Loan Repayment

You are required to pay back loans borrowed over the course of your studies at Rutgers. Here we ve provided some information on grace periods, repayment plans, loan forgiveness programs, loan consolidation, and loan discharges.

Payments on your federal student loans are made to your lender or servicer. If you are unsure of who your lender is you can access the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS).

Federal Perkins Loan Program

This loan is a fixed 5 percent interest rate loan for undergraduate and graduate students who demonstrate financial need. Rutgers University is the lender. The loan is made with government funds with a share contributed by Rutgers.

• Loan repayment begins 9 months after you graduate, leave school, or drop below half-time status. This 9-month period is known as the grace period.
• At the end of the grace period, you begin repayment and are allowed up to 10 years to repay the loan in full.
• The monthly repayment amount is based on the size of the borroweR&Rsquo;s debt and the length of the repayment period.
• Under certain circumstances you can receive a deferment or forbearance on the Federal Perkins Loan.
• The loan can also qualify for cancellation under certain unusual conditions.

Federal Direct Stafford Loans

These loans, both subsidized and unsubsidized, are for undergraduate, graduate and professional degree students, enrolled at least half time, who meet the general requirements to receive federal aid.

Loan repayment begins 6 months after you leave school or cease to be enrolled at least a half-time basis. These 6 months are referred to as a grace period.

• For subsidized loans, while you are enrolled in school, no payments are due and no interest accrues (unless you are repaying a previous loan and are enrolled less than full time). The Federal government pays the interest for you during this time.
• For unsubsidized loans, although the grace period is the same as the subsidized, you are responsible for the interest on the loan during in the grace period. Repayment on the Federal Direct PLUS Loan begins shortly after the loan is fully disbursed.

The federal government offers various loan repayment options:

• The standard loan repayment plan requires a fixed monthly repayment amount paid over a fixed period of time.
• The extended repayment plan assumes a fixed annual repayment amount paid over an extended period of time.
• The graduated repayment plan establishes annual repayment amounts at two or more levels. Repayments are paid over a fixed or extended period of time.
• The income contingent repayment plan calls for varying annual repayment amounts based on the Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) of the borrower over an extended period of time, as determined by the U.S. Department of Education.

Three discounts are available:

1. 1 percent point reduction in the up-front loan origination fee; from four percent to three percent,
2. .25 percent point interest rate deduction for borrowers paying off loans electronically and
3. .6 percent point interest rate deduction for borrowers who consolidate their loans while they are in school, or during the six month grace period before they enter repayment.

New Jersey College Loans to Assist State Students

NJCLASS offers a low cost supplemental loan. Available to New Jersey residents attending any college or students attending a New Jersey college, NJCLASS can help you pay college costs not already covered by other sources of loans, scholarships or grants.