The College Investor Audio Show

Front-loading of financial aid like grants and scholarships is a form of bait-and-switch, where a college gives a better financial aid offer to freshmen than to sophomores, juniors and seniors.When a college practices front-loading of financial aid, the average grant per recipient decreases after the first year and/or the percentage of students receiving grants decreases.This means students get smaller grants and/or fewer students get grants. Even if a college keeps the grants unchanged, the net price will increase as college costs increase.Front-loading of grants causes the mix of grants vs. loans to become less favorable after the freshman year. The family’s share of college costs increases significantly for upperclassmen, even if their ability to pay for college remains unchanged.

Almost 50% of students borrow student loans for community college.It's no secret that the cost of going to college and debt from student loans have significantly increased over the past several decades. Although wages have also gone up, the cost of higher education has increased more than inflation. The average cost of tuition for a four-year private college is $43,775 and $28,238 for public. And what's even scarier is that the most expensive colleges cost over $60,000 per year!Many potential college students explore community college because it offers cheaper tuition than traditional four-year colleges. In 2024, the average tuition for public community colleges is approximately $5,184 per year for in-state students and $8,806 for out-of-state students. So while going to a community college is more affordable than other forms of higher education, you still may need to explore student loans for community college to cover the cost.

There are many benefits to 529 college savings plans. They provide tax and financial aid advantages to families who save for college. However, the 529 plan does impact your financial aid and you likely need to report it on your FAFSA.Saving for college reduces student loan debt at graduation and increases college choice. But it can also affect eligibility for need-based financial aid.Depending on who owns the 529 plan account, a 529 college savings plan may affect either the income or the assets reported on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). In this guide, we'll explore how a 529 plan can affect your FAFSA and financial aid eligibility.

Robert joined Lacy Langford on the MILMO® Show to discuss everything that's happening with student loans right now - from changes to repayment plans, new borrowing limits, and loan forgiveness.Check out the MILMO® Show here to learn more.

Workforce Pell is a new legal pathway within the Pell Grant program that’s intended to cover short-term workforce training - the kinds of programs that historically have fallen outside Pell rules because they were too short.Under the new rules, eligible programs generally must run at least 8 weeks but fewer than 15 weeks, and include 150 to 599 clock hours (or certain credit-hour equivalents).The Department of Education has emphasized that Workforce Pell awards are still Pell Grants - but with a different set of program eligibility rules, not a totally separate pot of money. That matters because it ties Workforce Pell to Pell’s broader budget pressures and to how Pell eligibility is tracked over a student’s lifetime.How big could the program be? Federal officials have cautioned that it’s hard to estimate because many short-term programs aren’t well captured in federal datasets today. In a Department of Education slide deck (PDF File), ED suggested the number of eligible programs could range from “several hundred to a few thousand,” depending on state decisions and how the final rules land.

Major changes to Parent PLUS loans are coming in 2026, and for many families, the timing could not be more complicated. Parents with students starting college this year or next (or already have kids in college), need to make plans for how they will pay for school.For decades, Parent PLUS loans acted as a backstop. When grants, scholarships, and student loans fell short, parents could borrow the rest without limits. Beginning July 1, 2026, that changes. Borrowing caps take effect, and repayment options shrink.The result: more families will need to rely on parent PLUS loan alternatives.This article explains what is changing, how private loans compare to Parent PLUS loans, and what families paying for college right now should be thinking about.

There are many different ways to invest in the stock market—some people prefer to buy and hold, while others trade stocks on a more frequent basis. Day traders and other stock investors have a lot of different indicators to measure performance and provide insights on when and how to invest. There are also a lot of weird indicators for stocks and other odd hypotheses when it comes to stock market performance over time. I thought it would be fun to share a few that have actually been pretty successful over time (there are, of course, thousands of others that are not as successful).Who knows, maybe there is some subliminal fate driving the performance of the markets.

