any given time; therefore, minimum payments change from month to month.

Student Loan Amortization Examples

Because student loans are a form of installment loan—a specific amount of money is disbursed to the borrower—student loans are amortized. Parts of each payment are spent on both the loan’s principal and its interest.

At the front-end of the loan, a much larger proportion will be allocated to interest. Due to the way compounding returns work, the effect is more dramatic the longer the length of the loan.

Take, for example, a $30,000 loan at 7% fixed interest rate amortized over a 10-year repayment period. The borrower’s monthly payment is $348.33 total (rounded down to $348 for simplicity in the grid below). Each year, the hypothetical borrower will pay $4,180 total towards their loan.

This never changes, although the proportion that is paid both towards principal and interest will. Here’s how that hypothetical borrower’s hypothetical loan amortization might look. (All examples calculated using this student loan interest calculator, by Bankrate .)

Amortization Schedule Student Loan $30,000, 7% interest over 10 years starting January 2019

Date

Interest Paid

Principal Paid

Balance
Jan, 2019 $175 $173 $29,827
Feb, 2019 $174 $174 $29,652
Mar, 2019 $173 $175 $29,477
Apr, 2019 $172 $176 $29,301
May, 2019 $171 $177 $29,123
Jun, 2019 $170 $178 $28,945
Jul, 2019 $169 $179 $28,765
Aug, 2019 $168 $181 $28,585
Sep, 2019 $167 $182 $28,403
Oct, 2019 $166 $183 $28,221
Nov, 2019 $165 $184 $28,037
Dec, 2019 $164 $185 $27,852
2019 $2,032 $2,148 $27,852
           
2020 $1,877 $2,303 $25,852
           
2021 $1,710 $2,470 $23,079
           
2022 $1,532 $2,648 $20,431
           
2023 $1,340 $2,840 $17,591
           
2024 $1,135 $3,045 $14,546
           
2025 $915 $3,265 $11,281
           
2026 $679 $3,501 $7,780
           
2027 $426 $3,754 $4,026
           
Jan, 2028 $23 $325 $3,701
Feb, 2028 $22 $327 $3,374
Mar, 2028 $20 $329 $3,045
Apr, 2028 $18 $331 $2,715
May, 2028 $16 $332 $2,382
Jun, 2028 $14 $334 $2,048
Jul, 2028 $12 $336 $1,712
Aug, 2028 $10 $338 $1,373
Sep, 2028 $8 $340 $1,033
Oct, 2028 $6 $342 $691
Nov, 2028 $4 $344 $346
Dec, 2028 $2 $346 $0
2028 $154 $4,026 $0

So, during the first year, the example borrower’s monthly payments are made up of about half interest and half principal. At the end of that first year, the borrower has paid $4,180 total towards their student loan. $2,032 of that went to interest, while $2,148 went to paying down the principal.

At the end of the first year, the loan is not reduced by the total amount the borrower had paid, but only the amount paid towards the principal—the $2,148. The $30,000 loan is therefore valued at $27,852 at the end of the year.

That’s the whole thing with amortization—because only a small proportion of payments is applied to the loan’s principal at the early stages, the interest rate charges continue to be calculated off a relatively high loan balance figure. Eventually, this swings in the other direction as the loan’s principal is reduced.

With each passing month and year paying down debt, more of each payment is allocated towards the principal. By the ninth and final year, the borrower pays only $154 to interest and $4,026 to principal.

Let’s look at another example of a hypothetical student loan amortization schedule, but along a longer timeline, such as twenty years. It should be noted that a twenty-year payback period isn’t “standard” for federal student loans, but the important takeaway here is the impact of time on amortization calculations.

Here’s a table with the results of a hypothetical $60,000 student loan at a 7% fixed rate, paid back over 20 years.

