If your school misled you about job placement, salaries, transfer credits, program quality, or the true cost of attendance, you may be eligible to have your federal student loans discharged through Borrower Defense to Repayment. Below is a practical, no-jargon walkthrough to help you file a strong application the first time.
1) Confirm you have a valid basis to apply
Borrower Defense is built around specific types of misconduct. You only need one strong basis (not all). Common categories include:
- Employment outcomes misrepresented (e.g., inflated job placement or salary claims)
- Educational services misrepresented (quality, accreditation, externships, instructor qualifications)
- Transfer-of-credit misrepresentation
- Program cost or loan terms misrepresented
- Degree/credential value or requirements misrepresented
- Aggressive or deceptive recruiting
- Breach of contract
- Legal or administrative findings against the school
Tip: Start by writing a one-line summary of your strongest claim (e.g., “Admissions rep said 95% of grads get jobs within 6 months; I received no placement support and remained in retail 18 months after graduating.”)
2) Gather evidence (personal + public)
The Department of Education needs specifics and proof. Great evidence includes:
- Enrollment agreement, financial aid disclosures, tuition bills
- Transcripts or student portal records (to show you attended)
- Emails, texts, brochures, screenshots of ads, landing pages, or recruiter claims
- Public evidence when you don’t have personal documents:
- Archived school webpages via the Wayback Machine (archive.org)
- News articles, investigations, or lawsuits
- School marketing on YouTube/Facebook, or old digital flyers
- Student communities (Facebook groups/Reddit) where classmates share saved materials
Organize your files into a simple folder with clear names: 01_EnrollmentAgreement.pdf, 02_JobPlacementFlyer.png, 03_Email_Admissions_2019-08-12.pdf, etc.
Grab our Borrower Defense Filing Kit here.
3) Tell a clear, specific story
Generic statements like “They lied to me” rarely succeed. In your narrative:
- Who said it? (name/title if possible)
- What exactly was promised?
- When did it happen? (approximate date is fine)
- Why did you rely on it to enroll/borrow?
- How were you harmed? (income lower than promised, couldn’t enter field, credits didn’t transfer, extra debt to re-train, etc.)
Example upgrade:
- Weak: “They said I’d get a job.”
- Strong: “On March 5, 2020, recruiter John Smith said 90% of grads earn $60k+ within six months. I received no job leads, and 18 months later I earned $28k in retail, unrelated to my program.”
4) Complete every relevant section of the application
Apply online at StudentAid.gov/borrower-defense (fastest) or use the official paper application. Fill out:
- Personal and loan info
- School/program, dates, location
- Your claim basis (choose 1–2 strongest categories)
- Narrative of misrepresentation and resulting harm
- Evidence list and uploads
- Forbearance request (see next section)
Avoid leaving boxes blank. If a question applies, answer it directly. Quality beats quantity—don’t check all eight categories unless you can substantiate each.
5) Submit and keep a paper trail
Before you submit:
- Re-read your narrative and attach supporting files
- Take a screenshot of the submission confirmation
- Save a PDF of your application for your records
If you mailed the application, use certified mail and save the receipt.
Grab our Borrower Defense Filing Kit here.
6) Know what happens after you file
- Administrative forbearance: After your application is received and processed, your loans typically enter forbearance during review. That means no required payments while your claim is evaluated. (Interest handling can vary by program/period—monitor your account.)
- Timelines: Reviews can take months; many borrowers see 6–12 months, and some take longer (over a year) if the claim requires deeper investigation.
- Status checks: Log in to your servicer account to confirm forbearance and check for updates. Periodically follow up to verify your application is in review.
7) If you plan to buy a home while your claim is pending
Even in forbearance, most mortgage underwriting will count a placeholder student loan payment in your debt-to-income (DTI) ratio—often 0.5% to 1% of your loan balance. If homebuying is on your horizon, map out a strategy in advance (for example, timing your filing, exploring qualifying repayment plans, or documenting your status for underwriting guidelines).
8) If you’re denied—or you filed before and it stalled
A denial isn’t the end. You can:
- Strengthen evidence and reapply
- Clarify your narrative to focus on the single strongest claim
- Seek expert help to diagnose what was missing
Grab our Borrower Defense Filing Kit here.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Generic claims with no details
- No evidence attached (You can gather a lot of strong evidence with public evidence)
- Incomplete sections (especially harm and reliance)
- Overloading claims (checking all categories without proof)
- Waiting forever to submit (analysis paralysis)
Need a hand?
LoanSense supports borrowers through the entire process—at a fraction of the cost of hiring a private attorney. We help you:
- Identify your strongest claim
- Find and organize evidence (including public sources)
- Draft a tight, specific narrative
- Complete and submit the application—clean and complete
Want a ready-to-use checklist and examples? Grab our Borrower Defense Filing Kit here. If you attended a for-profit school, check whether your campus appears on the Sweet v. Cardona list of schools tied to borrower defense relief and details how to file the 21-page application. And if you’d like a human to walk you through it, book a free 15-minute consult—we’ll help you move from stuck to submitted. Click this link for the guide AND to schedule.