In the last few years, rising college costs have been at least partially blamed on a simple and provocative idea: administrative bloat. The claim is easy to repeat and hard to forget. Some versions suggest that elite colleges employ one administrator for every two students, or even several staff members per student. These figures have even made it to Congressional policy debates, opinion pieces, and social media posts, often presented as self-evident proof that colleges have lost control of their staffing.But when these claims are checked against federal data, they fall apart.Using enrollment and staffing figures from the National Center for Education Statistics and the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System, a much different picture emerges.Across U.S. colleges, and even at Ivy League institutions, students outnumber staff by wide margins. Faculty account for a significant share of employees, and many institutions appear staff-heavy only because they operate hospitals, medical schools, or large research enterprises that serve the public far beyond their student bodies (and usually fund themselves).Let's dive into the data and see how these rumors fall apart.

Yale University will allow students from households earning up to $200,000 a year to attend tuition-free beginning in fall 2026, the university confirmed this week, expanding a financial aid policy that has been in place for several years. The threshold had previously been set at $150,000.Under the updated policy, families earning up to $100,000 annually will continue to pay nothing at all — covering tuition, housing, meals, and other required costs. Families earning between $100,000 and $200,000 will no longer be charged tuition, though they may still have to pay for room and board.

For years, income-driven repayment has been a dividing line between federal and private student loans. Federal borrowers could tie monthly payments to income but historically, private borrowers could not.That line is starting to blur.RISLA (Rhode Island Student Loan Authority), a nonprofit student loan lender based in Rhode Island, has introduced an income-based repayment (IBR) option for borrowers who refinance student loans through the organization. The plan borrows heavily from the "old" IBR framework created in 2009, offering payment flexibility during periods of lower income and forgiveness after decades of repayment.It is a small but notable shift in a private lending market that has traditionally emphasized fixed monthly payments and faster payoff schedules. As federal student loan policies continue to change, the question is whether other lenders will follow and whether borrowers should welcome them if they do.

The U.S. Departments of Education and Treasury released new details on the Education Freedom Tax Credit, a centerpiece of President Trump’s Working Families Tax Cuts Act.Administration officials describe it as the largest expansion of education choice to date, with the potential to steer billions of dollars toward private scholarships and education services outside traditional public school funding streams.Unlike past education tax benefits aimed directly at families, this credit works by encouraging taxpayers to contribute to nonprofit Scholarship Granting Organizations (SGOs), which then distribute aid to eligible students.The design is complex and a bit confusing, the rollout will take time, and its impact will vary sharply by state. For families, the key question is not whether the credit exists, but whether and how it will be available where they live.

The idea of saving money in college might sound impossible - but it's totally doable! For most college students, this is the first time really having to budget and manage money on your own. You might not know all the tips and tricks to make your money last. That's what this list is for.Here's some of the best ideas on how to manage your money and save money in college. These all come from experience. If you have more ideas or suggestions, want to share your hack, or want to tell us how silly these ideas are, leave a comment below!Let's dive in on the best ways to save money in college!

Looking for the best ways to save your tax refunds? We have seven ideas that can help you build wealth with your tax refund.The April 15th tax filing deadline may bring dread to taxpayers everywhere, but the storm cloud comes with a silver (or dollar-covered) lining.Last year, nearly 100 million taxpayers received a refund, with the average refund being $3,138. This sizable payday could be the cash you need to set yourself up for financial stability and a growing net worth.Here are the best ways to save your tax refund.

