Borrowing money is not something to be taken lightly, a NE financial aid associate said Nov. 20.
During an exit counseling session, Imelda Ramos gave students a workbook with a series of blank sentences for them to complete as they learned about the repayment process.
Ramos began with the importance of repaying loans.
“You want to avoid defaulting because it can negatively affect your credit score, which in turn can affect your ability to get jobs or other loans for cars and houses,” she said. “You can be sued if you don’t pay your loans, and nobody wants to deal with that.”
Ramos explained the different terms that go along with taking out loans and discussed various payment plans.
“You get one six-month grace period the day after you graduate,” she said. “Then you enter repayment. Regardless of your circumstance, you are responsible for repayment. It’s important to choose a repayment plan that best fits your needs.”
Ramos and the students went over the workbook answers and discussed possible life scenarios and the actions that students could take with that scenario.
Students should stay in contact with their lender service, Ramos said. She gave a few websites that students could use to keep track of their loans. For instance, NSLDS.ed.gov shows all financial aid history for students, including what school each loan is from and the student’s eligibility for more loans.
“Take advantage of the different websites and sources you have out there in order to stay on top of your repayments and to make them more manageable,” she said.
For more information, students can go to IRS.gov or to studentloans.gov.
— Hope Sandusky
