Repayment of Federal Perkins and NFLP Loans

GENERAL PROGRAM INFORMATION

Kean University participates in the Federal Perkins Loan Program and awards loans to students with exceptional financial need. Effective October, 2017, Kean is no longer awarding new Federal Perkins Loans as a result of Congress' failure to reauthorize the program by its deadline on September 30, 2017. The information below is for students who have previously received a Federal Perkins Loan while attending the University.

REPAYMENT OF FEDERAL PERKINS LOANS

Students enter repayment nine months after they graduate (this is referred to as a "grace period"), stop attending Kean (either officially or unofficially), or drops below half-time attendance status. Students are allowed up to 10 years to repay their Federal Perkins Loan. Monthly payment amounts are determined by the amount of the student's loan debt and the duration of their repayment period.

Kean University utilizes the services of Heartland ECSI for the billing and repayment of all Federal Perkins Loans. Heartland ECSI will commonly be called your "loan servicer" and will provide assistance via their web-based account access tools. Students may update personal contact information, view their account balance, obtain payoff amounts, make payments, and sign up to receive e-bills. Payments may be made using a credit card or via electronic fund transfers (some payment options may include additional fees).

Please visit the Heartland ECSI site for more information and to set up your online access.

GRACE PERIOD, DEFERMENT, AND FORBEARANCE INFORMATION

Students are automatically put into their 9 month grace period after they graduate, stop attending, or drop below half-time attendance status. [During grace interest continues to accrue]. Students may also be able to additionally defer their payments or put them into forbearance. In-school deferment options are available to students who received a Federal Perkins Loan while attending Kean University and are now either continuing their studies at another institution or are seeking advanced degrees. [During in-school deferment interest continues to accrue, but regular payments are not required]. Sometimes situations occur that make it difficult to keep up with monthly payments. Should that happen students may be eligible for forbearance. Forbearance can be used in situations where the student is suffering a financial hardship due to loss of job, changes to income, medical expenses, or other documented hardships. Students are encouraged to contact our office to make arrangements for forbearance before their loan becomes delinquent. For information on deferments or forbearance please contact Dawn Hudson at (908) 737-3260.

COLLECTIONS AND DEFAULT OF FEDERAL PERKINS LOANS

A Federal Perkins Loan is considered to be in default the day after a payment is past due. When this happens Kean University will place a restriction on the student's account which will restrict many services of the University including re-admission, the release transcripts, access to grade history, and the issuance of diplomas. It is imperative that students contact our office immediately when they are having difficulty making regular payments.

Federal Perkins Loan accounts which remain in default may be referred to an outside collection agency for heightened collection efforts. Any defaulted account which is sent to an outside agency may increase the balance due by 20% to 30% as a result of collections and/or legal costs associated with servicing the defaulted loan. Heartland ECSI utilizes several collection agencies including: