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Student Loan For Nursing Students
Being a nurse is a great way to serve others in need as well as earn good money. However, nursing school can lead to large amounts of student loan debt and large monthly payments. Several national and state student loan forgiveness programs have been created to attract new nursing candidates because the demand for nurses is so high.
Best Nursing Student Loans Of 2023
In addition to helping borrowers manage their nursing student loans, these loan forgiveness programs also support the growing need for quality healthcare professionals. This is especially true in areas of the country with critical shortages.
Editor’s Note: In this article, we cover the main nursing student loan forgiveness programs. While the PSLF Waiver program expires on October 31, 2022, the IDR Waiver has the same benefits and remains valid until December 31, 2023. Many nurses can have all of their debt forgiven under this program. Read on to find out if you’re among them or if you should pursue a different forgiveness option.
Student loan forgiveness programs for nurses have different requirements and there are many programs. Generally, a person can have a portion of their student loan debt forgiven after meeting specific service criteria.
Other forgiveness programs require a certain number of qualifying student loan payments on the balance to be approved for student loan forgiveness.
How Many Nursing Students Are Leaving Or Suspending Their Degrees Before Graduation?
The biggest update for nurses seeking student loan forgiveness in 2023 and 2024 is a new SAVE plan called Value Education Savings. This plan was released on June 30, 2023, and it may result in many nurses who were previously ineligible being forgiven.
Review the old REPAYE plan. It required paying 10% of income above 150% of the poverty line.
New strategies are also available, such as filing separate taxes to exclude spousal income. These strategies were not available under the REPAYE plan.
Consider this math. The spouse of a nurse making $80,000 a year makes $80,000. Let’s say this nurse has 3 children and pays separate taxes. He works at a 501c3 hospital and has $30,000 in undergrad debt.
Student Loan Assistance & Forgiveness Programs Can Help Attract More Nurses To Home Health Care
Over 10 years, these nursing home loans would pay a total of $7,165. Earlier, he could not qualify for PSLF at all.
This is a huge opportunity that most nurses don’t know how to take advantage of. If you need help figuring out which nursing loan forgiveness option makes the most sense for you, you can consult with one of our expert student loan advisors. We have over 2,300 five-star reviews.
The federal government has several student loan forgiveness programs available to nurses. Be sure to check the specific qualifications of each program before applying.
One of the best loan forgiveness programs for nurses is Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF). This loan forgiveness program is a relief option for public service professionals who have federal Direct Loans.
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The standard 10-year repayment plan is also technically eligible for Public Service Loan Forgiveness. But under this repayment plan, your student loans will be paid off in full within 10 years, leaving you with no forgiven balance. So, to get any benefit from PSLF, you have to join one of the income-driven plans.
If you have non-Direct federal student loans, you should consolidate them into a Direct Consolidation Loan. Any payments made on eligible loans before consolidation under normal rules no longer count towards your 120 loan payment for PSLF. It’s best to keep loans that qualify for this loan forgiveness program separate from your other loans.
Another great feature of Civil Service Loan Forgiveness is that forgiven loan amounts are not considered income by the Internal Revenue Service. That is, they are not taxed.
The IDR Waiver program applies to all borrowers, including nurses. PSLF or IDR may give you credit for eligible payments for a repayment plan. For a PSLF loan, you must be working for an eligible employer when the Department of Education adjusts the account to your forgiveness loan.
Student Loan Forgiveness For Nurses
According to StudentAid.gov, borrowers will continue to see updates in forgiveness numbers through the end of 2023.
There is no form to submit to apply for one-time IDR adjustment. However, if you have a FFEL loan, you must apply for consolidation by December 31, 2023 to receive a PSLF loan.
Nurses with federal Perkins loans may be eligible for up to 100% of their student loans forgiven for five years of full-time service. To apply, you must contact your school’s financial aid department or designated loan servicer.
The Perkins loan program ended in September 2017. But if you received Perkins loans before they ended, you can still apply for a Perkins loan cancellation.
Nursing Student Loan Debt: A Secondary Analysis Of The National Student Nurses’ Association Annual Survey Of New Graduates.
The National Health Service Corps (NHSC) administers the Nurse Corps Loan Repayment Program. Through this loan repayment program, qualified nurses can pay off up to 85% of their student loan debt. However, they must commit to working for two to three years at a critical shortage facility in the United States.
According to the HRSA website, to qualify for the Nurse Corps Loan Repayment Program, you must meet the following criteria:
Unfortunately, Nurse Corps Loan Repayment Program payments are subject to federal taxes. Therefore, the Nurse Corps Loan Repayment Program withholds federal income tax and FICA taxes from payments. Taxes are paid directly to the IRS on your behalf, so you don’t have to deal with it. But this means that the total amount paid will be less than the interest actually paid.
The United States military offers several student loan forgiveness programs that apply to nurses. However, any military payment options are only available to those who are not yet in the military.
Top 7 Student Loan Forgiveness For Nurses Programs Of November 2023
As with all military college loan repayment programs, payments are made on the outstanding principal balance of your student loans. However, they do not include any accrued interest.
Also, unlike PSLF, loan repayments count as taxable income to the IRS and must be reported annually. With military payment programs, payments are made directly to your lender. Also, taxes are withheld for the IRS before payments are made.
Through the Army Active Duty Health Professions Loan Repayment Program, nurses who have been on active duty for at least three years can receive 33.3% of the principal balance of a loan paid by the Army. However, you must score 50 or higher on the Armed Services Vocational Skills Battery to qualify for the loan.
According to the Army’s website, “As a participant in this program, you may be eligible for up to $120,000 to pay off your nursing school loans. During this three-year program, you may receive up to $40,000 each year in eligible education loans.”
Scholarships And Aid
First, it’s important to note that only federal loans qualify for loan repayment through the Army. Second, nurses should know that joining the Army Nurse Corps as an officer can earn you an enlistment bonus of up to $30,000.
Nurses who serve in the Army Reserves on a healthcare team may be eligible for up to $50,000 in nursing school loan repayment. With this loan repayment program, nurses can earn up to $20,000 for two consecutive years of service. There is also an option to repay the loan for an additional $10,000 for the third year.
If you are a nurse serving in the Army Reserves, you can receive up to $50,000 to pay off college loans. However, you must be in the Army Reserves for six years to qualify for this loan repayment program.
According to the Navy, “If you are a nursing student who chooses to serve full-time in the Navy, you can earn up to $34,000 to help pay your way through nursing school through the Nurse Candidate Program (NCP).” The program awards an initial $10,000 grant to accepted candidates. In addition, there is a monthly stipend of $1,000 for up to 24 months.
International Student Loans
According to the Air Force, “Participants in the Air Force Active Duty Health Professions Repayment Program (ADHPLRP) receive repayment of loans used to finance health profession education. Repayment may consist of principal, interest, and loan amounts for reasonable educational and living expenses.”
The maximum payout is $40,000. Also, there is a minimum two-year active duty commitment to receive any loan repayment.
In addition to federal student loan repayment options for nurses, individual states also offer loan repayment and forgiveness programs that can help erase student loan debt. So, check the programs below to see what’s available in your state.
Practical nurses and registered nurses are eligible for the Alaska SHARP program. With this program, nurses can receive loan assistance. However, to be eligible, nurses must serve in an eligible facility
