GradCentric

The Biden administration's new IDR plan, called SAVE, is going to be a sweetheart deal for many borrowers. If you are a borrower of federal student loans, especially undergraduate ones, this episode is worth a listen.

Since our last episode, quite a few things have occurred in the college and student loan planning space. In this episode, I mention a few of those changes, including the IDR payment adjustment and Biden's SAVE plan. More episodes - with more detail - are coming!

This is the third of a three-part series explaining Biden's student loan debt relief announcement.

This is the second of a three-part segment explaining Biden's student loan debt relief announcement.

This is the first of a three-part segment explaining Biden's student loan debt relief announcement.

Clergy now qualify for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), so they might need to take action under the new PSLF waiver program. Forward this episode long to any clergy you know when your life, and let them know that they can reach out to me at jason@gradmetrics.com if they have any questions.

Yesterday, the Biden-Harris administration announced sweeping loan forgiveness for federal student loan borrowers. This unprecedented program will allow up to $20,000 of loan forgiveness based on income levels and financial need. Specifically, households with an individual income of less than $125,000 or a household income of $250,000 will get $10,000 in debt cancellation. Borrowers who received Pell Grants while in college will get $20,000 in loan forgiveness.

Teacher Loan Forgiveness is a program designed for teachers with federal student loans. Public Service Loan Forgiveness (commonly shortened to PSLF) is the more commonly recognized of the two programs. According to the Department of Education, borrowers cannot pursue both of these programs simultaneously. Under the new PSLF waiver program, the double-counting restriction is temporarily waived, as are many other normal PSLF requirements. Check out the full blog post here: https://gradmetrics.com/teacher-loan-forgiveness-and-pslf/.

Will the Biden administration offer blanket loan forgiveness? Hear my thoughts in this most recent episode of the Gradcentric podcast.

If you are going to take out student loan debt, it is best to do so for a field with good earning potential and high demand. Nursing is one of those fields. The Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook reports nurses had a median pay of $75,330/year and the field was growing at 9% in 2020. Not bad at all. In addition to great earning potential and career opportunities, nursing has lucrative loan forgiveness programs available to those willing to meet the requirements. Check out the blog post with links at: https://gradmetrics.com/nurse-loan-forgiveness Check out the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/umHAn5IZ7KY

As you might imagine, doctors exit their education with a lot of student loan debt. This debt load is exacerbated with the elongated timeframe between graduation and becoming a practicing physician. These intervening years are extremely important for managing debt over the long haul. Doctors will generally take one of two pathways in dealing with their student loan debt. The first is payoff outright. The second is loan forgiveness in its many forms, most notably Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF). Luckily, most doctors will make a very respectable income after training is complete. In other words, they have options other borrowers do not in terms of payoff. This does not mean, however, that mistakes will not be costly. In fact, since doctors are working with larger loan balances, missteps can easily cost thousands.

A common question I get from families is: can my student can gain residency and qualify for in-state tuition? The answer is, unfortunately, it depends. The rules vary state-to-state and college-to-college. Some states make this an easier process whereas some make it near impossible. Also, keep in mind that state (i.e. public) colleges are primarily concerned with serving the residents in their state so typically make it hard for out-of-state students to qualify for in-state tuition rates. This is especially true if the student is without some type of merit or affiliation. Read more at: https://gradmetrics.com/establishing-residency/ Watch the video at: https://youtu.be/HRwN8EOlg3w

Lately, I've had an increasing amount of student loan consultations with Parent PLUS loan borrowers. More parents are looking toward retirement with a significant amount of debt from financing their children's educations. This dynamic can be stressful for parents hoping for a peaceful retirement after many decades of hard work. Parent PLUS loans can throw off even the best-laid plans for retirement.

Dentists have to make huge sacrifices to practice their trade. One of those sacrifices is the duration of education: surviving a bachelor's degree + dental school + specialized training and residencies takes a long time. Another sacrifice is the amount of student loan debt. According to a recent article published by the American Dental Education Association, the average new dentist comes out with $304,824 in student loan debt, with private school graduates coming out even worse at $349,730!

If you haven't been tracking recent changes in the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program, I'm glad you're reading this post. The Department of Education recently released a bombshell update that could be a great help to many borrowers. For some, this could mean hundreds of thousands in loan forgiveness.

