Georgia Student Loan Forgiveness and Repayment Options

If you’re a professional with Georgia student loans from obtaining your bachelor’s or other higher education degree, you likely are looking for ways to pay off that debt. There are some programs available specifically for Georgia borrowers who would benefit from having their student loans forgiven.

In Georgia, the average student loan debt balance was $28,081 for 2018-2019 graduates. That number includes graduates of four-year programs (or more). The Institute for College Access and Success reported that among graduates of four-year schools, 56% finished their degree with debt.

According to data from the New York Fed, the total number of borrowers in Georgia as of June 2020 was 1.59 million. Those borrowers had an average student loan balance of $41,100 across federal and private loans. For comparison, only Maryland and the District of Columbia had higher average loan balances ($42,500 and $58,200, respectively).

Georgia student loan forgiveness and repayment programs

The State of Georgia has several programs offering student loan forgiveness or assistance to make repayment more feasible. Let’s look at student loan forgiveness for nurses in Georgia as well as other healthcare professionals, those in military service, and others.

Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce programs

For healthcare workers in rural counties in Georgia that are underserved, there are several student loan forgiveness programs. The state of Georgia funds these Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce (GBHCW) programs.

These are based on the region where you’re employed (must be 50,000 population or less) and your service in employment. Qualified Georgia healthcare professionals can reapply every year or two years to secure the maximum loan forgiveness for service-cancelable loans.

Physicians for Rural Areas Assistance Program (PRAA)

The PRAA is for licensed physicians in Georgia who practice full-time in underserved rural areas. The state of Georgia offers this loan of $25,000 per year, which you can re-apply for on a yearly basis. Physicians can qualify for a maximum of four years and $100,000 in total student loan forgiveness.

Georgia Physician Loan Repayment Program (GPLRP)

Similar to the PRAA program, the Georgia Physician Loan Repayment Program (GPLRP) offers $25,000 per year in student loan forgiveness. It’s available in two-year increments instead of one, but the maximum forgiveness amount is the same: $100,000 over four years.

The GPLRP is limited to those who practice full-time in the following medical specialties: family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, OB/GYN, geriatrics or psychiatry.

Dentists for Rural Areas Assistance Program (DRAA)

For licensed dentists in Georgia, there’s an incentive of student loan forgiveness if you work full-time in rural, underserved parts of the state. If you’re carrying dental school debt and your employment qualifies you, the DRAA could result in up to $100,000 forgiven.

The state-sponsored forgiveness program for dentists in Georgia is worth $25,000 in loan forgiveness, annually, and you can receive up to four of them for a maximum of $100,000.

Physician Assistant Loan Repayment Program (PALRP)

In a program funded by the State of Georgia, physician assistants are eligible for up to $10,000 per year in student loan forgiveness. You must be employed full-time and in direct patient care within medically underserved, rural areas of Georgia.

As with the other Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce programs, this is renewable for up to four years, for a maximum of $40,000 in forgiveness.

Advanced Practice Registered Nurse Loan Repayment Program (APRNLRP)

If you’re a licensed advanced practice registered nurse (APRN), you may qualify for student loan forgiveness for nurses in Georgia. This program offers $10,000 per year for up to four years.

Cancelable loan options for Georgia borrowers

For those who are certain of their future career plans, an option that reduces student loan debt is a service cancelable loan.

Unlike traditional forgiveness, these loans offer the promise of loan reduction or cancellation as long as borrowers fulfill specific obligations. For example, completing service in the military or a specific career field. Failure to fulfill these requirements results in you having to repay the full loan.

Georgia National Guard (GNG) Service Cancelable Loan

The GNG Service Cancelable Loan is available to qualified Georgia National Guard service members to assist with tuition expenses at a public or private postsecondary institution.

University of North Georgia Military Scholarship Loan Program

A full scholarship program is offered to students pursuing a military career at the University of North Georgia. You must agree to serve eight years in Georgia’s Army National Guard, including four years while enrolled at UNG and four years following graduation.

Georgia Military College (GMC) State Service Scholarship Loan

The GMC State Service Scholarship Loan offers full tuition for two years of education at Georgia Military College. A requirement of this loan is four years of service in the Georgia National Guard (two during school and two after graduation).

Scholarship for Engineering Education (SEE)

Mercer University offers the Scholarship for Engineering Education (SEE) for students who intend to work in the engineering field in Georgia post-graduation. Those who meet the eligibility requirements including employment in an engineering-related field in Georgia are rewarded with a loan balance reduction of $3,500 per year.

Student Access Loan (SAL)

For eligible students who attend a qualifying school in the University System of Georgia (USG), Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) or private postsecondary institutions in the state, there’s an affordable loan option. The Student Access Loan (SAL) program gives borrowers funds at a fixed 1% rate.

For USG graduates or those who attend an eligible private school, you may have cancellation options if you work in certain public service sectors or STEM fields. If you attended an eligible TCSG institution, loan discharge is available provided you had a 3.5 cumulative GPA.

Federal loan forgiveness programs available to Georgia borrowers

The federal government offers some forgiveness programs that Georgia borrowers can take advantage of, so you might check out whether any of these would be applicable to you.

Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF)

Under Public Service Loan Forgiveness, you have to have Direct Loans, participate in an income-driven repayment (IDR) plan, and make 120 qualifying, on-time payments.

Also required under PSLF is the type of employment. While working toward PSLF, you need to work full-time for a government entity or nonprofit. If you meet all the requirements, after 120 qualified payments, the remaining balance on your Georgia student loans is forgiven.

Teacher Loan Forgiveness Program

Georgia student loan forgiveness for teachers is available through the federal Teacher Loan Forgiveness program. Eligible educators who complete five full years of classroom teaching, among other requirements, can get up to $17,500 of their student loans forgiven after their service commitment.

Teachers must be employed full-time in a low-income public school or educational service agency for five consecutive years to be eligible for loan forgiveness. The amounts differ depending on the subject taught. The $17,500 maximum award is for teachers in science, math, or special education. For all other subject areas, $5,000 is the maximum amount of teacher loan forgiveness.

Perkins Loan Teacher Cancellation

For Georgia teachers in a non-profit or public school for low-income students or in special education or a subject area with a teacher shortage, cancellation of Perkins Loans is available. A portion of student loans may be canceled for every year of full-time teaching service.

Closed school discharge

For students whose institution closed while enrolled or soon after withdrawal, federal student loans may be discharged, though it’s not automatic. Federal Direct Loans, Perkins Loans, and Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) amounts might be fully discharged if your school’s closure prevented you from completing your degree. Other requirements apply.

Learn more about Closed School Loan Discharge.

Death or disability discharge

Though it’s not helpful for the borrower, personally, federal loans are discharged in the event of death. Total and permanent disability is also a cause for discharge of federal loans for Georgia borrowers. Proper documentation is necessary for an official discharge in either of these cases.

Considerations for student loan forgiveness in Georgia

Your Georgia student loans may be a burden, but strategies can ease the stress of repayment and even forgive part of your loan balance. Typically, federal programs for student loan forgiveness will save you more money as you repay your loans than state-specific programs.

If you’re currently in school or just starting out on your repayment journey, be sure to examine all of your options, especially career-specific forgiveness programs. Do your research to figure out a combination of federal forgiveness programs and Georgia offerings to save the maximum amount of money on your education.