Audit protection is a service most tax preparation companies advertise as an upsell to help you if you get a notice from the IRS. These services can involve responding to IRS letters, representing you when speaking with the IRS, or even reimbursing you if the tax prep company made a mistake.I hate dealing with bureaucrats. The thought of spending time in line at the DMV is so repulsive that I tried to pay someone to wait in line for me (the person didn’t show up, so I eventually had to go).If the DMV causes me this much pain, you can imagine how bad I would feel getting audited by the IRS. I know this is hyperbolic, but being audited sounds like death by 1,000 paper cuts. Which brings me to the crux of this post. Should you get audit protection for your taxes - which is a big upsell of most of the major tax software products out there.Personally, I put my extra money towards bookkeeping software. I think that’s the better use of the dollar.However, the peace of mind factor may ultimately push you towards buying audit protection. In that case, I recommend being as smart as possible. Or use H&R Block software to get the most protection for the least cost.Should you (or I) pay for audit protection for your taxes. You may be surprised that in most cases, I think the answer is no.

The Professional Student Degree Act, introduced by Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) and several other House Republicans, would expand the list of degrees considered “professional” under federal law. If enacted, the change would allow students in dozens of graduate programs to borrow up to $200,000 in federal Direct Loans - double the cap that would otherwise apply.The proposal comes amidst criticism from industry trade groups and students about the upcoming loan caps. Under last year’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, Grad PLUS loans will be eliminated for new borrowers starting July 1, 2026. In place of the uncapped borrowing for grad school, there will be new limits on Graduate Direct Loans. Those caps depend entirely on whether a program is classified as “graduate” or “professional.”

As federal student loan borrowers weigh their repayment options in 2026, confusion around the SAVE income-driven repayment plan has grown. Data from the loan servicers is showing backlogs, but the reality is much different for borrowers at this moment. The repayment plan processing backlog is generally overblown and outdated because of applications from last year.Persistent myths that do not reflect how the system is actually working right now, and what borrowers should be doing. The result is that several widely shared assumptions about leaving the SAVE plan are simply wrong - and it could be costing you money!Here are three of the most common myths and what borrowers should understand before making a decision.

For many families, the cost of college feels unknowable until the bills arrive. Sticker prices climb past $70,000 a year at some private colleges, while headlines spotlight rare “full-ride” scholarships. The reality for most households sits somewhere in between — and it looks far different from the prices advertised on college websites.Based on an analysis of federal education data, scholarship data, and student loan statistics, most families are paying tens of thousands of dollars out of pocket over the course of a degree - which can come in the form of savings, cash flow, and student loans. Very few families pay nothing for college.

There are many benefits to receiving one or more private scholarships. It eases the financial burden of getting a college degree and minimizes the need for student loans. And it allows you to focus on your studies while at school. But scholarship applicants can face several potential pitfalls along the way. The odds of winning scholarships are often low, and you must be mindful of scholarship scams, displacement, and scholarship taxes. By learning how to anticipate and respond to these scholarship gotchas, you can increase your chances of scholarship success. This article guides you through the many considerations you need to make before applying for scholarships, so you can feel more confident throughout the process.

A tuition payment plan is a lesser-known way to pay for college as you go. It breaks your tuition bill up into smaller payments, allowing you to pay in installments over time. Remember, how you decide to finance your college education is going to be one of the most important decisions you make in your life.While a lot of students opt for student loans or financial aid packages, that isn’t the only way to pay for college. In this article we’ll dive into how tuition payment plans work, how much they cost, and some things you’ll want to be aware of before you enroll in one.

If you are thinking about diversifying your income, you may be asking yourself, “How do I diversify my income?” It's actually pretty straight forward, and many of us have already created multiple streams of income, we just don’t realize it.The goal of creating multiple income streams should be to maximize your potential in each category available to you. If you are just starting out, it really isn’t reasonable to expect you to generate tons of rental income.However, if you start maximizing your income generating potential through your primary salary, you will find yourself having excess income that you can reinvest to generate additional income streams use different buckets of assets.Remember, the average millionaire has 7 different income streams. Seven! Here are the most common ones.

