Student Loan Forgiveness

Everyone is Wrong About PSLF

A correct reading of the updated data shows the program is hugely successful.

(Image courtesy of Pexels Creative Commons)

I might sound like a broken record, but the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program is not broken. Sure, it had a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad decade, but it has started to fulfill the loan forgiveness promises that were made back in 2007.

Adding to the rancor is the newest batch of data showing the approval rates of PSLF applications, with most media outlets howling about the abysmal 2% approval rate.

Here’s the problem: everyone is wrong about PSLF.

The numbers don’t show a completely broken program that has duped borrowers into a hopeless situation.

Rather, they show a program that has dealt with logistical nightmares and political malfeasance, all while growing more more successful with each passing month.

A Brief History of PSLF

The PSLF program was created in 2007 with the goal to attract highly educated graduates to otherwise lower paid industries (e.g. government and non-profit) with the promise to pay off their student loans.