Amortization Schedule Student Loan $60,000, 7% interest over 20 years:

Date

Interest

Principal

Balance
Jan, 2019 $350 $115 $59,885
Feb, 2019 $349 $116 $59,769
Mar, 2019 $349 $117 $59,652
Apr, 2019 $348 $117 $59,535
May, 2019 $347 $118 $59,417
Jun, 2019 $347 $119 $59,299
Jul, 2019 $346 $119 $59,179
Aug, 2019 $345 $120 $59,060
Sep, 2019 $345 $121 $58,939
Oct, 2019 $344 $121 $58,817
Nov, 2019 $343 $122 $58,695
Dec, 2019 $342 $123 $58,573
2019 $4,155 $1,427 $58,573
           
           
           
Jan, 2038 $31 $434 $4,942
Feb, 2038 $29 $436 $4,506
Mar, 2038 $26 $439 $4,067
Apr, 2038 $24 $441 $3,626
May, 2038 $21 $444 $3,182
Jun, 2038 $19 $447 $2,735
Jul, 2038 $16 $449 $2,286
Aug, 2038 $13 $452 $1,834
Sep, 2038 $11 $454 $1,379
Oct, 2038 $8 $457 $922
Nov, 2038 $5 $460 $462
Dec, 2038 $3 $462 $0
2038 $206 $5,376 $0

In this example, each monthly payment for the 20-year duration is $465.18 (again, rounded down to $465 for simplicity’s sake above). In January 2019, the first month of the first year of the loan, $350 is paid towards interest, and just $115 is paid towards the principal. That’s less than 25% of the total payment, compared to 50% in the previous example.

By the end of the hypothetical loan, hardly any of the payment is allocated towards interest, and the majority is applied to the principal. In the very last monthly payment in the last year, only $3 goes towards interest and $462 to principal. In the last year, only $206 total goes towards interest versus $4,155 in the first year.

To calculate your student loan amortization schedule, you too can use an online calculator . It can also be really helpful to see the numbers in graph form, and to see each amortized payment listed out—so you know how much of your money is going to both interest and principal in each monthly payment.

Can You Pay Less Interest on Your Loans?

If amortized payments are frustrating to you, you’re not alone. One way to possibly alleviate the pain is to pay your loan back faster than the stated term. Especially at the beginning of the loan’s repayment term, making additional payments towards the principal might lower what you’ll owe in interest.

If you go this route, consider letting your lender know that the additional payment is to be applied to the principal of the loan, not the interest. If you are mailing a check, you could include a note. If you’re making a payment online, you may want to call your loan servicer to make sure that they apply the money correctly.

For borrowers with multiple loans that want to expedite their debt payment, it’s hard to know where to start. If your goal is really to nip loan amortization in the bud, you might want to consider the “debt avalanche” method of debt repayment.

Using this method, you would choose the source of debt with the highest interest rate and work on “attacking” it first, while making the minimum payment on all other loans. After the highest interest rate loan is paid off, you would move to the next highest interest rate loan, and so on.

Graduates can also consider refinancing their student loans. When you refinance, you’re essentially paying off your old loan or loans with a new loan from a private lender, like SoFi. Ideally, you refinance in order to get a lower rate on your loans than you currently have.

No matter your current financial standing, it’s usually worth checking to see if you qualify for a lower rate than you’re currently paying. With refinancing, you’re also usually able to adjust other terms to your loans, such as the repayment schedule. You can extend it, if you’re looking for lower monthly payments, or shorten it, if you want to pay less in interest—and outsmart amortization—on your loan.

Borrowers shouldn’t refinance their loans if they’re currently using one of the special federal loan repayment plans such as income-driven repayment or Public Service Loan Forgiveness. When you refinance, you will lose access to these programs. Otherwise, it’s usually worth looking into.

Want to spend more money on the things you love, and less on student loan interest? See if refinancing your loans with SoFi is right for you. Checking your rate is free and takes as little as two minutes.


Financial Tips & Strategies: The tips provided on this website are of a general nature and do not take into account your specific objectives, financial situation, and needs. You should always consider their appropriateness given your own circumstances.

External Websites: The information and analysis provided through hyperlinks to third-party websites, while believed to be accurate, cannot be guaranteed by SoFi. Links are provided for informational purposes and should not be viewed as an endorsement.

