The average individual with a Masters in Social Work has around $68,000 to $76,000 in student loan debt. If you’re in the same boat, you’re not alone. To relieve the burden of student loan debt, consider pursuing loan forgiveness for social workers. Many federal forgiveness programs support individuals who work in public service, including social workers.
National Programs
The following loan forgiveness programs are for federal student loans only.
Public Service Loan Forgiveness
Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) is a loan forgiveness program for individuals who work in public service, including social workers, teachers, nurses, and more. If you have, or plan to have, more than 10 years of full-time employment in public service and have made 120 qualifying monthly payments to your federal student loans, you may be eligible for PSLF.
You must complete the PSLF application to qualify.
National Health Services Corp Loan Repayment Programs
If you are a licensed clinical social worker, you may qualify for one of the National Health Services Corp’s three loan repayment programs:
National Health Services Corp Loan Repayment Program: For licensed primary care clinicians who serve at least two years of service at an approved site in a Health Professional Shortage Area.
National Health Services Corp Substance Use Disorder Workforce Loan Repayment Program: For health professionals who serve in a Health Professional Shortage Area and improve access to Substance Use Disorder.
NHSC Rural Community Loan Repayment Program: For health providers who work against the opioid epidemic in an approved rural community.
Perkins Loan Cancellation
Public service workers who have taken out Perkins loans before 2017 might be eligible for Perkins Loan cancellation. To verify whether you are eligible, reach out to your school’s financial aid office for the next steps.
Income-Based Repayment Forgiveness
Beyond federal student loan forgiveness programs, social workers can also take advantage of income-based repayment forgiveness.
The following income-based repayment programs are eligible for loan forgiveness:
- Pay As You Earn (PAYE)
- Revised Pay As You Earn (REPAYE)
- Income-Based Repayment (IBR)
- Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR)
If you make 20-25 years’ worth of repayments on any of the aforementioned repayment plans, you may be eligible for the rest of your loan balance to be wiped out.
State-Based Programs
Each U.S. state offers at least one state-specific student loan forgiveness program, which social workers may be able to take advantage of.
For example, Kentucky has a 50/50 matching loan repayment program for healthcare providers who serve in underserved and rural areas. In New York, licensed social workers who work in critical human services areas can get up to $26,000 shaved off of their loans.
Other Ways to Find Relief
Beyond student loan forgiveness programs, you can find student loan relief through other means, such as student loan refinancing.
Student loan refinancing is the process of taking out a new loan, preferably with better terms, to replace your current loan. The new loan can have a lower interest rate or monthly payment to help make the loan more affordable. Here is a list of the top student loan refinance rates. In just three minutes, you can compare real and personalized student loan refinancing rates from 17+ lenders – for free – by using the Sparrow application.
The latest rates from Sparrow’s partners
See a rate you like? Click Apply and we’ll take you to the right place to get started with the lender of your choosing.
Find my rate
For example, let’s say you have a student loan for $10,000 with a 10% interest rate and a repayment plan for 5 years. With your current plan, you pay $2,748.23 in interest. If you refinance your loan to have a 5% interest rate, you pay a total of $1,322.74 in interest, saving you around $1,400 in total.
To explore student loan refinancing offers, complete the free Sparrow application.