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Normally there is no simple way to cancel interest on student loans. There are programs under which different kinds of federal student loans could be forgiven or discharged, but they are not easy to qualify for.

Then there’s non-COVID-related forbearance, during which interest does accrue.

During the 2020-21 coronavirus-related “administrative forbearance,” interest rates were set to 0% on federal student loans held by the Department of Education through at least September 2021—and the interest did not accrue. So that’s a reprieve from interest but not a cancellation.

A case of major loan and interest cancellation did arrive in March 2021, when the Biden administration canceled $1 billion in federal student loans for borrowers who attended a school that had engaged in deceptive or illegal practices or closed suddenly.

How Does Student Loan Interest Work?

When borrowers take out a student loan, they should remember that they’ll end up paying more than the amount they initially took out, when all is said and done. That’s because loans come with interest or the amount a lender charges a person to borrow money, which will vary based on the type of loan.

Borrowers accrue interest on their student loans every day. Yep, every day. On top of that, the interest compounds, which means interest owed on a loan rolls into the loan’s total. Simply put, a borrower will pay interest on the interest.

The student loan interest rate does not change on income-driven repayment plans, but the plans can increase the total amount of interest you pay because repayment terms are expanded.

With a typical deferment or forbearance—postponement of student loan payments when you can’t afford them—interest usually accrues during the period (though the government picks up the interest tab during some deferments).

Reports have emerged of borrowers being asked to pay fees to suspend their payments s. That’s a scam. Anyone who encounters that kind of request can report it to the Federal Trade Commission’s Complaint Assistant .

Recommended: How To Calculate Student Loan Interest

Administrative Forbearance: Which Loans?

The government’s suspension of payments and interest did not apply to private loans.

It did apply to the following defaulted and nondefaulted federal student loans owned by the Department of Education:

•   Direct Loans, including subsidized, unsubsidized, Direct PLUS Loans, and Direct Consolidation Loans
•   Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) Program loans
•   Federal Perkins Loans

If a borrower had a FFEL or Perkins loan not held by the Department of Education, they were beholden to the policy adopted by their lender or school. If their lender or school chose not to adopt the payment and interest waiver, then they were to keep making payments with interest.

Borrowers could choose to consolidate their loans with a federal Direct Consolidation Loan. But doing so after the 0% interest period could result in a higher interest rate than before.

This is true any time: Borrowers unsure of their federal loans’ status may want to contact their servicer for information. Policies are in flux, so loan servicers will know the latest.

How Forbearance and Deferment Normally Work

If you face short-term financial hardship, you may qualify for forbearance or deferment on federal student loans, providing a temporary suspension of payments.

During a normal forbearance, if you qualify, you can temporarily postpone or reduce your federal student loan payments, but interest will accrue on your loans.

During a normal deferment period, the government, not the borrower, pays the interest on some student loans, such as Direct Subsidized Loans, but interest will accrue on others, like Direct Unsubsidized Loans and Direct PLUS Loans.

During forbearance, you probably won’t be making any progress toward forgiveness or paying back your loan, the Federal Student Aid office notes, and gives this example:

If you have a loan balance of $30,000 and an interest rate of 6% and are in forbearance for a year right after you enter repayment, $1,800 in interest will accrue on your loans. If you do not pay that interest, it will capitalize (be added to your principal balance).

Because interest accrues on your principal balance, capitalization will cause more interest to accrue over time than if you had paid the interest. It will also increase your monthly payment under most repayment plans.

Forgiveness, Cancellation, and Discharge

There are several types of forgiveness, cancellation, and discharge for different kinds of federal student loans. Here are a few.

Public Service Loan Forgiveness

If you are employed by a government or nonprofit organization, you may be able to have your Direct Loans balance forgiven after 120 qualifying monthly payments.

Teacher Loan Forgiveness

If you teach full-time for five consecutive academic years at a low-income elementary school, secondary school, or educational service agency, you may be eligible for forgiveness of up to $17,500 on your Direct or FFEL Program loans.

Total and Permanent Disability Discharge

If you’re totally and permanently disabled, you may qualify for a discharge of your federal student loans and/or Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education Grant service obligation.

Discharge in Bankruptcy

Available for Direct Loans, FFEL Program loans, and Perkins Loans, but bankruptcy rarely results in discharge of all debt..

Recommended: Is Paying Off Student Loans Early Always Smart?

What’s Known …

Any payment made during the administrative forbearance was to be applied to the principal of the loan, unless a borrower had accrued unpaid interest, which would have to be paid off first, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Nonpayments by borrowers working full time for qualifying employers were to count toward the 120 payments required by the PSLF program and as payments required to receive forgiveness under an income-driven repayment plan.

