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Here's how to qualify for NY's student loan forgiveness program

Solvejg Wastvedt
/
WSKG News
New York state has begun a new program to give qualifying college graduates some help paying back loans.

Recent college grads in New York can now get some help paying off their loans with the state’s new student loan forgiveness program.

There are quite a few boxes you have to check to be part of the program:

  • You have to be a year or less out of school, with a degree from a New York institution.
  • Resident of New York, with an in-state high school diploma.
  • The loan has to use one of the federal government’s income-based repayment plans.
  • If you're employed, your primary work location has to be in-state.
  • Finally, you have to be up on all loan payments, with an income less than 50,000 dollars a year.

Still there? If that does sound like you, the program is a pretty sweet deal. New York state will cover the federal monthly plan payments for the first two years after graduation. Graduates can apply online on the state’s Higher Education Services Corporation website. The program opened Thursday, and applications are accepted year-round.

Solvejg Wastvedt grew up in western Pennsylvania and graduated from St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota. Over the summer, she served in Los Angeles as an intern on NPR's National Desk. Plus, before coming to Upstate New York, Solvejg worked at the Minneapolis community radio station KFAI. When she isn't reporting the news, Solvejg enjoys running and exploring hiking trails.