Independent, plain-English coverage of student loan news, policy changes, and borrower-rights developments — reported by first-generation students who have been through it.
The Student Loan Defense is a student-run blog. We report and explain the news — we are not lawyers, lenders, or a debt-relief company, and nothing here is legal or financial advice.
Read the latest updatesLatest news & updates
- Have You Seen the Biden Fact Sheet? 7 TakeawaysOften, when you start to look at government responses to the student loan debt situation, you start to see some of the big picture of what borrowers
- Fed Bank Warns of Impending Student Loan DangerSome of the most interesting analysis on student loan trends is coming from one of the national Federal Reserve banks: Lowell R. Ricketts at the Federal Reserve Bank of St.…
- Allegations Against Maximus/Aidvantage, A Massive Loan Servicer One of the biggest sets of allegations in the student loan world actually goes back to big sea changes that happened after a previous leader in student loan servicing left…
- How to Avoid Student Loan Forgiveness ScamsAmong the many things that student loan borrowers have to deal with during the life of their loans, one of the most frustrating ones is student loan forgiveness scams, where…
- Student Loan Debt Stories from RedditWhat does student debt really look like? One place that you can get the kinds of hair-raising stories that show what so many borrowers are dealing with is Reddit, the forum-based…
- Biden’s New Round of Student Loan ForgivenessOver the past few years, the Biden administration has made enormous headway in forgiving or modifying millions of loans for former students, even against some pretty strong opposition through student…
Browse by topic
Breaking News
Time-sensitive policy changes, court rulings, and program updates as they happen.
View updates →Policy & Forgiveness
PSLF, income-driven forgiveness, discharges, and the latest from the Department of Education and the courts.
View updates →Servicers & Borrower Rights
Servicer errors and accountability (Aidvantage, MOHELA, Nelnet) and the rights borrowers have.
View updates →Scams & Consumer Protection
How to spot student loan scams and debt-relief schemes — and the free official channels to use instead.
View updates →Repayment & Plans
Income-driven plans, standard repayment, consolidation, and refinancing — and how changes affect borrowers.
View updates →Default & Collections
Wage garnishment, tax-refund offsets, collections, and the official paths back out.
View updates →Borrower Stories
Real experiences from borrowers — what default, repayment, and dealing with servicers actually look like.
View updates →Why we do this
We are first-generation college students who lived the education gap — the one where no one in your family can explain how aid, servicers, or repayment really work, and one wrong move costs you years. We were lucky. We want to take the luck out of the equation.
Read our mission →Official resources we point readers to
Most real student loan help is free directly from the government. We keep a running list of the official sources that actually matter — studentaid.gov, the CFPB, the FSA Ombudsman, and more.
Educational news & commentary only. The Student Loan Defense is an independent, student-run blog. Our content is news reporting, commentary, and opinion on matters of public concern — not legal, financial, or tax advice, and it creates no professional relationship. We are not affiliated with or endorsed by any lender, servicer, or government agency. Read our full disclaimer.
