If you borrowed funds from the Federal Direct Loan program and are no longer attending Grand Valley State University at least half-time you are required to complete online exit counseling. Your loans will go into repayment six months from the date you were last enrolled half-time. If you re-enroll at least half-time before the end of your six month grace period, you will not go into repayment but are still required to complete exit counseling.  

In-person Exit Counseling with MoneySmart Lakers

Online Exit Counseling through Federal Student Aid

*Please note: participation in an in-person exit counseling sessions with MoneySmart Lakers does not fulfill your required exit counseling for federal student aid purposes.

Federal Student Aid (FSA) Direct Loan Exit Counseling Guide (PDF) 

Steps to Begin Federal Loan Repayment

1. Sign in to your Federal Student Aid "Account Dashboard" and click on "My Aid" to review your federal loan borrowing history and find your loan servicer's contact information.
2. You may also visit your loan servicer's website to create an account and update contact information, if necessary.
3. You will automatically be placed on the Standard Repayment Plan. Contact your loan servicer to explore other options based on your situation.

Federal Repayment Plans

Although you may select or be assigned a repayment plan when you first begin repaying your student loan, you can change repayment plans at any time—for free.  Contact your federal loan servicer if you would like to discuss repayment plan options or change your repayment plan.  To see how your monthly payment could change on each of the payment plans, check out the repayment estimator.

Federal Student Loan Repayment Estimator

Loan Consolidation

A Direct Consolidation Loan allows a borrower to combine multiple federal student loans into one loan. The result is a single monthly payment instead of multiple monthly payments. While it does simplify loan repayment, be sure to weigh the pros and cons of consolidating.  To determine if  consolidation is right for you visit the Federal Student Aid website or contact your federal loan servicer.

Loan Forgiveness Programs

In certain situations, you can have your federal student loan forgiven, canceled, or discharged.  This means that you would no longer be expected to repay your loan(s).  To determine your eligibility for forgiveness, cancellation, or discharge please contact your loan servicer. 

Federal Loan Forgiveness Programs

- Teacher Loan Forgiveness

- Public Service Loan Forgiveness

- Perkins Loan Cancellation and Discharge

Steps to Begin Alternative (Private) Student Loan Repayment

1. Contact your loan lender directly to set up a payment plan and explore methods of payment.  If you aren't sure who you borrowed private student loans from, contact us.
2. Make sure to notify your loan lender if your contact information ever changes.
3. If you start having trouble making your payments, contact your loan lender to discuss your options.

Please note: Some lenders offer a Co-Signer Forgiveness/Release program.  This would relieve your co-signer from their loan obligations after certain qualifications have been met.  Contact your loan lender directly to see if this is an option, and/or what the requirements might be.