Adjusted Gross Income, or AGI, is the all-important line item on your tax return. According to the IRS, AGI represents your total income minus certain adjustments given by Uncle Sam. But we don't have to get too technical at this point; basically what you need to know is you can find your AGI on your most recent tax return. plays a huge role in the calculation of your monthly payment for federal student loans if you are in an income-driven repayment plan (PAYE, REPAYE, IBR, ICR). AGI isn't the only factor in the calculation of your monthly payment, but it certainly is a big one.

Let's be honest; in today's technologically driven society, it's easier than ever to cheat on assignments, tests, and projects. Online learning has made cheating commonplace. Even so, plagiarism is no joke. It has real and severe consequences. Summary: do not cheat. Your future career could depend on it.

Textbooks are ubiquitous in college. They are also extremely expensive, especially in certain disciplines like business, engineering, and nursing. Considering how much money you spent to get it in your hands, shouldn't you know how to best use this resource? What's the best way to learn from a college textbook? In this video I will teach you how to use this very important learning medium with which you will become quite familiar in the coming years.

Public speaking is hard. In fact, research shows 75% of the population struggles with a fear of public speaking. However, there is no easy way around the fact that public speaking is an important life skill, both in college (you will likely have a required class on the topic) and life in general (most of us have to communicate our ideas to an audience on a regular basis). Luckily, with a few strategies the pain of speaking in front of others an be minimized.

The research paper is truly an art form. Hopefully, your high school training up until this point has prepared you for the college research paper. It is a conduit to express your insights, defend your believes, and extend the light of logical reasoning into the expanse of the unknown. In most high school settings, you would have already written several research papers before leaping to college. If this is the case for you, congratulations! If not, here is a quick lesson.

Time management is something we all struggle with, and something that is a lifelong process. New students should understand that college requires you gain significant advancements in this area, or you will struggle to keep up.

I highly recommend you stay on or near campus. However, your decision should be made looking through two lenses. The first is to look at it through the lens of cost. The second lens is student success. Learn more in this podcast episode.

The university catalog is an indispensable resource for you as a student. It includes university polices and procedures, as well as full details on degree plans and what you need to do to graduate. Your advisor is a staff member assigned to you for the purpose of encouraging your timely progress toward a degree. Your advisor is your friend and can help you keep track of graduation requirements, make career plans, and plug you into necessary university resources.

The main college planning focuses of a high school senior are gaining admission to a student's school(s) of choice, applying for financial aid and scholarships, tackling the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (a.k.a the FAFSA) and potentially the CSS Profile, and preparing to pay for college using financial aid letters. For scholarships, a lot rides on the “big three”: GPA, class rank, and testing scores. View the blog post and download the checklist at https://gradmetrics.com/high-school/high-school-senior/.

Juniors in high school need to focus on three tasks to keep on track with college planning. In other words, things get busy! The main college planning focus of a high school junior is building a solid school list. Once the school list is set, juniors create a deadlines calendar across all institutions. A deadlines calendar should include three date types: testing, admissions, and financial aid. Finally, juniors should focus on test preparation for the SAT and ACT. View the blog post and download the checklist at https://gradmetrics.com/high-school/high-school-junior/.

Sophomores in high school need to focus on learning about their personality and defining a career pathway. The first step in this process is to take a personality assessment. There are quite a few out there. I generally ask families to take a free personality assessment. After short-listing a handful of careers, students should look up these careers in the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook (now online). View the blog post and download the checklist at https://gradmetrics.com/high-school/high-school-sophomore/.

One of the most common requests I get from families is to give them a clear and definitive college roadmap to the middle school and high school years. After all, many families feel overwhelmed by the college admissions and financial aid landscape and worry they will be left behind or lose out on opportunities in these areas. No doubt there are to-do items, best practices, and activities to complete sequentially while your child makes his or her way through the educational system. This will be the first of four blog posts outlining the most important college planning considerations for each of the four years of high school. View the blog post and download the checklist here: https://gradmetrics.com/high-school/high-school-freshman/

Academic success is still largely contingent on the ability to memorize. This is quite clear both during and after high school. A little research will make clear that the study of memory is the real deal. There are ways to improve your memory that have the potential to drastically change student's life for the better. In fact, as a college and student loan planner it's something I'm eager to share with younger students in the hope they will learn and apply the strategies early, saving thousands of hours of study over a lifetime. I know I wish I would have been taught these "hacks" in public school. View the blog post here: https://gradmetrics.com/test-prep/your-students-memory-and-college-planning/.

