Deferring Prior Student Loans

Students are eligible for in-school deferment on prior federal student loans while enrolled full-time at the Law School, and this deferment process should be automatic for most federal student loans. Students who have previously borrowed private student loans may be eligible for an in-school deferment, dependent on the terms and conditions of the loan.

The borrower should contact the lender or servicer immediately if they continue to receive bills after the quarter has begun and/or after submission of a deferment form to the Law School Registrar’s Office. The Registrar may need to send an enrollment history record to the lender to verify eligibility for the student deferment.

Deferring Prior Federal Subsidized, Unsubsidized, and PLUS Loans

Students who have previously borrowed Federal Direct or Federal Family Education Loans, including Subsidized, Unsubsidized, or PLUS loan types, should receive an in-school deferment automatically once you start your degree program at the Law School. The University’s Registrar will provide your enrollment information to the National Student Clearinghouse each quarter, which is a third-party agent that shares enrollment information with various lenders and loan servicers to automatically defer student loans. This enrollment information is reported by the University Registrar to the Clearinghouse on a quarterly basis, but not until the start of each quarter.

You can review reported enrollment information and lender or loan servicer contact information by logging into your Student Aid Dashboard at studentaid.gov.

If your lender or servicer continues to send bills after the quarter has begun, you may need to reach out to your lender or servicer to make sure they have pulled your most recent enrollment information from the Clearinghouse. You can also request a deferment form with your lender or servicer. Once you receive the form, complete the student section (including signing and dating the bottom of the form) and submit it to the Law School Registrar's Office so they can complete the remainder of the form. The Registrar cannot complete these forms until after the quarter has started.

You should continue to pay your prior federal student loans until they are automatically placed into an in-school deferment or any deferment forms have been processed by the lender or servicer. Options may be available for temporary deferment or forbearance; contact your lender or servicer for guidance.

Deferring Prior Federal Perkins Loans

As the prior college or university is the lender for the Federal Perkins Loan, borrowers of this loan should contact their prior institution for the appropriate deferment form. Once you receive the form, complete the student section (including signing and dating the bottom of the form) and submit it to the Law School Registrar's Office so they can complete the remainder of the form. The Registrar cannot complete these forms until after the quarter has started.

You should continue to pay your prior federal student loans until they are automatically placed into an in-school deferment or any deferment forms have been processed by the lender or servicer. Options may be available for temporary deferment or forbearance; contact your lender or servicer for guidance.

Deferring Prior Private Student Loans

You may be eligible for an in-school deferment on prior private student loans, but the terms and conditions for this vary from lender to lender. Contact your lender for guidance on options and to verify if they participate in enrollment reporting with the National Student Clearinghouse. If they don't participate, request deferment paperwork with them, complete the student section (including signing and dating the bottom of the form), and submit the form to the Law School Registrar's Office so they can complete the remainder of the form. The Registrar cannot complete these forms until after the quarter has started.

You should continue to pay your prior private student loans until a deferment form has been processed by the lender. Contact your lender with any questions or to see if you have temporary relief options.