SC has more student debt than most of US, report shows. Can’t you get a refund on payments though?

South Carolina ranks ninth among states with the most student loan debt, a new report shows.

Student debt has been a growing problem in America for years, but borrowers were granted some relief when President Joe Biden announced a major loan relief program in August. But were you aware many borrowers can also get a refund on some loan payments they’ve already made?

South Carolina student loan debt

At the end of the first quarter of 2022, total outstanding student loan debt was at nearly $1.61 trillion, according to the U.S. Department of Education. That equates to an average of $37,000 for each of the 43.4 million borrowers.

However, not all states are equal in terms of student loan burden.

WalletHub, a major personal finance website, recently compiled a report to determine the states with the most student loan debt. The report compared the states and the District of Columbia across 11 key metrics of indebtedness and earning opportunities. The data set ranges from average student debt to unemployment rate among 25 to 34 year olds to share of students with past-due loan balances.

Here are some of the top key metrics that helped South Carolina earn its ninth overall ranking.

• 11^th – Avg. Student Debt
• 12^th – Proportion of Students with Debt
• 4^th – Student Debt as % of Income (Adjusted for Cost of Living)
• 27^th – Unemployment Rate of Population Aged 25 to 34
• 13^th – % of Student Loans Past Due or in Default
• 27^th – Availability of Student Jobs
• 10^th – Availability of Paid Internships
• 16^th – Grant Growth

Student loan refund

Besides Biden’s $10,000 to $20,000 federal student loan forgiveness plan, a less publicized option to aid borrowers is a loan payment refund.

Borrowers who continued to make federal student loan payments since March 13, 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, are eligible for a refund for the total amount they paid.

Before you request a refund, however, check to make sure the total amount you paid is less than what you’re eligible for in student loan forgiveness. Otherwise, it might not make sense to request a refund unless you’re in desperate need of the money.

Refunds will be issued by direct deposit if you have a student loan balance or not.

These are the numbers to call your student loan servicer to request a refund.

• Default Resolution Group: 1-800-621-3115
• FedLoan Servicing (PHEAA): 1-800-699-2908
• ECSI: 1-866-313-3797
• Great Lakes Educational Loan Services: 1-800-236-4300
• Edfinancial: 1-855-337-6884
• MOHELA: 1-888-866-4352
• Aidvantage: 1-800-722-1300
• Nelnet: 1-888-486-4722
• OSLA Servicing: 1-866-264-9762

Here are the 10 states with the most student debt, according to WalletHub.

1. West Virginia
2. Pennsylvania
3. South Dakota
4. New Hampshire
5. Mississippi
6. Delaware
7. Kentucky
8. Rhode Island
9. South Carolina
10. North Dakota

This story was originally published September 12, 2022 at 5:00 AM.

Patrick McCreless

The State

803-771-8353

Patrick McCreless is the Southeast service journalism editor for McClatchy, who leads and edits a team of six reporters in South Carolina, Georgia and Mississippi. The team writes about trending news of the day and topics that help readers in their daily lives and better informs them about their communities. He attended Jacksonville State University in Alabama and grew up in Tuscaloosa, AL.