Sitewide Copyright Status Notice

Unless specifically stated otherwise, all information on StudentAid.gov is in the public domain, and may be reproduced, published, or otherwise used without permission of the U.S. Department of Education (ED). This statement does not pertain to information at websites other than StudentAid.gov, whether funded by ED or not.

Sitewide Disclaimer of Endorsement

The documents posted on this server contain links and pointers to information created and maintained by other public and private organizations. These links and pointers are provided for the user's convenience. Neither ED nor FSA control or guarantee the accuracy, relevance, timeliness, or completeness of this outside information. Further, the inclusion of links or pointers to particular items in hypertext is not intended to reflect their importance, nor is it intended to endorse any views expressed, or products or services offered, on these outside sites, or the organizations sponsoring the sites.

Accessibility

The U.S. Department of Education is committed to making its websites accessible to the widest possible audience, including people with disabilities. In accordance with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (as amended), StudentAid.gov is reviewed and tested on an ongoing basis to make sure that it meets accessibility requirements. If you have feedback or a concern related to accessibility of any content on this website, please contact us.

The U.S. Department of Education entered into an agreement with the National Federation of the Blind that outlines steps that will be taken over the next three years to improve the accessibility of the various documents issued under the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program. See the Department’s Policy Statement on Accessibility of Documents issued under the William D. Ford Direct Loan Program to Individuals with Visual Impairments.

The Federal Student Aid Blog

The Federal Student Aid Blog is meant to be an informal content source that includes tips and advice on topics related to federal student aid. It is not a substitute channel for official Federal Student Aid information on our policies and programs. For that information, please view our nonblog content on StudentAid.gov.

Blog Disclaimers

Blog articles provide insights on the activities and experiences of schools, servicers, students, access professionals, and other education stakeholders to promote a continuing discussion of financial aid. Opinions are those of the author(s) and

• are not intended to reflect the opinion of ED;
• are not intended to endorse any views expressed or product, person, or service; and may not be quoted or reproduced for the purpose of stating or implying ED endorsement or approval of any product, person, or service.

Opinions in comments that appear in this blog belong to the individuals who expressed them. They do not belong to or represent views of ED or Federal Student Aid.

Do not submit questions or status inquiries about any specific matters related to your federal student aid in a comment on the blog. Instead, contact us directly.

Do not submit unsolicited proposals, other business ideas, or inquiries to this blog. This site is not to be used for contracting or commercial business.

These pages may not be used for the submission of any claim, demand, informal or formal complaint, or any other form of legal and/or administrative notice or process, or for the exhaustion of any legal and/or administrative remedy.

ED does not guarantee or warrant that any information posted by individuals on these pages is correct, and disclaims any liability for any loss or damage resulting from reliance on any such information. ED may not be able to verify, does not warrant or guarantee, and assumes no liability for anything posted on this website by any other person. ED does not endorse, support or otherwise promote any private or commercial entity or the information, products or services contained on those websites that may be reached through links on our website.

Federal Student Aid reserves the right to modify this policy at any time and Federal Student Aid expressly reserves the right not to post comments on these pages.

Comment Policy

The purpose of this comment policy is to facilitate an ongoing dialogue on federal student aid topics. We welcome your comments and hope that conversations here will be polite. You are responsible for the content of your comments. 

Neither ED nor FSA control, modify, or endorse comments or opinions provided by visitors to this site. Comments posted to the Federal Student Aid blog are moderated. ED retains the right to post or not post comments. In addition, we expect that participants will treat each other, as well as our agency and our employees, with respect. We do not discriminate against any views but may delete any of the following:

• Attacks; violent, obscene, profane, hateful, or racist comments
• Comments that threaten or harm the reputation of any person or organization
• Endorsements, advertisements, or solicitations of any kind
• Comments that suggest or encourage illegal activity
• Spam, off-topic or repetitive posts
• Personal information including but not limited to e-mail addresses, telephone numbers, mailing addresses, or identification numbers
• Comments that reference federal employees by name.

To protect your own privacy and the privacy of others, please do not include personally identifiable information, such as name, Social Security number, addresses, phone numbers or e-mail addresses in the body of your comment. If you do voluntarily include your name in a comment, which we generally do not recommend, that comment may or may not be posted on these pages. Comments that contain Social Security numbers, addresses, e-mail addresses, phone numbers, or similar personally identifiable information will be removed.

In short: Be nice and add to the discussion. If you continually violate this policy, we may limit your ability to comment in the future.

Thank you for taking the time to read this comment policy. We encourage your participation in our discussion and look forward to an active exchange of ideas.

ED reserves the right to modify this policy.

How Blog Comments are Moderated

Your comments are welcome at any time. Federal Student Aid uses an automated online tool to auto-moderate comments. If your comment does not post immediately, it means it needs to be manually moderated. Manual moderation of comments will occur during regular business hours Monday through Friday. Comments submitted after hours or on weekends will be reviewed as soon as reasonably possible; in the majority of cases, this means the next business day.

Linking Policy

Links to Government Websites
Federal Student Aid links to publicly available websites that are government-owned or government-sponsored. Acceptable federal government-owned or government-sponsored website domains include .gov, .mil and .fed.us.

Federal Student Aid also links to websites created by quasi-governmental agencies; public-private sector partnerships; and state and local governments. We also link to some government-sponsored websites that end in .com, .org, or .net (e.g., www.myedaccount.com).

Links to Nongovernment Websites
Federal Student Aid also links to websites that are not government-owned or government-sponsored if these websites provide student aid information and/or services in a way that is not available on official government websites. Federal Student Aid provides these nongovernment websites as a public service only. When users select a link to an external website, they are leaving the Federal Student Aid site and are subject to the privacy and security policies of the owners/sponsors of the external website.

• Federal Student Aid does not control or guarantee the accuracy, relevance, timeliness, or completeness of information contained on a linked website.
• Federal Student Aid does not endorse the organizations sponsoring linked websites, and does not endorse the views expressed or products offered on those sites.
• Federal Student Aid is not responsible for transmissions users receive from linked websites.
• Federal Student Aid does not guarantee that external websites comply with Section 508 (Accessibility Requirements) of the Rehabilitation Act.

Evaluation Criteria
Federal Student Aid evaluates all links using the following criteria:

• Is the website an official government-owned or -supported website? If not, does the website provide information and/or services in a way that is not available on an official government website?
• Does the website complement existing information, products, and services provided by Federal Student Aid?
• Is the website accessible and applicable to a wide audience?
• Is the website's content relevant, useful, and authoritative for citizens, businesses, and/or government officials?
• Does the website's information appear to be accurate and current?
• Is the website's approach to the privacy of personal information consistent with the government's privacy and security policies?
• Is the primary intent of the website to educate and inform, rather than persuade, convert, or sell? The site may include advertising but must be free from heavy marketing or promotion of products.
• Does the website provide information free of charge?

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