Student Loan Repayment

The Student Loan Repayment program allows agencies to provide student loan repayments for federally insured student loans, provided that you sign a three year contract with that agency. 

As an employee you can receive up to $10,000 a year and up to $60,000 in total repayment benefits. There are no restrictions on what majors or academic areas can receive loan repayment, and receiving loan repayment does not preclude you from receiving other employment benefits, including recruitment, relocation bonuses, and retention allowances.

However, if you transfer agencies your new employer is not required to continue the loan repayment. Also, if you quit or are fired within the three year timeframe, you are required to pay back the loan in full.

Although these specifications apply to all federal agencies, each agency sets its own rule for who is eligible to participate in the Student Loan Repayment program. Some agencies have narrow eligibility requirements while others have very broad eligibility requirements.

Agencies are required to report annually to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) on the use of the student loan repayment programs. The reports must contain the number of employees selected to receive this benefit, the job classifications of the recipients and the cost to the Federal Government of providing the loan repayment. 

For more information about program specifics, visit http://www.opm.gov/oca/pay/studentloan.

Program Statistics

From 2007 to 2008, funding for this program increased 22%. In 2008, 35 federal agencies provided more than $51 million in loan repayment.

Federal Agencies that Provided the Most Loan Repayment in 2008

Agency
Employee Count Amount of Benefits Provided
Department of Justice
2,610 $23,420,746
Department of Defense
1,286 $7,797,349
Department of State
713 $4,593,282
Securities and Exchange Commission
408 $3,701,771
Department of Health and Human Services
287 $2,281,518
All Others
1,575 $9,873,194
Total
6,879 $51,667,923

Percentage of Total Loan Repayment Received by Occupation in 2008

Occupation
Employee Count % of Total
Criminal Investigator
1,020 14.8%
Attorney
655 9.5%
Intelligence
491 7.1%
Miscellaneous Administration
351 5.1%
Nurse
310 4.5%
GAO Analyst
275 4.0%
Management and Program Analysis
249 3.5%
Mechanical Engineer
196 2.9%
Information Technology Management
177 2.6%
Inspection, Investigation and Compliance
148 2.2%
Business and Industry
143 2.1%
Miscellaneous Clerk and Assistant
137 2.0%
Nuclear Engineer
116 1.7%
Accounting
114 1.7%
General Engineer
106 1.5%
Passport and Visa Examining
105 1.5%
Human Resources Specialist
97 1.4%
All Other Occupations
2,198 31.96%
Total
6,619 100%

Since 2002, Loan Repayment has Grown Significantly

FY 2002 FY 2003 FY 2004 FY 2005 FY 2006 FY 2007 CY 2008
Participating Agencies
16 24 28 30 34 33 35
Employees Receiving Student Loan Repayment Benefits
690 2,077 2,945 4,409 5,755 6,619 6,879
Amount of Student Loan Repayment Benefits Provided
$3,163,990 $9,182,637 $16,424,365 $27,982,680 $35,940,819 $42,207,783 $51,667,923
Average Amount of Student Loan Repayment Benefits Provided
$4,585 $4,421 $5,577 $6,347 $6,245 $6,377 $7,511
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