NSLDS

For accurate information on your student loan data, go to nslds.ed.gov.  NSLDS stands for the National Student Loan Data System. It is the Department of Education’s central location for federal student loans.

NSLDS lists all Title IV (federal) loans and grants that were issued in association with the Department of Education. Title IV funds include:

  • Direct Subsidized/Unsubsidized Loan
  • Direct Graduate PLUS Loan
  • Direct PLUS Loan
  • Pell Grant
  • Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant
  • Perkins Loan

Once you log in to NSLDS, you’ll see a page that shows all of your federal student loans.

Below all of your listed loans, the website consolidates totals by loan type and also provides a total loan amount. To the left of each loan will be a number in a blue box. Clicking this number will provide details for that loan. These details include the following:

  • Type of loan
  • University attended when loan was obtained
  • Disbursement date
  • Loan status
  • Loan interest rate
  • Contact information for the servicer

Reading your NSLDS file can be challenging. To help, here is a list of loan codes you may see:

  • DLSTFD – Direct Subsidized Stafford Loan
  • DLUNST – Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan
  • DLPLGB – Direct Student PLUS Loan
  • DLPLUS – Direct Parent PLUS Loan
  • DLSCNS – Direct Subsidized Consolidation Loan
  • DLUCNS – Direct Unsubsidized Consolidation Loan
  • DLCNSL – Direct Consolidation Loan
  • DLPCNS – Direct Parent PLUS Consolidation Loan
  • DLSSPL – Direct Subsidized Spousal Consolidation Loan
  • DLUSPL – Direct Unsubsidized Spousal Consolidation Loan
  • DLSPCN – Direct Spousal Consolidation Loan
  • TEACH – Direct TEACH Loan
  • STFFRD – Federal Stafford Loan
  • UNSTFD – Federal Unsubsidized Stafford Loan
  • PLUS – Federal Parent
  • PLUSSUBCNS – Subsidized Consolidation Loan
  • UNCNS – Unsubsidized Consolidation Loan
  • CNSLDN – Consolidation Loan

Reviewing NSLDS can save you a lot of time in getting a complete picture of your loan balances. They also provide contact information for the servicer assigned to each of your loans, and it would be a good time to establish log-in credentials with each servicer’s website. By setting up an account with the servicer, you will receive up-to-date information on your loans and can make or adjust payments.