FAFSA won't cover my $110k student debt while new NYS students get free tuition - am I stuck forever?

I feel your pain! The timing of when you go to school makes such a HUGE difference with financial aid. New York has drastically improved their state aid programs in the last decade while those of us who graduated earlier get stuck with massive debt. Have you looked into the Teacher Loan Forgiveness program specifically? It's different from PSLF and offers $17,500 forgiveness for certain teachers after 5 consecutive years in qualifying low-income schools. Also check if your district offers any loan repayment assistance - some NY districts have started local programs to retain teachers.

OMG me 2!!! I graduated in 2009 with like 85k in loans for my education degree and now its over 100k bc of interest. Meanwhile my little brother goes to SUNY for basically nothing with that Excelsior thing and some TAP grant. The whole system is rigged if u ask me. The government should just cancel everyone's loans not just help the new students!!!

As someone who works in financial aid, I can offer some perspective. The NYS Excelsior Scholarship (what your cousin likely has) only began in 2017 and has income limits and specific residency/work requirements. It's not perfect, but you're right that timing matters tremendously with aid programs. For your situation, I'd recommend three things: 1) Make sure you're on the new SAVE repayment plan that launched last year - it's significantly better than older income-driven options and can potentially cut your monthly payments in half 2) Check if you qualify for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) - the requirements were temporarily relaxed under the Limited PSLF Waiver, allowing previously ineligible payment periods to count 3) Look into whether your loans are eligible for the IDR account adjustment happening this year, which is giving retroactive credit for many types of forbearance and deferment periods The system is certainly frustrating, but there are more options now than even a few years ago.

Yes, absolutely switch to SAVE from IBR - it's a significant improvement. Your payments will be calculated at 5% of discretionary income for undergraduate loans (vs. 10% on IBR), and the income exemption amount is higher. Regarding PSLF, the Limited Waiver period has ended, but the IDR account adjustment (happening automatically this year) will give you credit toward forgiveness for many periods that wouldn't normally count. You don't need to apply separately - they're reviewing all accounts. However, you DO need to have Direct Loans and be on an income-driven plan, so if you haven't consolidated to Direct Loans yet, that's step one. The Department of Education has been sending emails about this, but they often go to spam. Check studentaid.gov for the most current information on your account.

I had the same problem trying to call about PSLF and loan consolidation. After wasting literally 3 days trying to get through, I found this service called Claimyr that got me connected to a FSA agent in less than 20 minutes. They basically hold your place in line and call you when they reach an agent. Saved me so much frustration! Here's the site: claimyr.com - they even have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ Totally worth it when you need to talk to someone about complex loan issues that the website doesn't address. I needed specific guidance on which loans to include in my consolidation to maximize PSLF credit.

It's specifically for getting through to Federal Student Aid, not the individual loan servicers. When I used it, I was able to get clear guidance about my consolidation options and how they'd affect my PSLF eligibility. The agent I talked to was really helpful in explaining which of my old FFEL loans needed to be included.

What nobody told us when we were taking out these loans is how the interest would compound and make it nearly impossible to pay off. I borrowed $70K for my master's degree and now owe $103K after 12 years of payments. The whole system is designed to keep us paying forever. The thing that makes me FURIOUS is that colleges keep raising tuition because they know students can just borrow more! And the government keeps handing out loans without any limits or concern about whether students can repay. Meanwhile, administrators make $500K salaries while adjuncts teach for pennies. I'm sick of all the fake sympathy from politicians who do NOTHING to fix the underlying problems. Loan forgiveness programs are band-aids on a broken system.

Stepping back from the emotions (which are totally valid!), let's talk practical solutions for your specific situation: 1) Definitely switch to the SAVE plan as mentioned - it's objectively better than IBR in almost every way 2) If you've been teaching for 18 years in a qualifying public school, you should be able to get credit toward PSLF through the IDR adjustment, but you need to consolidate any non-Direct loans first 3) Something often overlooked: check if you qualify for Total and Permanent Disability discharge or Closed School discharge if either applies to your situation 4) Look into state-specific programs - NY has the NYS Get On Your Feet Loan Forgiveness Program that might help 5) If you have private loans mixed in, consider refinancing just those (never federal loans) when interest rates drop The NYS Excelsior Scholarship is frustrating to see when you missed out, but focusing on optimizing your current situation will get you further than dwelling on what could have been.

my cousins best friend went to nyu for free with some scholarship thing and hes not even that smart lol. the whole system is just about who you know and having the right connections. my loans are even worse than yours and i dont even work in my field so at least you got that going for you

After reading through all the comments, I wanted to add one more thing: document EVERYTHING in your interaction with loan servicers. Keep records of all phone calls (date, time, who you spoke with), save all emails, and take screenshots of important account information. I've seen too many teachers get burned when servicers make mistakes in tracking qualifying PSLF payments or misapply payments. Having detailed records saved my colleague nearly $40K when she had to prove she had made qualifying payments that weren't being counted properly. And on a personal note - your frustration is completely justified. The system IS unfair. But please don't let that stop you from taking advantage of every program available to you now. The SAVE plan plus PSLF could potentially save you tens of thousands of dollars.