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Contact Student Loan Debt Relief is Currently Blocked
Courts have issued orders blocking the student debt relief program. As a result, the Department of Education is no longer accepting applications for debt relief. If you already applied, they'll hold your application. You may visit https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/forgiveness-cancellation/debt-relief-info for more information and subscribe for Federal Student Loan Borrower Updates at https://www.ed.gov/subscriptions.
Students
- Learn About the Federal Direct Loan Program for Students
- Manage My Federal Direct Loan (FSA ID required)
- Interest Rates and Fees for Federal Student Loans
- Federal Direct Consolidation Loans
- How to Accept/Decline Your Student Award in NOVAConnect
- How to Handle Federal Direct Loan Deferments
- Public Service Loan Forgiveness
- Income-Driven Repayment Plans
- Private Education Loans
Notes
All students who wish to borrow a Federal Direct Loan must complete both the Master Promissory Note and Entrance Counseling prior to ceasing enrollment in at least 6 eligible credits for the term they wish to borrow if those requirements were not previously completed for NOVA or if they have expired.
In addition, borrowers are encouraged to complete an Annual Student Loan Acknowledgment (ASLA) each academic year they borrow a Federal Direct Subsidized Loan or a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan. The ASLA provides information on a borrower’s current federal student loan debt.
All borrowers must be enrolled in (and attending) at least 6 eligible credits at the time the loan is accepted in NOVAConnect and disbursed.
NOVA does not process paper Master Promissory Notes for Federal Direct Loans.
Additional information about how to accept loans and complete the Entrance Counseling and Master Promissory Note is provided in the loan tutorial.
Parents
- Learn About the Federal Direct Loan Program for Parents
- Manage My Federal Direct Loan (FSA ID Required)
- Federal PLUS Loan Interest Rate and Fees
- Federal Direct Consolidation Loans
- How to Handle Federal Direct Loan Deferments
Notes
Parents must log in at https://studentaid.gov using their own information to complete both the Federal Direct PLUS Loan Application and the Federal Direct PLUS Loan Master Promissory Note (MPN) for Parents if they wish to request a Federal Direct PLUS loan.
In addition, parent borrowers are encouraged to complete an Annual Student Loan Acknowledgment each academic year they borrow a Federal Direct PLUS Loan.
When selecting the “School and Loan Information”, please use Northern Virginia Community College ONLY.
If you have placed a security freeze on your credit file, you must lift or remove the freeze at each credit bureau before you continue. Your application will not be processed if you have a security freeze.
Helpful Hints
Student loans are an obligation that borrowers must repay. Only borrow what you need and what you can afford to repay based on your career! There are serious consequences for failing to repay student loans, such as wage garnishment, withholding of tax refunds, collection fees, denial of financial aid and damage to your credit history.
Most federal student loan repayment begins after the borrower stops attending college or drops below 6 credits of enrollment. Loan repayment begins once the loan is fully disbursed.
Contact your loan servicer if you have trouble making your loan payments. You may qualify for deferment, forbearance, or a different repayment plan that can temporarily postpone or reduce the amount you must pay. Your loan servicer can also answer questions about making payments, loan consolidation, and repayment plans.
Log in to the My Federal Student Aid portal to review your loan history and the contact information for your loan servicer. If you need assistance, including help with identifying your loan servicer, please call 1-800-4-FED-AID.
Start planning to repay your student loans with NOVA's Loan Planning form.
Loan Default Rates
In 2018-2019, only 10% of NOVA students accepted student loans. Our institutional default rates are below the national average for community colleges (2-3 year public schools). From the Department of Education, for the last three years:
The national default rate averages for community colleges (2-3 year public):
FY 2017 15.2%
FY 2016 15.9%
FY 2015 16.7%
Inceptia Is NOVA's Partner for Assisting Borrowers
You’re not alone when it comes to student loans. NOVA has partnered with Inceptia, a division of the National Student Loan Program (NSLP), to provide you with FREE assistance on your Federal student loan obligations to ensure successful and comfortable loan repayment. Inceptia’s friendly customer representatives may reach out to you if your loan(s) become delinquent. Inceptia is not a collection agency. We’ve partnered with them to help you explore a wide variety of possibilities such as alternative repayment plans, deferment, consolidation, discharge, forgiveness, and forbearance options. Inceptia will stay in touch with you via phone calls, letters, and/or emails to help you find answers to your questions and solutions to your issues. For additional resources including information on repayment options, please visit Inceptia’s Federal Student Loan Overview website at Inceptia.org/FAQ.