It’s that time of year when the buzz of the holiday season creates both excitement and some stress.  For those recently graduated from college, don’t get swept away in holiday cheer.  For those students with federal student loans, it is around the holiday time that your federal loans’ six-month grace period ends and you must start repayment.

It’s Beginning to Look a lot Like -- Loan Repayments

Please keep in mind that it is up to you to understand what debt you have outstanding, what institution is your loan servicer, and what you owe when.  Remember, although the Department of Education disburses federal loans, a loan servicer is a separate company that administers your loan.  The loan servicer should contact you, either by email or direct mail, to let you know about your repayment plan.  However, if you have not heard anything, you are still responsible for seeking out this information.  You can log into your Federal Student Aid account using your FSA ID to gather details about your federal loans. Also, in some cases, your loan may be transferred to a new servicer who will notify you of the change.  Sometimes this notification can look like a piece of “junk mail” so my word of advice is to open all of your mail just in case. If you have private loans outside of the federal student loan program, you must make sure you understand your repayment plan from this third-party lender. 
 
For high school students in the process of applying for financial aid, I recommend that you make sure you save your FSA ID.  You will need it to reapply for financial aid every year anyway, and it is necessary to access information about the federal loans that will eventually enter repayment.  Second, understand the grace period of your loans.  Many loans have a six-month grace period but not all.  It is important to understand how quickly your loans are expected to be repaid.  Finally, be aware of how much you are borrowing and what your monthly payment will look like when your loans enter repayment.
 
While a loan payment may diminish your holiday cheer, remember, a college diploma is a pretty awesome gift.