Collections on defaulted federally held loans were halted, as were garnishments.

… and Could Be Around the Bend

A lot can happen in a short amount of time. As of now, there’s lots of talk of forgiveness of federal student loans.

But if that does not happen, or happen in the amount some hope for, federal student loan borrowers must eventually resume payments at their loans’ original interest rate.

Those who anticipate a struggle to make payments may consider a number of repayment options, including income-driven repayment plans and federal student loan consolidation.

And those with private student loans might want to consider refinancing, especially if they have good credit and a stable income, during a time of low rates.

The Takeaway

Cancellation of student loan interest is rare. In a normal forbearance, interest accrues on student loans. And other than student loan cancellation from on high, en masse, it’s pretty darned hard to have loans forgiven.

While rates are low, it could be time to look at the rate of your private student loans and consider refinancing them. Student Loan Refinancing with SoFi can mean a lower interest rate and a different loan term.

Borrowers can consolidate both private and federal student loans into one new loan with one monthly payment.

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†Checking Your Rates: To check the rates and terms you may qualify for, SoFi conducts a soft credit pull that will not affect your credit score. However, if you choose a product and continue your application, we will request your full credit report from one or more consumer reporting agencies, which is considered a hard credit pull and may affect your credit.

IF YOU ARE LOOKING TO REFINANCE FEDERAL STUDENT LOANS, PLEASE BE AWARE THAT THE WHITE HOUSE HAS ANNOUNCED UP TO $20,000 OF STUDENT LOAN FORGIVENESS FOR PELL GRANT RECIPIENTS AND $10,000 FOR QUALIFYING BORROWERS WHOSE STUDENT LOANS ARE FEDERALLY HELD. ADDITIONALLY, THE FEDERAL STUDENT LOAN PAYMENT PAUSE AND INTEREST HOLIDAY HAS BEEN EXTENDED TO DEC. 31, 2022. PLEASE CAREFULLY CONSIDER THESE CHANGES BEFORE REFINANCING FEDERALLY HELD LOANS WITH SOFI, SINCE THE AMOUNT OR PORTION OF YOUR FEDERAL STUDENT DEBT THAT YOU REFINANCE WILL NO LONGER QUALIFY FOR THE FEDERAL LOAN PAYMENT SUSPENSION, INTEREST WAIVER, OR ANY OTHER CURRENT OR FUTURE BENEFITS APPLICABLE TO FEDERAL LOANS. CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION.
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.

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Writing a good thesis statement can be extremely difficult, but it usually signals the end of a long road. Most theses are turned in at the end of undergraduate or graduate school.

It’s an accomplishment to celebrate, and for students who are just beginning to write theirs, this article could help make the thesis process a little less stressful.

Undergraduate Thesis

Some undergraduate programs do not require students to do a thesis. Other programs may require an undergraduate thesis to be completed as part of an Honors program, and other schools may offer the thesis as a voluntary option for students.

Doing a thesis gives students the opportunity to delve deeper into a topic they’re interested in and gain research and writing skills that may assist them later in life.

Students who are considering doing a thesis during undergrad should be aware of the time commitment. An undergraduate thesis is usually 40 to 60 pages long and takes about a year to complete. Typically, this is done during a student’s senior year.

Another difference between an undergraduate and graduate thesis is that an undergraduate thesis isn’t expected to reach the same level of originality as a graduate thesis is.

An undergrad thesis is less about presenting new ideas, and more about displaying critical thinking skills and an ability to conduct thorough research, bringing together ideas from many sources.

The requirements for completing an undergraduate thesis may vary depending on the school and program that a student is enrolled in.

Completing a thesis during undergrad can potentially be helpful for students who are interested in going to graduate school.

Successfully completing a thesis can highlight a student’s ability to tackle a large research project and potentially even illustrate how committed the student is to attending graduate school.

Graduate Thesis

The terminology of post-graduate work can be confusing, with both thesis and dissertations being used for different programs. Generally, in the U.S., we refer to a thesis for the project completed at the end of a Master’s program, and a dissertation is the completion of a Ph.D. program.

Not every Master’s program requires a thesis to graduate, some students may not want to focus on research, and instead they may have the opportunity to do some real-world work during their Master’s program.

For students who choose to do a thesis, this will be an intensive research project that focuses on a specific topic. A Master’s thesis typically ranges from 60 to 100 pages in length, and requires the student to research both primary and secondary sources to support their argument.

