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Detailed Loan Information

This page provides information on all things related to loans, including what DLR requires before loan repayment can begin on an award.

Recommended read for Applicants
Recommended read for Awardees

NIH will repay lenders for the existing principal and interest on loans obtained from qualifying U.S. Government (Federal, State, local) or chartered U.S. academic institutions, and commercial educational lenders that are subject to examination and supervision in their capacity as lending institutions by an agency of the United States or of the State in which the lender has its principal place of business obtained for the following:

  • Undergraduate, graduate, and health professional school tuition expenses;
  • Other reasonable educational expenses required by the school(s) attended, including fees, books, supplies, educational equipment and materials, and laboratory expenses; and
  • Reasonable living expenses, including the cost of room and board, transportation and commuting costs, and other living expenses as determined by the Secretary.

To be eligible for LRP repayment, eligible loans cannot be consolidated with any loans issued to another individual, such as a spouse or child, or with non-educational loans.

The following loans are not eligible for LRP repayment:

  • Loans not obtained from a U.S. government (federal, state, or local) entity, U.S. academic institution, commercial or other chartered U.S. lending institution, and loans not obtained for educational purposes. This includes loans from friends, relatives, or other individuals, and non-educational loans such as home equity loans.
  • Loans that were consolidated with loans belonging to an individual other than the applicant, such as a spouse or child.
  • Loans for which eligibility documentation is not provided.
  • Loans or portions of loans obtained for educational or living expenses, which exceed a reasonable level, as determined by the standard school budget for the year in which the loan was made, and are not determined by the LRP to be reasonable based on additional contemporaneous documentation provided by the applicant.
  • Loans, financial debts, or service obligations incurred under the following programs (or other programs where an incurred service obligation converts to a loan upon failure to satisfy the service obligation):
    • Armed Forces (Army, Navy, or Air Force) Health Professions Scholarship Program
    • Indian Health Service (IHS) Scholarship Program
    • National Institutes of Health Undergraduate Scholarship Program (UGSP)
    • National Research Service Award (NRSA) Program
    • Nurse Faculty Loan Program
    • Physicians Shortage Area Scholarship Program (federal or state)
    • Primary Care Loan (PCL) Program
    • Public Health Service (PHS) and National Health Service Corps (NHSC) Scholarship Program
  • Loans that are delinquent, in default, or not current in their repayment schedule.
  • Parent PLUS loans.
  • Loans that are paid-in-full.
  • Loans obtained after the execution of the initial NIH LRP Contract (e.g., promissory note signed or loans disbursed after the LRP contract has been awarded).

When applying for a new award, applicants will be required to provide documentation to demonstrate that educational loans are eligible for loan repayment by the NIH. Loans may be deemed ineligible and/or an LRP application may be withdrawn in the event appropriate documentation is not provided in a timely manner. Applicants are strongly urged to start contacting lenders immediately. It can take many weeks or months to gather the required documentation, and it is never too early to start collecting loan documents.

All loans require:
  1. Account Statements (less than 30 days old)
    • Borrower's Name
    • Loan Type
    • Original Loan Amount
    • Payoff Amount (see definition in A-Z index, current principle balance and accrued interest)
    • Statement Date (date the statement was printed)
    • Repayment Status (Forbearance, Deferment, Repayment, Past Due, or Deliquent status)
    • Lender Information (Information is on official lending institution letterhead or from lender's online account).
    • Example: Account Statement

    Applicants can access and retrieve account statements from the lender’s website. If any of the information listed above is not available on the account statement, applicants must to contact the lender(s) for the additional documentation.

  2. Promissory Notes/Disclosure Statements (see definition in A-Z index)
    • Non-consolidated loans
      1. Borrower's name
      2. Loan Type
      3. Loan Amount* (original amount disbursed)
      4. Loan Date* (date the amount was disbursed)
      5. Borrower's Signature*

        Example: Stafford Master Promissory Note

        Example: Perkins Master Promissory Note

    • Consolidated loans
      1. Consolidation promissory note that shows every item detailed in the non-consolidated loans section (a master promissory note will not suffice), and
      2. Complete list of loans that were consolidated*, including:
        • Original Loan type*
        • Original Loan owner*
        • Loan amount at time of consolidation*
      3. Example: Consolidation Promissory Note

    *If a promissory note is missing any of the above, additional Disclosure Statements/Disbursement Reports will be required to satisfy the promissory note requirement.

  3. Federal Student Aid (FSA) reports. Please visit https://studentaid.gov/ and register to obtain the following reports.

    These reports must be submitted in PDF or printouts format of the page as it appears. The data download/text document will not suffice. FSA reports are only required for Federal loans (Consolidation, Stafford, or Perkins). FSA reports will not be accepted as a substitute for promissory notes or account statements.