Personality plays a pivotal role in job satisfaction and overall well-being, particularly since many experts believe personality is set from birth and does not change over time. Personality is central to how you view, approach, and experience life. Fighting against this core part of you is a losing battle leading to unhappiness, frustration, and stunted potential. Fight this battle too long and you might find yourself in a crisis of purpose, unable to discern a clear pathway in life.

I must admit, I'm a nontraditionalist when it comes to higher education. The four-year, bachelor's degree route simply isn't a good fit for everyone, particularly considering the high cost. I love the idea of a quicker path to get a similar outcome, because less time spent in the academy almost always means lower cost. With that said, other non-traditional or flexible routes are less promising, or even harmful.

If your federal student loan payment is derived from a percentage of your discretionary income, you have an opportunity to save for future AND lower your student loan payments. In other words, you have a rare financial planning opportunity to achieve a double benefit to your personal bottom line.

With all the important college dates, applications, and notices whizzing by, it's easy to feel behind. If you're really late to the game, it can feel down right hopeless. But is this feeling warranted? It is ever too late for financial aid?

Around this time of year, families receive a financial aid letter (also known as a financial aid package or financial aid offer) from their chosen schools. This can be a rather frustrating experience as there is no set format and terminology across schools. Not only that, the stakes are high as family try to decipher how much they owe for the upcoming school year.

I recently received a question from a family asking what happens after the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, otherwise known as the FAFSA. This is not surprising, as many families wonder this after finishing up their financial aid checklists and admissions paperwork. After all the activity involved with writing essays, submitting applications, and finishing senior projects, this portion of the year can be a "dead time" that seems a little out of place. So, what's the next step?

Historically speaking, higher education is a great place to work. In general, a role in academia provides intellectual stimulation, freedom of ideas, an emphasis on diversity and equality, work-life balance, and unparalleled job stability. Unfortunately, higher education is quickly losing this stable reputation for many. This instability in the sector has real implications for your child as they head off to college. Now more than ever, it's important to check the financial integrity of the schools on your college list. Want to learn more? Check out the blog post at https://gradmetrics.com/college-planning/the-financial-viability-of-your-school-list/

In this episode we discuss tackling college essays and the admissions process with Val Cervarich of Writing Help KC. Admissions essays are crucial part of the college planning process, especially to gain more scholarships and admissions to the best colleges. Listen to discover best practices for writing your admissions essay. Make sure your essay: *Has both personality and professionalism *Tells your story rather than a list of accomplishments *Is a polished, proofread work product Also, we discuss when it's best to reach out for professional help and what makes writing for graduate school admissions unique.

It's a reasonable question. College costs have increased 1,120% in the last 30 years. Taken from another perspective, college costs inflate twice as fast as the economy overall! This is ludicrous.

Spoiler alert: college cost is not transparent. In fact, I like to talk about college cost as akin to a used car lot. If you are on a college website at this very moment – looking at the sticker price – chances are good you will not pay this amount. Shocking, but true. This simple fact causes a lot of headache and heartache for families around the United States…not to mention missed opportunities for a better education. This is especially true for private colleges. Private colleges have what's called an internal discount rate. You don't often hear this term floated around outside of academia, but the topic is no less compelling for families looking for an affordable option to educate their children. This is the amount, on average, that private colleges discount their tuition for students.

It might sound crazy in today's high-priced environment, but there are free or low cost ways to earn a college degree. However, these pathways are non-traditional (i.e. not living on campus for four years of college) and not a good fit for every family. But for those taking the road-less-traveled, here are a few ideas.

Work Colleges like College of the Ozarks continue to be an option for a free (or extremely affordable) education, giving them powerful influence in the higher education sector as student loan debt continues to rise.What makes Work Colleges different from their peers? As you might infer from the name, Work Colleges incorporate work and service into the curriculum as a way to subsidize the overall cost of education. At least historically, a handful of these colleges (College of the Ozarks, Berea College, and Alice Lloyd College) are free of tuition for qualified students. There are eight work colleges in the United States: Alice Lloyd College in Pippa Passes, KY Berea College in Berea, KY Bethany Global University in Bloomington, MN Blackburn College in Berea, KY College of the Ozarks in Point Lookout, MO Paul Quinn College in Dallas, TX Sterling College in Craftsbury Common, VT Warren Wilson College in Asheville, NC.