All this work may seem like a heavy burden for a student to complete on their own, but they’ll usually have an advisor to assist them throughout the entire process.

Each school and individual program may have different thesis requirements, so students who are just getting started may consider reviewing requirements with a program administrator or their thesis advisor.

Tips on Writing a Thesis

Whether the thesis is for undergrad or a Master’s program, there are some general tips that can be followed that might help make this monumental task a bit easier.

1. Understanding the Why

Writing a thesis, whether for undergrad or graduate school, is a big undertaking.

It can help students to cope better with the amount of work when they understand why they’re doing it, what the purpose of the thesis is. This is different from selecting the topic, this is about how the thesis will benefit them in the long-run.

Writing a thesis can help show that the student has developed professional research and writing skills as well as a refined knowledge of their topic of study. These skills will stay with students for life and may be of use in their career.

Should the student choose to pursue a doctoral program, these skills will almost certainly come in handy as they work on their dissertation.

2. Researching How to Write a Thesis

Research both how to research and how to write before getting started on the thesis itself.
Students may want to consider reading up on how to write a thesis even before they start the program, some recommendations suggest exploring this topic about six to 12 months before starting the actual thesis research.

Getting your bearings on the process could help make it feel a little less overwhelming. Students may want to checkin in with their thesis advisor when looking for resources as they may have helpful recommendations for sources or suggest reading that is specific to your field of study.

3. Choosing a Topic Carefully

This step can be stressful for students. A thesis topic has to be specific, but not so much so that students can’t find any research on it to support their argument. If their topic is too broad, it won’t be original enough.

Students can get help from their advisors and look into the most recent research that’s being done on their potential topic to help them narrow down exactly what they’d like to work on.

4. Reading Often

Another tip for writing a successful thesis is to read often. Reading often can help students cultivate ideas and develop more creative thinking. Even if the topics aren’t always within the students core area of research, they can still contribute to helping the student branch out and come up with a creative thesis topic.

5. Creating Citations Over Time

Writing a thesis means using primary and secondary sources to support an argument. Students will need to cite their sources and include a bibliography or works cited with their thesis.

It could save students a headache if they build their citations over time, taking notes and organizing their sources as they go instead of doing this all at the end.

Also make note of the format required for your citations, depending on the field of study students may be required to use American Psychological Associate (APA), Modern Language Associate (MLA) or Chicago, which has two styles; notes and bibliography or author-date.

There are digital services available to students that can help streamlining the citation process. Check in with your advisor to see if they have any insight to share. Some citation managers to consider might be EndNote, Mendeley, or Zotero.

6. Building a Relationship with Your Advisor

Students can benefit from building a strong relationship with their thesis advisor. The advisor will generally be overseeing the process, answering questions, and giving feedback and constructive criticism to the student.

It may be more comfortable receiving this feedback if students have developed a positive relationship with their advisor.

7. Writing and Rewriting

Writing a little bit every day can help turn this big project into more manageable pieces. Students should get in the habit of writing every day, and also rewriting and editing their work regularly.

Making improvements constantly will be easier than having to make improvements to the whole thesis at the end.

It may also be helpful to create an outline for the thesis, consider including the topics of interest and organizing them into sections. This could be a helpful tool to help you stay on task with writing and researching.

8. Staying Healthy, Mentally and Physically

Coping with the stress of writing a Master’s or undergraduate thesis can be difficult, but if physical and mental health are neglected for the sake of getting work done, the work will suffer in the long run.

While students can be hyper-focused on their thesis work, it is helpful to also prioritize their physical and mental health by getting adequate sleep, staying active, and eating well.

If the stress becomes unmanageable, students may consider seeing a counselor. Some universities offer health services and counseling on-site.

Refinancing Student Loans

For undergraduates who are completing their thesis, or graduate student’s who are beginning theirs, they may have more in common than just a heavy workload.

Both students may have taken out student loans, and maybe they’ve already begun the process of trying to pay them off.

After college, students often turn their sights to be looking for work—hoping to make enough money to make their loan payments. But aside from trying to snag a well-paying job, students who are eligible may want to consider refinancing their student loans as a strategy to streamline their loan repayment.

Refinancing a student loan means paying it off with another loan, ideally the new loan has a lower interest rate or better repayment terms.

The benefits of refinancing private student loans will depend on a variety of factors, like interest rates and income.

It’s usually not recommended to refinance federal student loans because these come with benefits like income-driven repayments and loan forgiveness, that won’t be available if they’re refinanced by a private lender.

SoFi can’t write that thesis for you, but we can help you learn more about your finances. Learn more about student loan refinancing with SoFi.

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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.

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.

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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