The debt snowball and debt avalanche are two of the most popular methods for paying off debt.When you first start paying off debt, the most important thing is to have a plan. Without a plan, paying off debt can seem like a daunting task, which will quickly deflate any motivation you have to, you know, actually pay off debt.Having a plan can help you realize that debt is not forever and that it's possible to be debt free. So often, debt feels like a lifetime sentence, but it doesn’t have to be.As you explore the different types of debt pay-off plans, the debate between the debt snowball vs. debt avalanche is bound to come into play. Each side of the debate makes strong points for their favorite debt repayment strategy. But, which is the best debt payoff method? Let’s take a closer look at how these two strategies compare.

It’s that time of year when we look back on what we have and haven’t accomplished and decide what to tackle in the second half of the year. Even though we're in extraordinary times, most people will still have getting out of debt and building wealth as top goals.If eliminating some of your debt while simultaneously improving other parts of your financial life are among your goals, this post is for you. It’s time to take back control and kick your debt to the curb.It can sound like paying off large amounts of debt in a short period of time is impossible - but it's not! You can even pay off $10,000 in debt in just one year. Whether you have student loan debt or credit card debt, there are options.Here’s how you can pay off $10,000 in debt in one year.

Can you imagine a life where you didn’t have to work every day? Instead of needing to work you could work because you wanted to or, you could choose not to work because you wanted to. How? By building a passive income that allows you to make $50,000 per year without working!Conventional wisdom tells you that the path you’re supposed to live looks like this:Go to CollegeGet a Good JobGet MarriedTake out a loan for school, your wedding, a car, furniture, a houseWork hard for 30+ years to pay off all the debt you accumulatedMaybe you’ll have enough to retire and then again, maybe notThe truth is that there IS another way to live. You don’t have to go the traditional route. After all, you are the one in control of your life. You can do anything you want.Isn’t that a freeing thought? To know that you’re in the driver’s seat of your own life? For me it is.One thing that has been on my mind a lot, and that I have begun to work toward, is creating passive income so that my limited time isn’t constantly being exchanged for money. And because I’ve always had a fascination with passive income I’ve really been drilling down on it lately and not only learning more, but taking action.I think most people could happily live on $50,000 per year (provided they had no debt) so I thought it would be a good idea for you and I to explore some ways to make $50,000 per year without working.

When your student loans are discharged due to disability, you may be limited in whether you can work or go to school for a period of time. Otherwise, your student loans may be reinstated.This can be an especially difficult issue to navigate if your loans are discharged while you're attending school, or plan to. And it can happen even if you never planned on asking for a disability discharge.Here's what to know about disability discharge, and how to navigate your choices if your loans are automatically forgiven.

The Education Department’s latest court-ordered status update shows some progress on one front of the student loan system — and continued delays on another.In a court filing submitted January 14 (PDF File), the department detailed activity from December 1 through December 31, 2025, offering the clearest picture yet of how repayment and forgiveness systems are functioning after months of disruption tied to litigation and a government shutdown.The report was filed in federal court as part of a lawsuit brought by the American Federation of Teachers, which alleges widespread delays in student loan processing.

As federal student loan collections resume, millions of borrowers who fell behind during the pandemic-era pause are again facing wage garnishment, tax refund seizures, and damaged credit. For borrowers already in default, the path back to good standing matters more than ever.One option stands out for many: student loan rehabilitation, a program that allows borrowers to remove the default from their federal loans (and credit report) after a series of on-time payments. Compared with student loan consolidation, rehabilitation can offer long-term credit benefits, but it also comes with strict rules and timelines that borrowers need to understand before enrolling.

When Congress passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, it changed a central feature of how graduate education in the United States is financed. For nearly two decades, federal policy allowed graduate students to borrow up to the full cost of attendance through the Graduate PLUS loan program. That option will end in June 2026.A new report from the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia’s Consumer Finance Institute (PDF File) offers one of the clearest pictures yet of what that change could mean for students, families, and lenders.The analysis finds that millions of future graduate students may face a new financing gap — and that private lenders may not be ready or willing to fill it.

