FAFSA Direct Consolidation Loan application freezing at repayment plan selection - stuck in loading loop

yea this happened to me too last semester. the studentaid website is garbage sometimes. i eventually got through by doing it at like 2am when traffic was lower lol

This is actually a pretty common issue with the StudentAid.gov site. Their system gets overloaded during peak application periods. Here are a few things that worked for others: 1. Try completing your application between 11pm-5am EST when server traffic is lower 2. Make sure you're selecting only ONE repayment plan option before trying to advance 3. Disable any browser extensions or ad blockers 4. Try using the mobile site instead of desktop 5. Check that your loans are eligible for consolidation (some loan types can cause this error) If all else fails, you can call the Federal Student Aid Information Center directly, but be prepared for very long wait times this time of year.

the SAME EXACT THING happened to me!!! i was stuck on that stupid spinning wheel for like a week. turns out i was picking income-based repayment but had some private loans mixed in that weren't eligible. once i unchecked those loans on the previous page it finally worked. might not be your issue but worth checking

I had this exact problem two months ago and wasted HOURS trying different browsers and devices. What finally worked was using the FSA ID troubleshooting tool first (even though my FSA ID was working fine), then immediately logging back in and trying again. Something about that reset whatever was hanging the system for me. Worth a shot!

This is a known issue with the Direct Consolidation Loan application system that tends to happen when: 1. You're trying to select an income-driven repayment plan but haven't completed/linked your most recent tax return information 2. You have selected loans that aren't eligible for the specific repayment plan you chose 3. The system is experiencing high traffic volume If you've tried all the technical workarounds mentioned above and still can't get through, I'd recommend using Claimyr to connect with a Federal Student Aid agent directly. I was stuck in the same situation and used their service to get connected to an actual person who could help override the system issue. Their video explains it better than I can: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ The agent was able to see exactly where my application was getting stuck and fixed it on their end. Saved me days of frustration. You can find them at claimyr.com

I know this sounds weird but try using Microsoft Edge browser in private mode. The studentaid site has some strange compatibility issues with certain browser security features. That's what finally worked for me after fighting with it for days.

UPDATE: I tried the late night approach (2:30am) with ad blockers disabled and it STILL got stuck at the same spot! But then I checked my loan details more carefully and realized one of my loans was actually a FFEL loan, not a Direct Loan like I thought. I unchecked that one, tried again, and it worked!! The application went through completely. Thanks everyone for your help - especially the suggestion to check loan eligibility. Consolidation is now processing and I should be all set before my deferment ends!

Congrats on getting it resolved! This is such a helpful thread - I'm bookmarking it for future reference. The FFEL vs Direct Loan confusion is SO common and the system really should give better error messages instead of just infinite loading. For anyone else struggling with this, it's worth printing out your loan details from your servicer first so you can verify everything before starting the consolidation application. Saves a lot of headaches!

As someone who just went through this nightmare myself, I can't stress enough how important it is to have all your loan documentation ready before starting. I spent two weeks dealing with similar issues because I assumed all my federal loans were Direct Loans. Turns out I had a mix of FFEL and Direct loans from different years of school. Pro tip: Log into your FSA account and go to "My Aid" to see the exact loan types BEFORE starting consolidation. Also, if you're planning to choose an income-driven repayment plan, make sure your tax information is already linked through the IRS Data Retrieval Tool or have your tax transcript ready. The system will hang if it can't verify your income info. The 2am trick definitely works too - I finally got mine to go through at 3am on a Tuesday. Good luck to anyone else dealing with this!

This thread is incredibly valuable! I'm about to start my consolidation application and was planning to just dive in without checking anything first. After reading everyone's experiences, I'm definitely going to: 1. Check my FSA "My Aid" section to verify all loan types before starting 2. Make sure my tax info is linked through the IRS Data Retrieval Tool 3. Have my servicer loan details printed out as backup 4. Plan to do it during off-peak hours (late night/early morning) 5. Disable ad blockers and try different browsers if needed It's frustrating that the system doesn't give clear error messages, but at least now I know what to watch out for. Thanks everyone for sharing your troubleshooting experiences - this will save me so much time and stress!

This entire thread is a goldmine of information! As someone who's been putting off my consolidation application because I've heard horror stories about technical issues, reading through everyone's experiences and solutions gives me so much more confidence to tackle it. The checklist that Peyton put together is perfect - I'm literally going to follow it step by step. It's amazing how a simple thing like checking loan types first can save days of frustration. Thanks to everyone who shared their troubleshooting tips, especially the original poster for following up with the solution. This is exactly the kind of community knowledge sharing that makes these forums so valuable!

Wow, reading through this entire thread as someone new to the consolidation process has been incredibly eye-opening! I had no idea there were so many potential technical pitfalls with the StudentAid.gov system. I'm planning to start my consolidation application next week and was just going to wing it, but now I realize I need to be much more strategic. The loan type verification issue seems to be the most common culprit - it's crazy that a FFEL loan mixed in with Direct loans can cause the whole system to hang without any clear error message. I'm definitely going to spend time this weekend logging into my FSA account to check all my loan details first, and I love the idea of doing it during off-peak hours. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences and solutions - this thread should honestly be pinned as a troubleshooting guide for consolidation applications!

This thread is absolutely incredible - thank you all for documenting these solutions! I'm actually scheduled to start my consolidation application this Friday and was completely unprepared for the potential technical issues. Reading through everyone's experiences, especially Malia's journey from frustration to success, has given me a much clearer roadmap. I'm going to follow the collective wisdom here: verify my loan types in FSA "My Aid" first, ensure my tax info is properly linked, disable browser extensions, and plan for a late-night/early-morning session. It's honestly shocking that such a critical government system has these recurring technical problems without clear error messaging, but at least this community has figured out the workarounds. I'll definitely report back with my experience to keep this knowledge base growing for future applicants!

This thread is absolutely amazing! I just discovered it while researching consolidation issues and I'm blown away by how helpful everyone has been. I'm in the exact same situation as the original poster was - my loans are coming out of deferment soon and I've been dreading starting the consolidation application because of all the horror stories I've heard. But seeing Malia's success story and everyone's detailed troubleshooting steps gives me so much confidence! I'm definitely going to follow the checklist approach: check FSA "My Aid" for loan types first, verify tax info is linked, plan for off-peak hours, and have all my documentation ready. It's incredible how this community turned a frustrating technical issue into a comprehensive guide for the rest of us. Thank you all for sharing your experiences and solutions - this is exactly why these forums are so valuable!

This thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm just starting to research loan consolidation and had no idea about all these potential technical pitfalls. The loan type verification issue seems to be the biggest gotcha - it's amazing that the system just spins forever instead of giving a clear error message about FFEL vs Direct loan eligibility. I'm definitely going to spend time checking my FSA "My Aid" section thoroughly before attempting the application. The collective troubleshooting wisdom here is invaluable - from browser settings to timing strategies to documentation prep. It's so reassuring to see Malia's successful outcome after following everyone's advice. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences and solutions!