SLOPE Calculator


When will/did you start college?*  mm/dd/yyyy
When do you plan to graduate?*  mm/dd/yyyy
*Use estimated dates if you do not know exactly when you will start or graduate college.

Select a general career category, then click 'Set/Change Category':


First choose a category, then your career and salary.
List format: career name (average annual wage/average annual entry-level wage)


Will you pay interest on unsubsidized Stafford Loans during school?**

** Your student loan may be unsubsidized, which means the Federal government does not pay the interest that comes due while you are in school or during your grace period. If you do not make payments on this interest, then it will be capitalized (added to your loan balance in principal) at the end of your grace period. This amount can be quite significant when it is capitalized depending upon how much you borrow and how long you are in school.

You may change the interest rate, loan term, and minimum payment for the calculations below. We have included the current interest rates for Stafford, Perkins, and PLUS Loans, although these may be adjusted periodically. We have also included the maximum loan term of 10 years for a standard repayment schedule and the minimum payment for new Stafford, Perkins, and PLUS Loans. Your repayment schedule may be shorter than 10 years if the minimum payment will pay it off sooner, or your minimum payment may be higher in order to pay it off within 10 years. For alternative loans, check with your lender for terms and conditions.

Subsidized and Unsubsidized Stafford Loans
Interest rate:   % 6.8% is default but changeable.
Loan term (years):    years 10 years is default, but you may enter alternatives
Minimum payment: $ $50 is default but changeable.

Perkins Loans
Interest rate:   % 5% is default but changeable.
Loan term (years):    years 10 years is default, but you may enter alternatives
Minimum payment: $ $40 is default but changeable.

PLUS Loans
Interest rate:   % 8.5% is default but changeable.
Loan term (years):    years 10 years is default, but you may enter alternatives
Minimum payment: $ $50 is default but changeable.

Other/Alternative Loans
Interest rate:   % 12% is default but changeable.
Loan term (years):    years 10 years is default, but you may enter alternatives
Minimum payment: $ $50 is default but changeable.
Recent Repayment Studies: Susan P. Choy, U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Debt Burden Four Years after College, August 2000. Patricia M. Scherscel, USAGroup Foundation New Agenda Series, Student Indebtedness: Are Borrowers Pushing the Limits? November 1998.

Salary Statistics: U.S. Department of Labor, 2001 Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates.

The SLOPE Calculator was developed by the Colorado Student Loan Program, and this web-based version initially appeared on the ColoradoMentor <%if system_id = 5 then%>Web site<%else%>website<%end if%>. The SLOPE Calculator is presented here with the permission of the Colorado Student Loan Program.