Many high school students desire to play sports in college. Playing sports in college is a great way to continue a passion for athleticism, it's also a way to win funding to make college more affordable. At the end of your college experience, it can also be a way to show leadership acumen to an employer. On the flip side, playing sports in college requires extensive planning in high school and an even greater commitment of time in college. Join us in this video as we discuss the NCAA, NAIA, and NJCAA.

If you're paying off federal student loans, it's crucial you know the various repayment plans. Being in the wrong repayment plan can cost you thousands of dollars. Although payment plans have changed over time, the current options represent a great opportunity for borrowers to save money or modify payments to fit their goals, budget, and lifestyle. Watch this video to learn about the various federal student loan repayment plans including Standard, Extended, Graduated, IBR, ICR, Income-Sensitive, PAYE, and REPAYE.

You download a free campus tour checklist and list of questions to ask colleges on the Gradmetrics website. All you have to do is check out our recent post on campus tours: https://gradmetrics.com/admissions/campus-tours/ Campus tours have practical utility for students looking to choose one college over another. Visiting a campus helps gauge "fit" outside of the answers to predetermined questions like "Should I attend a public or private school?", "Does XYZ University have my major?", or "Does this school have a good football team?" I've heard of students falling in love with a college based on information provided on the school's website and brochures, only to refuse to get out of the car when they actually visit campus. Yes, this actually happens. Not that I blame the colleges or the students; those marketing materials paint the college in the best possible light, while hiding all the flaws.

Saving for college is top of mind for most families focused on improving their child's future prospects. At the same time families are convinced sending their child to college is in his or her best interest, college costs have risen 1,120% in the last 30 years. Realizing this reality, most families experience three negative feelings: price shock, anxiety regarding inadequate cash flow for saving, and frustration in a general lack of solid guidance on how to move forward. Luckily, there is an easy way to start that doesn't involve saving a dime. In fact, it's the most important part of the process. That's right, there's a step before saving that's incredibly important. It's creating your college funding strategy.

Summer activities and camps can be powerful tools in the selective admissions game. Why? Because colleges look at a student's talents and abilities when filling for spots for the coming freshman class. Attending the right summer camp or activity can make a huge difference in distinguishing your child's perceived talent in a specific area. It's simply one more thing on the resume that makes your student stand out in the pack.

Months after submitting the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), families sit down to review financial aid letters. Shortly thereafter, the stress begins to build as families start to think about federal student loans. The names listed on the financial aid letter are frustratingly non-descriptive: Parent PLUS, Direct Subsidized, Direct Unsubsidized. It's hard to know where to start. What types of loans are offered, and what are the related benefits for undergraduate students?

The government response to COVID-19 presents a major opportunity for holders of federal student loan debt. Several government actions, including the recent CARES Act, have produced the positive outcomes of suspension of loan payments, stopped collections on defaulted loans, and instituting a 0% interest rate. Currently these initiatives are available for many federal student loans through Sept. 30, 2021. Borrowers are asking – what does this mean for me? Read the blog post at gradmetrics.com: https://gradmetrics.com/student-loans/student-loans-a-moment-of-opportunity/ The Department of Education FAQ page: https://studentaid.gov/announcements-events/coronavirus Disclaimer: Gradmetrics LLC is a college planning company and does not claim to provide financial advice on investment products. Refinancing federal loans causes the borrower to lose access to income-based repayment plans as well as other incentive programs like Public Service Loan Forgiveness. Gradmetrics LLC is not a debt settlement or debt relief company. We do not provide tax or legal advice.

A common question for families revolves around how the average American family actually pays for college. Does the average family pay out-of-pocket, pile up debt, or pull from retirement? Luckily, we don't have to guess the answer to this question. Sallie Mae, a leading student loan provider in the United States – publishes research on this very topic on an annual basis.

You might have heard big changes are coming to the FAFSA with the Consolidated Appropriations Act. If you have a student going to college starting with the 2023-24 school year (i.e. filling out the FAFSA starting October 2022), this is very important information to understand.

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid - otherwise known as the FAFSA - can be daunting for families. This episode breaks down the major sections of the FAFSA, and hints at big changes to come.

Welcome to the GradCentric podcast, hosted by Gradmetrics. Do you have topics you want discussed in our episodes? Email me at jason@gradmetrics.com. Gradmetrics offers comprehensive and affordable college planning services for families and their loved ones. Our firm specializes in college planning workshops, transparent financial aid strategies, admissions consulting, and student loan planning. Visit us at gradmetrics.com.