NYU Law’s LRAP Plus provides coverage for law school educational debt, up to $10,000 in loans for bar-related expenses, and up to $30,000 in original principal of qualifying non-law school educational debt.
LRAP Plus will consider coverage for federal educational loans borrowed for law school that are approved and certified by NYU Law. Only federal educational loans will be considered when determining an applicant’s qualifying debt unless the applicant can demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Program Administrator that the applicant was ineligible to borrow federal student loans at the time the applicant was enrolled. Qualifying law school debt must be used to fund educational related expenses in pursuit of the JD degree and incurred or disbursed during the academic year for which the loans are intended.
Except for an approved budget increase for a one-time computer expense (during a period of full-time JD enrollment), all other approved increases to the standard student expense budget are excluded from benefit calculations for purposes of determining coverage under the Program.
The amount of law school educational debt qualifying for consideration by the Program is the lesser of:
- The original principal of the participant’s actual law school loans OR
- An amount equal to six semesters of the standard student expense budget (includes only the Fall and Spring semesters during the regular academic year)
- Minus any scholarship or other grant aid;
- Minus the Student Contribution; and
- Minus summer earnings in excess of $25,000 gross income per summer
Any loans borrowed to cover the Student Contribution are ineligible for any coverage under LRAP.
In addition to qualifying law school educational loans, LRAP Plus will cover up to $10,000 of a Bar Study Loan. Eligibility for Bar Study Loan coverage is conditional upon an applicant meeting all other LRAP eligibility criteria for loans taken while completing a J.D.
LRAP Plus may also provide coverage for up to $30,000 in (combined original principal) for non-law debt including undergraduate, graduate and NYU joint degree programs with another NYU graduate school.
With respect to eligible private educational loans, some participants may decide to extend repayment periods. In such cases, LRAP will make disbursements to participants for monthly payments on a ten-year schedule. The ten-year schedule will be based on the loan balance(s) at the time the participant first enters repayment.
It is the responsibility of each participant to verify the repayment terms of their loans and make their required monthly payments on a timely basis. If participants find their loans are being repaid over a period of time greater than ten years, LRAP Plus will cover expedited payments so long as the expedited plan is not shorter than ten years and results in a total of 120 payments by the participant.
For graduates entering LRAP Plus following non-LRAP-eligible employment, NYU will make an adjustment which recognizes earnings during such period(s) of ineligible employment and assumes accelerated repayment of law school debt on that basis. This adjustment is calculated by deducting from qualifying debt (as described above), an amount equal to 40% of the amount by which the participant’s gross income exceeded the Base Qualifying Income amount(s) applicable during such periods of ineligible employment. Qualifying debt will be adjusted by the difference between (a) what the graduate should have paid under the high earner adjustment calculation and (b) what the graduate actually paid during the period of ineligible employment. For participants entering LRAP Plus, the Program will not use the $100,000 threshold when calculating the high earner adjustment. LRAP will calculate a qualifying income scale for future graduating classes consistent with prior LRAP guidelines and will use that qualifying income scale when calculating the ineligible employment adjustment.
LRAP assistance is not available for loans from family and friends, personal loans from banks or other sources or for other graduate school debt except as specified above. Non-law debt in excess of $30,000 in original principal is not eligible for LRAP coverage. There is no retroactive LRAP assistance and no LRAP assistance available for periods of loan forbearance, deferment or during grace periods.