How do I get a Student Loan Reimbursement?

To get a student loan reimbursement, you will typically need to file for it from your employer. Reimbursement for student loans is not common, not to mention that it is currently not possible to discharge student loans in bankruptcy, and student loan forgiveness is only given in extreme situations such as permanent disability. Instead, student loan reimbursement may be given by an employer or by the military after you fulfill your contract; in general, this is something that needs to be planned for and approved in advance by your employer, and cannot be done after the fact.

Typically, if you want to get student loan reimbursement from an employer, you will need to pursue a degree that is related to your current job. You may need to fill out a number of forms or an application to state the degree you are pursuing, when you expect to complete it, and the amount of tuition that is charged, just to name a few. Your employer will then review these forms and determine if they will offer you student loan reimbursement based on these factors, or if you will be responsible for your own loans.

The reason it is referred to as student loan reimbursement is because you will often be responsible for paying for your education up front, even if your employer promises to repay. Then, once you have met certain requirements per semester, or for the degree program, your employer will then reimburse you. This is fairly common with degrees in business, for example; some graduate programs will also offer loan reimbursement if the people in the programs work as teaching or graduate assistants during the program.

The United States military will also often offer student loan reimbursement once your contract has been fulfilled; leaving the military early will mean that you are not offered student loan benefits. There are typically no degree restrictions when you are receiving reimbursement from the military, which is not true when you are receiving reimbursement from an employer, who is typically giving you the money to help make you more successful in your job.

Exploring different options for student loan reimbursement can be a good idea. There are other options to defer making payments on student loans; this includes deferments and forbearances, which may have different requirements in order to qualify. Some lenders also offer income-sensitive repayment plans. In nearly all cases, however, if you take out student loans, you should expect to have to repay them.