Brenda,
I really like your school's idea of including people from all three departments in the exit counseling session. I think you would have a better chance of keeping the students' interest by having multiple speakers, especially if they have different demeanors and speaking styles.
The suggestion to withhold grades and diplomas is also an excellent one. Getting students to attend, much less value, exit counseling is a challenge for most schools.
Thank you for this post! It is excellent to see people approaching exit counseling in innovative ways. There is no reason we should not include useful and interesting information that is not typically covered.
We do one-on-one entrance counseling. We take the time that is needed for the student to understand what they are signing. We also talk to the students mid-way through their program about how important is it to repay your student loan.
Send out dated postcards for drops and grads to update their information in our system to keep it current once every 3months for up to one year. One of our practices we do is send a letter out to all drops and grads after 90, 120, 150 days to make them aware of paying back their student loans.
I like the idea of Admissions announcing that an entrance counseling session is going to be taking place with Financial Aid and then having the financial aid department schedule an appointment one on one with the student. We currently do a group counseling session with the students after they begin classes and I think a lot of them feel that they have already applied for the loan and started class so the information, although relevant, is not as important because they already feel that the money is on the way and they have already committed to starting school regardless of the terms noted in entrance counseling.
The attention is just not there with the group sessions as I'm sure it would be with one on one and prior to starting.
I agree. Using both audio and visual techniques, not only are you catering to different learners, but you are also reinforcing the same idea, making the information more likely to stick with them.
In order to improve our Exit Counseling sessions, I've been thinking about adding my business card to our exit packages that we already hand out, along with another copy of the student's award letter (which they get at the beginning of the program), and a deferment/forbearance form. We already do a group exit counseling session and keep it to about 20-30 minutes.
Our entrance counseling is a little shorter, but this also occurs as a group because all students have had phone conversations with the FA office in regards to the Stafford loan details. To improve our Entrance counseling, I'm going to put key points in writing for each student as a handout.
Working with students personally during an exit interview and giving them your contact information helps reinforce the positive relationships you have already established throughout their enrollment. Borrowers will ultimately be more comfortable contacting staff members they are familiar with.
Reminding borrowers of their total debt and having a Financial Aid representative explain repayment options is an important part of exit interviews. Making borrowers aware of deferment options is a good way to let them know they don’t have to default if they face financial difficulties. I think an important part of that process, however, is encouraging them to contact you or your default prevention company when they need assistance, as different deferment options would be appropriate at different times, and it can be difficult for borrowers to fully understand these details. We like the opportunity to qualify borrowers personally for each deferment application, and walk them through the paperwork.
One useful point to keep in mind is that while all borrowers experience some sort of Entrance counseling, many borrowers who drop out will never attend an Exit interview; therefore good Entrance interviews are as fundamental to default prevention as quality Exit counseling.
Our FA dept. when doing the entrance counseling speaks briefly about default they put up a sign I made which lists the pros & cons of repaying there student loans. I'm starting to speak to our new students at orientation and handing out info on avoiding default. Then during the exit interview they have already seen me a couple of times and know that I'm here to help them. I take about 1/2 hour and have them fill out paperwork and talk to them again about avoiding default by doing the forbearance/economic hardship deferment. I also do one on one exits that seem to build rapport even better than in a group setting.
This is a great example of building a positive relationship with the borrower from the beginning and providing them the tools they need to succeed.
I am the Default Prevention Specialist for our region and I am introduced through a letter given with their entrance or graduation materials, or sent with the student's withdrawal paperwork. I believe if I were introduced at orientation and at other sessions, as was suggested by another in the forum, I might have a better chance in establishing a relationship with the students. Once a student understands that I am here on their behalf they may feel that they can trust me to provide guidance with their student loan debt. They may, also, remember that I can provide information about postponements or explain the differences in payment plans available to students. Trust is very important to individuals and you really cannot gain someone’s trust through a letter. However, if a student phones me once they have received my letter I have had great success in establishing a relationship with that student.
I spoke for a few minutes at our orientation just to introduce myself so they know who I am and that I will help them once they leave school.
I made up a handout about the pros and cons of repaying their Federal Student Loans, showing value as well as consequences along with my contact information on it. It just takes a few minutes and I tell them I will see them again at their exit interview. Creating rapport as much as I can in a short period of time.
This is excellent information and I am going to suggest I try this in a least one of our campuses to see how the students respond. If it is favorable I might be able to convince other campuses to let me speak for a few minutes at their orientations too.
Luckily I work at a small school and everything is done on a one on one basis. I feel that students ask more questions when they are alone rather than when peers are present. At the end of my entrance and exit counseling I always stress the importance of repayment and good account standing with loan companies. I also mention that if they end up in a default status the IRS will keep their tax return. That in itself seems to drill in their minds how important satisfactory repayment is.
I agree our Financial Aid Departments are excellent in explaining the consequences of default and how important repayment can be for their personal benefit. However, it still might be nice for the students to know who I am and what I do. Because when their student loan payments begin and if they need assistance I will be the person the students are directed to.
Establishing a relationship from the beginning and gaining the students trust is exactly what it is about.
One thing I have noticed many institutions doing is changing the title of the Default Prevention Manager to something less intimidating for the student such as Student Loan Consultant or Student Loan Adviser.
Keeping it short and simple and repeating the major points throughout the students enrollment is definitely the key to driving the message home.
That is something to think about! The title does sound pretty harsh. I will see what I can do to change the title to something less threating.
Our students set through the counseling and ask very few questions. If we can get interaction by using games as a means is worth a try.
