Art Institute Loan Forgiveness: How To Cancel Your Student Loans
Education Management Corporation (EDMC), the company that owned the Art Institute, was in the news for many years, but not for the right reasons. The company was well renowned for its fraudulent business practices.
They were caught and charged in 2015 with breaking US consumer protection laws. They then agreed to repay the $103 million in student loan debt. Additionally, the EDMC was fined $95.5 million for recruiting students violating US federal law using an illegal approach.
It may seem like bad news to them, but it’s wonderful news for you. You can get Art institute loan forgiveness using two programs.
This guide will explore those two programs and your options to get your student loans forgiven.
With that said, let’s begin.
2 Ways To Get Art Insitute Student Loan Forgiveness
What the Art Institute did caused lots of financial strain on students. But the Art Insitute lawsuit has paved the way for you to get loan forgiveness through the programs below.
- Closed School Discharge Program
This program is for students who enrolled in an institution but closed down before they could complete their degree. In other words, if your school closed before you finished your degree for one or more reasons, you may be qualified for the program.
You must have attended the school within 120 days of closing to be eligible for this program.
Eligibility Requirements For Closed School Discharge Program
You need to fulfill two requirements to qualify for Art institute loan forgiveness:
- If you were a previous Art Institute student before it closed
- If you obtained your degree or left within 120 days of its closure
In addition to these two conditions, you must also satisfy the following two conditions before applying:
- You are not eligible if you are presently enrolled at another institution and have had your credits transferred there.
- You don’t qualify if you finished the course before the school closed but haven’t gotten your certificate.
You can decide if you qualify to apply for the program using these conditions.
- Borrower’s Defense To Repayment
The Art Institute breached the law by tricking students into taking out loans to attend their institutions. So this program was developed to relieve these students of their loan debt. The Borrower’s Defense to Repayment offers total debt forgiveness.
However, you need to know a few crucial details before applying. First, you must link your student loan to the Art Institute lawsuit to take advantage of the program.
You also need to provide evidence that the school committed fraud. Then you connect the school’s lawsuit with their fraudulent activities to be eligible for the program.
How The Process Works
Here’s how:
- You should include information about the Art Institute lawsuit in the Borrower’s Defense Repayment application form.
- Remember to include the financial settlement details.
- Include references to trustworthy sources that provide details on the lawsuit and the agreed settlement.
- Give more relevant information to strengthen your case against the institution.
See it this way: if you file a complaint against the institution and win, all your student debt will be forgiven. So be sure to carefully fill out your application form to avoid making any mistakes. The application process is straightforward, but it must cautiously go through them.
A New Settlement Agreement Grants Borrowers Forgiveness
In the Sweet v. Devos lawsuit, the Education Department and several borrowers came to a settlement. This lawsuit began with several borrowers against the Education Department over delayed Borrower Defense petitions several years ago.
This lawsuit was initiated by borrowers against the Education Department several years ago over delayed Borrower Defense petitions.
The settlement terms operate as follows. First, any borrower who applied for a Borrower’s Defense to Repayment before June 22, 2022, would be qualified for a federal loan discharge.
But you have to be a student at a college or university that is included in the agreement. You will also receive a refund if you have already paid for something. The Art Institute, Argosy University, and the American Career Institute are a few institutions.
Final Thoughts
So which program should you choose? There’s no right or wrong answer to this question. And the reason for it is that both programs are meant to eliminate your remaining student loan debt.
They might even return your principal payments until the debt is forgiven.
Choosing the Closed School Discharge program is best if you are eligible for both. And the reason for that is that it approves loans more quickly than the Borrower’s Defense to Repayment program.
Additionally, the Borrower’s Defense process might take months or even years to complete.
But the choice is yours. So it’s best to consult a student loan expert. Depending on your needs, they will assist you in choosing the ideal program.
