There’s no doubt that higher education or training pays off. In study after study it is estimated that a person with a bachelor’s degree will make more than 1 million dollars, in lifetime earnings, over a person without one. To get a college degree or training, however, takes money. Not every person will have the money to be able to authorize a debit purchase for costs of college or training. And, unfortunately, not every student will be eligible for grants and scholarships to help pay the bil...

In this unprecedented environment, one of the primary concerns for the Alaska Commission on Postsecondary Education is ensuring meaningful relief is available for state student loan borrowers impacted as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. To mitigate adverse economic impacts, the Commission has implemented a number of strategies to support borrowers:

In the hierarchy of financial aid, you should always seek gift-aid first before taking out a student loan, but the cost of attendance can often exceed the amount of gift-aid – if that is the case, student loans are a viable option. When looking at your loan options, make sure to research the interest rates, repayment logistics, and always read the fine print (usually located in the promissory note). To help you navigate through the realm of student loans, we listed a few myths below:

Whenever we assist students with financial aid (especially when the student is considering student loans), we make sure the student is aware of the logistics – the what/why/where. A topic that comes up often (especially when we work with students whom are in the last stages of their program) is aggregate [student] loan limits. Below is a quick breakdown of aggregate loan limits: