Student Loan Glossary

Here are some glossary terms you should know:

In-School—When you’re still in college as a full-time student.
 

Grace—The time after graduation when you are not required to
start repaying your loan. For Stafford Loans, this is six months;
for Perkins loans, it’s nine months. 

(There’s no grace period on a PLUS loan.)

Repayment—Following the grace period, this is when you
begin repaying your student loans. 

Delinquency—When you fail to make a payment when it’s due.
 

Deferment—When your lender allows you to temporarily
postpone your payments due to economic hardship.
 

Forbearance—When your lender allows you to temporarily
postpone paying the principal on your loan, though interest on
the loan still accrues.
 

Default—When you fail to make your payments or abide by the
terms of your loan. Defaulted loans are reported to credit-reporting
agencies, which is really bad for your future credit scores.