Curious how to become a billionaire? It's a question that got me thinking...Earlier this year, I was browsing social media and came across an interesting post. Someone asked a pointed question, which seemed particularly relevant as I was in Las Vegas at the time. “What do you need to do to become a billionaire?”With all of my personal finance and business knowledge, I began to ponder what my top advice would be. I came up with two answers pretty quickly. Here are my thoughts on how to become a billionaire.

The thought of going back to business school appeals to those who want to boost their income and advance in their career. However, business school can cost anywhere from $20,000 to $150,000 per year, so it is critical that the benefits of business school will outweigh the costs. Even the average cost of $60,000 is too expensive to "find yourself".If you're thinking about going to business school to get your MBA, you should do so with specific purpose and be working to realize specific benefits. You need to have a specific ROI on the investment in your education.Is going to business school and getting an MBA worth it? Maybe.I received my MBA and I can honestly tell you that it was only worth it because it was partially-paid for by my employer. The true out-of-pocket cost of $80,000 would probably not have been worth it.With that being said, these are the questions that you should answer before pursuing an MBA.

Is college worth it? The answer depends on how much you spend. That's it. If you spend too much on college, it's not worth it because your lifetime earnings will never recoup the cost you spent so early in life.While the thought of incurring student loan debt makes many prospective students reconsider pursuing post-secondary education, the impact of a degree can still outpace the pain of loan debt on future financial well-being as long as the amount is minimized.A college degree can represent a sound investment in your future earnings. The financial return over a lifetime can make an undergraduate education a good investment - but only if you don't spend too much for it. Yes, college graduates, on average, earn 84% more over their lifetimes compared to just high school graduates.But what if your career earnings are only $400,000 more than if you didn't go to college, and you spent $100,000 in total on college? Making that extra $300,000 over 40 years of working was a really poor use of that original $100,000. That $100,000 would have grown to over $1,000,000 over that same 40 years if you never spent it on education...But on the flip side, if you only spend $20,000 in total on college, and earn an extra $400,000 over your lifetime, now, that investment is worthwhile. You basically have doubled your future potential earnings ($20,000 would only grow to $200,000 normally - but your education grew it to $400,000).

Ready to start using the best budgeting app to tackle your finances and track your net worth?Organizing your financial life is the first step to growing wealth, and technology can help you move in the right direction - specifically using budgeting apps and money tracking apps. But with the number of apps mushrooming each day, it can be tough to know which to use.After testing and using dozens of apps, we’ve got a comprehensive view of what budgeting apps are worth downloading, and which you can safely ignore.Plus, it's important to think about what you need for a budgeting app or spending tracker? Do you need hard-core budgeting tools, or investment tracking? Are you looking for your credit score? Every budgeting app focuses on a specific niche, and we break down the best budgeting apps we've found any why you should consider using them.

Federal student loans are a critical component in how families pay for college.Beginning in 2026, new laws will change how much students and parents can borrow and how those student loans are repaid. The changes are significant, especially for graduate students, professional programs, and families that rely on Parent PLUS loans to close college funding gaps.Student loan repayment also faces one of the biggest shifts in history.For families planning for college or graduate school, or those already in repayment on student loans, the next year will be another wild one with updates and changes.

Americans may be heading into the largest tax refund season on record - even though it may be one of the latest start tax refund seasons in recent memory.Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said this week that recent tax law changes could result in tax refunds that are “$1,000 to $2,000” larger for many households when they file their 2025 returns in early 2026.The White House has echoed that claim, pointing to estimates from Piper Sandler, suggesting the average refund could rise by roughly $1,000 compared with the 2025 filing season. That would put the typical tax refund at about $4,150.If those projections hold, millions of taxpayers will see more money returned by the IRS - not because taxes suddenly fell during the year, but because they paid too much along the way.

