By Christian Smith – Reporter
The Career Center about taught students about their rights, responsibilities and resources for managing loans after graduation at free workshops on Feb. 27 and March 5 in Gaiser Hall.
Financial Aid Default Management Specialist Andrew Viscariello spoke for an hour about the 180-day grace period after graduation when students don’t have to make payments on their loans, which resets if they enroll at another college. He talked about loan default, which is when a failure to make payments for nine months is marked on the student’s credit report.
“Whenever you are borrowing money you are actually borrowing from yourself in the future,” he said.
Viscariello said students with a degree are less likely to default than those who drop out, since they are more likely to have a well-paying job. He said loan default makes it harder to get a job, buy a house or own a credit card.
Viscariello said during the 2016-2017 school year, Clark College disbursed over $9.6 million in loan funds for nearly 2,000 students.