SoFi Student Loan Refinance
If you are a federal student loan borrower, you should consider all of your repayment opportunities including the opportunity to refinance your student loan debt at a lower APR or to extend your term to achieve a lower monthly payment. Please note that once you refinance federal student loans you will no longer be eligible for current or future flexible payment options available to federal loan borrowers, including but not limited to income-based repayment plans or extended repayment plans.

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Applying to Scholarships in Grad School

Back to school, and back into student loan debt? Not so fast. Pursuing a graduate degree can have an excellent return on investment and enrich your educational experience, but it doesn’t necessarily have to send you into a student loan debt spiral. Getting money for graduate school doesn’t have to be as challenging as getting the degree itself.

You can try supplementing the cost of graduate school with scholarships. Turning to scholarships to help fund grad school can be a smart way to subsidize your education. The tricky part can be tracking the right scholarship down and applying. It’s back to the books and back to scholarship applications. In this article, we’ll discuss finding and applying to graduate school scholarships.

Scholarships are available through many different avenues, including states, organizations, nonprofits, companies, and more. Scholarships are typically merit-based and typically don’t need to be paid back. But to get one, you’d need to first apply.

Graduate School Scholarships & Grants

Federal and state governments offer a lot of grants and scholarships for graduate students. While scholarships and grants are similar in that they are often considered “gift aid”, many grants can come with need-based stipulations. When applying for any scholarship or grant, it’s important to read the fine print to make sure to qualify and can hold up your end of the bargain if you are indeed awarded the money.

State Scholarships & Grants

To find scholarships and grants at the state level, you can try contacting your state’s Department of Education for assistance and resources. Scholarships and grants vary state by state.

Federal Scholarships & Grants

The federal scholarship and grant application process is a little more streamlined than the state process. However, only some of these grants are available for graduate school programs.

For example, graduate students do not qualify for Pell grants, except for post-baccalaureate certification programs. Again, paying close attention to the qualifications for a grant before applying is crucial.

There are several types of federal grants available:

•  Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grants
TEACH grants are available to graduate students at many universities (make sure your school is involved in the program before applying). The grant offers up to $4,000 a year for students who intend to teach after their studies. However, if you have a TEACH grant, you’ll be required to teach in a high-need field in a low-income area for a certain amount of time after your degree.

•  Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants
You may be eligible for this grant if your parent or guardian died as a result of military service in Afghanistan or Iraq.

•  Fulbright Grants
Fulbright grants can be very competitive and have specific eligibility requirements. The application process can be rigorous, so pay special attention to deadlines and directions.

There are even more grants offered by other federal institutions and departments. For a comprehensive search, you can look through Grants.gov or the U.S. Department of Labor’s database. On these sites, you can search for your program, field of study, or other qualifiers.

Both federal and state scholarships will require you to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) to apply. Before you take any additional steps, you may want to start by filling out the FAFSA, which is used to determine federal aid, scholarships, and grants.

Private Graduate Scholarships

When it comes to finding money for grad school, there are plenty of organizations, companies, and nonprofits that offer scholarship opportunities. The scholarships could be merit-based, need-based, or simply granted based on your affiliation or application.

Some scholarships are on the smaller side, others much larger, but any amount of aid can help. You may want to consider these elements while you’re on the hunt for private scholarships for graduate school:

•  Your College or University
Your school might offer merit-based scholarship or grant opportunities. Possible action item: connecting with your department, as well as the office of financial aid to see if you qualify for some scholarship from the school and what additional steps you may need to take to apply.

•  Your Course of Study
You may be able to find scholarships related to your field of study . Possible action item: searching national foundations, or even companies that might provide a scholarship. This might be especially helpful in STEM fields, or other careers where there’s a high need for employees in the workforce.

•  Your Neighborhood
Are you involved in any community organizations? Possible action item: seeing if your religious organizations, local civic groups, and other community organizations you belong to offer scholarships. You could reach out to see what may be available and perhaps complete the necessary applications.

•  Your Background
Based on your ethnicity or cultural heritage, you may be able to qualify for several grants. Possible action item: reaching out to national foundations or local community groups to see what they offer.

These are only a few avenues to consider when looking for private graduate school scholarships. Databases and search engines can help, but don’t be afraid to get creative.