When requesting loan documentation, applicants should have loan documentation sent directly to their address. Do not request documents be sent directly to DLR.

It is always the applicant's responsibility to make payments or other arrangements to keep loans in good standing (e.g., not delinquent, not in default, or "not current" in payment schedule). NIH will not repay late fees, penalty fees, additional interest charges, or collection costs.

A list of educational lenders and Department of Education contact information is provided below to assist in obtaining the required loan documentation.

Servicer Contact Number Servicer Website
Aspire Resources Inc 1-888-902-6077 www.AspireResourcesInc.com
ESA/Edfinancial 1-855-845-1001 www.edfinancial.com
FedLoan Servicing (PHEAA) 1-800-655-3813 www.pheaa.org/
Granite State - GSMR 1-800-303-8353 www.gsmr.org
Great Lakes Educational Loan Services, Inc. 1-888-686-6919 www.mygreatlakes.org
MOHELA 1-888-866-4353 www.mohela.com/schools
Navient (formerly Sallie Mae) 1-888-272-4665 www.navient.com
Nelnet 1-866-463-5638 www.nelnetloanservicing.com
OSLA Servicing 1-866-264-9762 www.osla.org
VSAC Federal Loans 1-888-307-8722 www.vsac.org/pay/student-aid-options/loans/federal
Department of Education Contact Information
The Department of Education 1-800-872-5327 www.ed.gov
Loan Consolidation 1-800-557-7392 https://studentaid.gov/app/launchConsolidation.action
Federal Student Aid 1-800-999-8219 https://studentaid.gov/
StudentLoans.gov 1-800-848-0978 studentloans.gov

For Consolidated loans, applicants may contact the lender’s Consolidation Department to obtain a copy of Consolidation promissory note (s):

Servicer Contact Number Servicer Website
Aspire Resources Inc 1-855-475-3335 www.AspireResourcesInc.com
ESA/Edfinancial 1-855-337-6884 www.edfinancial.com/DLSchools
FedLoan Servicing (PHEAA) 1-800-699-2908 www.pheaa.org/
Granite State - GSMR 1-888-556-0022 www.gsmr.org
Great Lakes Educational Loan Services, Inc. 1-800-236-4300 www.mygreatlakes.org
MOHELA 1-888-866-4352 www.mohela.com/schools
Navient (formerly Sallie Mae) 1-800-722-1300 www.navient.com
Nelnet 1-888-486-4722 www.nelnetloanservicing.com
OSLA Servicing 1-866-264-9762 www.osla.org
VSAC Federal Loans 1-888-932-5626 www.vsac.org/pay/student-aid-options/loans/federal

If the lender is not listed above, please try contact the Customer Service number listed on the account statement.

When awardees have outstanding loans from multiple sources, NIH prioritizes which loans are repaid first based on the loan type. LRP payments, once issued, are final and based on information provided to NIH at the time of payment. Exceptions are limited to corrective actions such as a misapplied payment or an overpayment. NIH will repay loans in the following order:

  • Loans guaranteed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services:
    • Health Education Assistance Loans (HEAL)
    • Health Professions Student Loans (HPSL)
    • Loans for Disadvantaged Students (LDS)
    • Nursing Student Loans (NSL)
  • Loans guaranteed by the U.S. Department of Education:
    • Direct Loans
      • Stafford Loans
      • Consolidation Loans
      • Perkins Loans
      • Graduate PLUS Loans (on or after July 1, 2006)
    • Federal Family Education Loans (FFEL)
      • Stafford Loans
      • Consolidation Loans
  • Loans made or guaranteed by a state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or a territory or possession of the United States
  • Loans made by academic institutions
  • Private (Alternative) Educational Loans:
    • MEDLOANS
    • Private (non-guaranteed) Consolidation Loans

    Note: Parent PLUS loans do not qualify for repayment.

If an awardee wish to consolidate loans after receiving an LRP award, please inform DLR as soon as possible by emailing lrp@nih.gov. Only loans listed in the LRP portal may be included in the consolidation for the loan to remain eligible for LRP repayment. This includes ensuring that the consolidated loan does not include loans that are ineligible for LRP repayment, such as:

  • Non-educational loans (e.g., home equity loan)
  • Loans belonging to another individual (e.g., spouse or child)
  • Loans disbursed after the start date of the first LRP award

Awardees must provide DLR with all of the following:

  • Loan Information Form – Complete Section 1 of the Form
  • Consolidation promissory note or disclosure statement
  • Current statement from the new lender, showing the balance or payoff amount of the new loan (consolidation)
  • Final statement from the old lender(s), showing $0 balances or paid-in-full status
  • Federal Student Aid (FSA) reports

The Association of American Medical Colleges has a loan consolidation primer on their website that might help awardees determine whether consolidating loans is appropriate.