I heard this from a source and wanted to question the validity of the statement.

I was told that the Government could forgive portions (or all) of federal student loans if you enlist in the military.

Not that I have heard. There are specific instances during the recruiting phase with the DOD services where they may pay a portion as an enlistment incentive. The Coast Guard does not repay student loans.

A Google search shows a lot of information concerning the question.

I heard that they used to do it, but with the economy and such they've suspended this and most enlistment bonuses too.

It is an old thread, but I thought I'd bump it.

From - http://www.finaid.org/loans/forgiveness.phtml/

Military

Students who are in the Army National Guard may be eligible for their Student Loan Repayment Program, which offers up to $10,000. (Note, the military and veterans' associations provide many scholarships and tuition assistance programs. See the section on Military Aid for details.)

Not in the USCG. Some federal jobs will do it after so many years of being employed. I know the Navy was more than happy to have me sign over my GI bill to pay off my loans and the Army was just going to do it and then some. This was in late 2010 early 2011. Not sure what is available now. You can defer a lot of your loans until you rank up and start making more money.

Anyone in the military or some other public service job should be taking advantage of the public service loan forgiveness program which includes in income-based repayment. Basically, as long as you work in a public service job (government or nonprofit) your monthly payments can be calculated based on your income. Once you make 120 straight payments (10 years), the remaining balance of your loan can be forgiven. Even if you don't care about forgiving the loan, the income-based repayments can be a HUGE help, especially for new graduates.

Here is the link: http://studentaid.ed.gov/PORTALSWeb...PSF.jsp#Q1

definitely gonna be reading up on that, thanks for the link

One of my friends just told me that her government students loans were just cut in half because of a new bill that was passed, and that it was based on her income... But it wasnt a 10 year thing it just was literally lowered and she has a year to pay it and then shes done.

Bells,

Can you post a link?

whoa, if that's true then that's pretty awesome for me, over half my loans are federal... are there forms to fill out or something? Feel like our ESO should be up to date on this stuff

It's not really an ESO issue. The ESO's job is to help you further your CG and non-CG education, not so much to help you pay for previously attained education.

good point Cooch.
I'm looking at getting my payments reduced but I really don't want to wind up paying more in the long run. If there is a forgiveness program available or in the pipeline, it'd be well worth taking advantage of for those of us who have over half their loans through the feds.

did anyone ever find out if such a program exists? Maybe Bells?

I linked to the public service loan forgiveness program: http://studentaid.ed.gov/repay-loan...service#Q1

Everyone should also look in to the income-based repayment plans: http://studentaid.ed.gov/repay-loan...tand/plans

If you have qualifying federal loans there is no longer an excuse to default on them.