Fellowships

Fellowships are also great ways to find money for graduate school. Unlike a grant or scholarship, fellowships are money typically tied to an opportunity. If you get a fellowship , it’s likely you’ll be required to study, research, or work in a field for a short period. Not only will fellowships help you pay for graduate school, but they can also be an opportunity to gain valuable experience in your field.

Finding a fellowship will be specific to your field of study. You can start your search process by talking to your academic department for assistance, or finding a nonprofit institution specializing in your field of study. Applicants should be aware that fellowships typically require a fairly rigorous application process.

Using Student Loans to Cover Grad School

If scholarships, grants, and fellowships just aren’t cutting it, it may be time to consider student loans as well as alternative funding.

If you’re applying for federal or private loans, it’s worth noting that the process is different than applying for undergraduate loans. You can borrow more as a graduate student, but you might be looking at higher interest rates.

Other than taking on student loans, there are several alternatives to funding your graduate degree. If you’re able to work while attending school, you can save and budget to cover a portion or all of your tuition. If you are working, you can speak with your employer to see if they offer a tuition reimbursement program. Employee tuition reimbursement might require you to stay at the company for a number of years, or pursue a specific degree. Program requirements will vary by company.

It could also be worth exploring student loan forgiveness programs. While a loan forgiveness program doesn’t mean cash upfront for grad school, it could help lower or eliminate monthly payments after you finish your studies. Depending on where you land after grad school, you might qualify for Public Service Loan
Forgiveness
. Also, hundreds of companies now offer student loan assistance as a perk for employees, which might be something to consider down the line.

Refinancing Your Graduate School Debt

If you do end up borrowing student loans to complete your graduate degree, you could consider refinancing them when you’ve completed your program of study. With a graduate degree, you may have increased your earning potential and secured a new job.

Depending on your credit history, you could qualify for a lower interest rate when you refinance. If you borrowed federal student loans, know that refinancing means you’ll no longer be eligible for federal protections or forgiveness programs.

With SoFi student loan refinancing, you can find out what rate you qualify for in just a few minutes. There are no origination fees or prepayment penalties. And when you refinance with SoFi you’ll have access to member benefits like unemployment protection and exclusive member events.

Get started with SoFi’s student loan refinancing.


External Websites: The information and analysis provided through hyperlinks to third-party websites, while believed to be accurate, cannot be guaranteed by SoFi. Links are provided for informational purposes and should not be viewed as an endorsement.

Third-Party Brand Mentions: No brands, products, or companies mentioned are affiliated with SoFi, nor do they endorse or sponsor this article. Third-party trademarks referenced herein are property of their respective owners.

SoFi Loan Products
SoFi loans are originated by SoFi Bank, N.A., NMLS #696891 (Member FDIC). For additional product-specific legal and licensing information, see SoFi.com/legal. Equal Housing Lender.


SoFi Student Loan Refinance
If you are a federal student loan borrower, you should consider all of your repayment opportunities including the opportunity to refinance your student loan debt at a lower APR or to extend your term to achieve a lower monthly payment. Please note that once you refinance federal student loans you will no longer be eligible for current or future flexible payment options available to federal loan borrowers, including but not limited to income-based repayment plans or extended repayment plans.

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Importance of an Accountability Partner for Student Loan Repayment Success

When you go to the gym, you might bring your significant other along to hold you accountable in your workout. Or maybe you have a co-worker you always want to collaborate with because they push you to produce your best work.

Whether it’s at home or work, we could all use accountability partners. Having a friend to keep you in check while you’re repaying your student loans could help you pay off your loans in the best way for you.

What Is an Accountability Partner?

While a boss or a parent is a hierarchical relationship, an accountability partner is an equal relationship. You keep tabs on each other to ensure you’re both hitting the goals you set.

When it comes to paying off your student loans, your accountability partner could help you make sure you’re setting goals and achieving them. They might check in often to see how you’re doing and, if you need to reset, they could help you re-evaluate your vision. Having an accountability buddy keeping an eye on you might help motivate you to work toward your goals.

Why Would Someone Need an Accountability Partner?