As families juggle decisions about housing, orientation dates, and class schedules, one area that often gets overlooked is life skills. The transition from high school to college is one of the biggest changes a teenager will face. And while some schools may offer a session study habits, far fewer address what it takes to function day to day.The cost of not being prepared can be high. Students who don’t learn how to manage stress or money early may be more likely to drop out or take longer to finish their degree. Parents often assume their kids already know these skills or will figure them out along the way. But being proactive helps students feel more confident from day one.

For years, taxpayers have grown accustomed to filing season opening in late January. But for the 2026 tax year, current projections point to a much later start.According to comments from IRS leadership, the agency is preparing for a filing season that could open around Presidents Day: mid-February 2026. This reflects added workload from new tax law provisions and the need for additional preparation time. If you're expecting a tax refund, the most common advice is that you should file your tax return as soon as possible. There is no reason to let the government keep your money any longer. Even if you e-file early, we estimate that the IRS won't start processing your tax return until February 17, 2026. You can see our estimated tax refund calendar to know when you're going to expect your tax refund.

Close to 90% of the world’s millionaires have some sort of real estate exposure. Real estate investing can help you grow your net worth and develop new forms of income.In the past, real estate investing was primarily for investors who easily qualified for loans—usually those in a higher tax bracket. But today’s changing times and technology have made it more accessible to make small investments. We’ve outlined 19 different ways to get your investment started in real estate - well beyond the basics of buy a house and rent it out.Some are appropriate for beginners, others are more fitting for existing homeowners, and some are suited for deca-millionaires or people with specialized skill sets. No matter who you are, you can invest in real estate with one of these options.

If your financial aid package falls short of your need, you can ask the college for more financial aid by sending them a financial aid appeal letter.A financial aid appeal is not like a negotiation. It is not like bargaining for a lower price on a car at the car dealership.Most students lack leverage to get the college to throw out its financial aid rulebook. Good grades and test scores, and strong extracurriculars may get a student into a college, but aren’t enough to earn the student a full scholarship.To get an increase to your financial aid package, you need to know how to present your financial situation correctly. Merely asking for more money will not work, unless your appeal is supported by documented special circumstances. A successful financial aid appeal is based on providing the college financial aid administrator with relevant new information about special circumstances that affect your ability to pay for college. In this article, we'll show you how to write a financial aid appeal letter and let you know what supporting documentation to provide.

What can you do if you can't afford college? The answer is duct tape.What? Duct tape has a lot of practical uses, such as reinforcing book bindings, patching holes in backpacks, removing lint and catching bugs.But, what does duct tape have to do with paying for college? Duck brand duct tape sponsors a $10,000 scholarship for making a prom costume out of duct tape. Visit the stuckatprom.com website for more information.If that particular scholarship doesn’t help you get out of your sticky situation, then look for scholarships at free scholarship search websites, such as Fastweb.com and the College Board’s Big Future. Just beware of scholarship scams, which charge a fee to apply for a scholarship.Here are ten other options to help pay for school when you don't have enough financial aid.

One of the biggest fears families have about using a 529 plan to save for college is the dreaded 529 plan penalty.There are many ways to save and pay for college, and the absolute best way to do it varies depending on your specific situation. A 529 plan, which is designed to help you with higher education expenses, is a type of tax-advantaged account that allows you to save and invest money.As long as you withdraw that money for qualified expenses, you can do so without paying taxes on it. However, if you don't use the funds in your 529 plan for qualified education expenses, you may be assessed a tax penalty.Thankfully, it's fairly straightforward to avoid this 529 plan penalty, as long as you take a few precautionary steps.

It's currently estimated that there are about 3,000,000 millionaires in the United States today. And given that there are about 300,000,000 Americans according to the latest Census data, that means about 1 in 100 are millionaires.Even more startling is that means that you probably know someone who is a millionaire, and you probably live within a stone's throw of other millionaires that you don't know.The truth is that a lot of millionaires have very specific habits. Traits that make them successful - whether personally or professionally.Beyond the inspirational, here are five fundamental habits that your millionaire neighbor has but probably isn't telling you.

For many parents scrolling Facebook, the same comment keeps appearing under college-related posts: “I don’t know how we’re supposed to pay $30,000 a year for college.”The fear is understandable. Sticker prices at four-year colleges have climbed for decades, and tuition figures are often presented as unavoidable facts. But the assumption behind those comments — that most families really do pay $30,000 a year out of pocket — is usually wrong.In reality, the typical college student pays far less than the published price, and many pay very little or nothing at all. A mix of public policy, institutional aid, employer programs, and academic shortcuts quietly lowers the bill for millions of families each year. And even when it comes to actually writing a check, families pay for college using multiple strategies. 

Starting in 2026, Grad PLUS loans are ending, and there will be new borrowing options for graduate and professional education. The new borrowing limits ($20,500 annually for graduate students and $50,000 for students in designated professional programs) represent a sharp break from the prior model that allowed borrowing up to the full cost of attendance.The line between “graduate” and “professional” is now tied to detailed federal definitions and CIP codes, placing programs like physical therapy, occupational therapy, physician assistant studies, speech-language pathology, and social work under the lower graduate limit despite tuition that often exceeds $40,000 a year.As these changes take effect, a second shift is underway: private lenders are not ready to replace what Grad PLUS once provided. The hesitation is rooted in uncertainty about risk, credit, and the behavioral response of students and institutions.

The vast majority of student loans in the United States remain effectively paused, and delinquency rates are climbing again, according to new data from the nonpartisan California Policy Lab (PDF File). The analysis, released Wednesday and based on credit bureau records through the third quarter of 2025, offers one of the clearest pictures yet of a repayment system strained by policy whiplash, legal uncertainty, and the lingering effects of the pandemic-era payment pause.CPL finds that only 33% of outstanding student loans are being repaid on time, the lowest on-time repayment rate in two decades outside of the formal pandemic pause. The rest are in deferment, forbearance, delinquency, or an income-driven repayment plan requiring no payment.The share of loans in deferment or forbearance alone has more than doubled since mid-2023 and now accounts for 49% of all loans.

The Department of Education has filed its first status report (PDF File) since the government shutdown in response to its lawsuit with the American Federation of Teachers. The report offers a snapshot of how income-driven repayment and Public Service Loan Forgiveness backlogs are moving — and where they remain stuck.The report filed on December 15, 2025 in federal court was delayed by the October–November government shutdown and covers activity through the end of November. It follows a series of monthly disclosures required by the court after borrower advocates sued, alleging widespread delays and failures in student loan forgiveness processing. The previous report was filed back in September.The new filing shows that while application processing has picked back up, hundreds of thousands of borrowers are still waiting for decisions about changing repayment plans, and the backlog of those waiting for PSLF buyback has continued to grow.

Tipping during the holidays isn’t about keeping score — it’s about showing appreciation to the people who help you all year. Whether that’s your babysitter, delivery driver, or building staff, a thoughtful tip or small gift can mean a lot.Every year, as it gets closer to Christmas, I see more and more stories about holiday tipping etiquette and who I should tip. I understand tipping in the hospitality industry. For example, waiters make most of their money on tips, and they have an established custom on what to tip. I don't always agree, and if the service was poor, I tip less, and if the service was great, I tip more.But with higher inflation, workers having to do more with less, and simply showing your gratitude, let's talk about holiday tipping (and some food for thought on tipping in general).