It’s easy to say you’ll independently hold yourself accountable, but if you fail to follow through, there may not be any consequences. And if you keep putting something off, you might have a hard time achieving your goals.

If you’re a self-starter, or you hit the goals you make for yourself, then you might not need an accountability partner. But if you’re struggling to finish what you start and you want someone to keep an eye on you, having a buddy could be helpful.

Finding a partner or buddy who’s there to talk out your issues with could be an excellent step to reviewing and revising your current strategy for hitting your goals.

Finding an Accountability Partner

Your partner should be your equal—you’ll both be setting yourselves up to stay in line and crush your goals. If you aren’t sure who your accountability partner should be, you could look for the people you’re closest to, like a spouse, friend, co-worker, or even a relative. If you’re okay with your parents keeping tabs on your repayment goals, you could consider them as an option, too.

Author Susan Cain has a few suggestions on how to find an accountability partner, no matter your goals; we just applied them to student loan repayment here:

  1. Finding someone you trust. They don’t have to be your best friend, but they can be a good friend, relative, or significant other. Different personalities might be better, too.

  2. Reviewing your goals. When it comes to your student loans, it can be helpful to have a clear target in mind, like increasing your monthly payments by a certain dollar amount, or paying the full balance off by a set month or year.

  3. Being specific about your action plan. Share your student loan repayment plan and what consequences might occur if you don’t meet that goal.

  4. Setting up regular check-ins. Once a month or every few months, you could have a date set to meet up for coffee or a phone call to catch up on your progress. This could be a good way to set little goals — by achieving them before your check-in.

  5. Revisiting goals. Remember, your goals can be fluid. It’s okay to shift and change as your strategy evolves. Maybe you get a raise and can tweak your contributions. Maybe you get a side hustle, and you could meet your original goal sooner. Don’t be afraid to make changes if what you’re doing isn’t working.

Will an Accountability Partner Help You Repay Your Student Loans?

While you wouldn’t expect your financial accountability partner to gift you money to repay your student loans, you can expect them to give you a figurative kick in the butt to keep your repayment goals on track.

If your goal is to increase your monthly student loan payments, you could set an amount you’re comfortable with paying. If you find after a few months that your goal is easily attainable and want to contribute more, that’s when you could revise your goal and increase your amount.

You might want to talk with your accountability partner about this change, too. They might be able to offer a different perspective.

Are you taking that money away from something important, like a credit card bill or your future retirement? Your accountability partner could help shift your thinking. The change might not be as good as you thought.

Having someone to help you along the way to student loan repayment success might get you to hit your goals you wouldn’t otherwise have managed. A person who has your best interest in mind but also treats you as an equal instead of a subordinate could be a great way to stay on top of your student loan payments.

Refinancing Student Loans

One thing you and your accountability buddy might discuss is the possibility of refinancing your student loans. You could potentially end up paying lower interest over the life of the loan and save money in the long run.

Refinancing with SoFi could mean serious savings, with low interest rates, no hidden fees and no pre-payment penalties.

Learn more about refinancing student loans with SoFi today.


External Websites: The information and analysis provided through hyperlinks to third-party websites, while believed to be accurate, cannot be guaranteed by SoFi. Links are provided for informational purposes and should not be viewed as an endorsement.

SoFi Loan Products
SoFi loans are originated by SoFi Bank, N.A., NMLS #696891 (Member FDIC). For additional product-specific legal and licensing information, see SoFi.com/legal. Equal Housing Lender.


SoFi Student Loan Refinance
If you are a federal student loan borrower, you should consider all of your repayment opportunities including the opportunity to refinance your student loan debt at a lower APR or to extend your term to achieve a lower monthly payment. Please note that once you refinance federal student loans you will no longer be eligible for current or future flexible payment options available to federal loan borrowers, including but not limited to income-based repayment plans or extended repayment plans.


Financial Tips & Strategies: The tips provided on this website are of a general nature and do not take into account your specific objectives, financial situation, and needs. You should always consider their appropriateness given your own circumstances.

Third-Party Brand Mentions: No brands, products, or companies mentioned are affiliated with SoFi, nor do they endorse or sponsor this article. Third-party trademarks referenced herein are property of their respective owners.

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