Millions of federal student loan borrowers are entering a new repayment era. After years of uncertainty (payment pauses, injunctions, administrative forbearances, and changing policy) the United States is preparing to consolidate repayment options, ending multiple plans (including SAVE, PAYE, and ICR) and replacing them with the Repayment Assistance Plan, or RAP.The challenge is that many borrowers are still fixated on their old payments from 2022 or 2023 and are concerned about what the cost will be in 2025 or 2026.During SAVE’s administrative forbearance, payments were $0 and before that , they were based on older income data from as early as 2019. That anchoring has left many borrowers with expectations that no longer match current options. Interest has resumed, SAVE is no longer accepting new enrollees, and for new borrowers in 2026, RAP will be the only income-based option.RAP has many perks, but the transition isn’t simple. Understanding how RAP compares with SAVE, PAYE, and IBR can help borrowers plan for the next several years.

The latest national data on college completion shows a stark picture: the cohort of students who started college in fall 2019, only 61.1% earned a degree or certificate within six years. That figure has hovered between 61.1% and 61.4% since the 2016 cohort.While the pattern of stability shows a trend - it's also a reminder that one-in-three college students never finish.The slight 0.3% dip from the previous year was not driven by a surge in students leaving college altogether. Instead, more students remained enrolled at the six-year mark (9% of the cohort, up 0.4%) suggesting that a portion may still complete in later years. The findings come from the latest Yearly Progress and Completion Report, which tracks all first-time students (full-time and part-time) who entered a U.S. degree-granting institution in fall 2019. Completions at any institution count, including after transfer, offering one of the most comprehensive national views of student outcomes.

A long-running legal battle over the Biden administration’s Saving on a Valuable Education, or SAVE, plan reached a conclusion on Tuesday, when the U.S. Department of Education and the State of Missouri announced a proposed joint settlement agreement (PDF File) that would terminate the program, pending final court approval. The announcement, which has been expected for months especially in light of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act also terminating the plan, brings borrowers another step closer to some timelines for resuming payments.The agreement, filed in federal district court, comes after nearly two years of legal challenges from Missouri and several other states, which argued that the administration exceeded its authority by redesigning the federal income-driven repayment system through executive action. Courts repeatedly halted portions of SAVE and, earlier this year, blocked the program in its entirety, throwing borrowers into a prolonged period of confusion.Under the proposed settlement, the Department of Education will:Stop enrolling new borrowers in SAVEDeny all pending applicationsShift existing enrollees into other legally authorized repayment plans.The department would also undertake a negotiated rulemaking process to formally repeal SAVE and address related regulatory questions, such as how, when, and where the borrowers in SAVE will be moved.The settlement still requires judicial approval, but that's expected shortly. It's important to note that the negotiated rulemaking process will determine how and when SAVE is formally removed from federal regulations.

Getting an inheritance is the epitome of a mixed blessing. You receive a financial windfall, but the cause is the death of a loved one. On top of complicated emotions, you may be dealing with the largest sum of money you’ve ever seen.Nobody is born knowing how to handle an inheritance, and few people are prepared to handle one. But if you’ve received an inheritance, you can take a few steps to use the money wisely.

Students today are worried about whether AI use is allowed in college admissions essays, whether schools use AI detectors, and if an application can be rejected over suspected AI content.As AI increasingly weaves its way into our lives, we are entering a new phase of college admissions.More and more, AI has become second nature for students in their schoolwork while concerned teachers and professors try to play catchup. These are major concerns, and bring up issues related to academic integrity, the nature of learning and even fundamental questions like “what is the goal of an education?”. These concerns are now front and center in the college admission process, and as a college consultant I hear about them almost daily from concerned students and parents. Freaked out students reach out to me all the time with questions like these: “I am not using AI to write but when I plug my essay into an AI checked it says very high levels of AI so I’m nervous :-(““I wrote my essay about the hardships about my surgery and an ai detector said it was 96% ai, now I’m worried idk what to do.”There are extremely important questions at the heart of this:Can a student use AI in their college essay or other parts of their application?What is appropriate versus inappropriate use of AI?Do colleges use AI detectors?If so, are they reliable?And central to it all, can a college reject me if they think, correctly or incorrectly, that I used AI inappropriately on my college application?