Four Tips To Prepare For Changing Borrower Defense To Repayment Regulations
On October 31, the Biden administration officially established new Borrower Defense To Repayment regulations. These rules have been a long time coming, with initial conversations beginning during negotiated rulemaking sessions in late 2022.
While the rules themselves are hundreds of pages long, The Department of Education released an accompanying fact sheet. Here’s the high-level:
- Group processes are back, meaning claims with less evidence have a better chance of being approved.
- There’s a significantly lower burden of proof on the students.
- Partial discharge is gone. Students whose claims are approved will receive full loan discharge.
- Rules go into effect on July 1, 2023. This means that loans disbursed before July 1, 2023, will not be held to this standard.
This blog offers four tips to prepare for changes to BDR regulations. It is not exhaustive of all the ways you should prepare for these regulations. If you have any questions about how the rules impact your school, please consult with legal counsel and check Career Education Colleges and Universities for more comprehensive resources.
Improve Student Record Keeping
One recent large BDR claim stemmed from a misrepresentation of:
- “The nature and character of the programs of instruction that the school offered and promised a mix of classroom instruction and practical instruction”
- “The nature and character of the programs of instruction that the school offered by failing to provide instruction in all of the subject areas that it represented it provided, and that the relevant state regulations required”
One of the first steps you should take in preparing for new BDR regulations is shoring up your attendance records. Your records should:
- Reflect which environment student earned hours in
- Have time stamps for check in and check out
- Be verifiable and free from human intervention
With strong attendance records from every modality, you can better prove that students received the time you promised. In CourseKey, students clock in and out using a student-driven mobile app, and that data is automatically transferred to admins with no human intervention. Because students use their biometrics and an assigned student ID to check in, you have better proof of student identity.
Improve Executive Oversight
The best defense against a BDR claim is a good offense. Leaders should be able to leverage their data to identify potential risk areas and intervene before a student’s education is negatively impacted.
For example, inaccurate placement rates are one of the most common causes for BDR claims. Executives should have clear insight into their placement position and be able to break down placement rates by campus, program, and CSO. CSO is historically a high turnover position, and unfortunately, some may not understand the importance of maintaining compliance. If a CSO goes from a ten percent placement rate to a 90 percent placement rate in a month, it may be time to check in on them. Whether they’re skipping steps or they found a secret to better placing students, you want to know.
Another critical area of executive oversight is whether or not classes are starting and ending on time. If instructors consistently make time adjustments to every student in their class, it could be a sign that they’re shaving time. While it may not seem like a big deal to instructors, if students are ultimately unsatisfied with their education, it could cause problems down the road.
Ensure Your Placement Data Is Accurate
Because inaccurate placement rates are one of the number one causes of BDR claims, you must double- and triple-check your placement rate calculations and paperwork. Of course, this is easier said than done.
It can quickly become difficult for career service teams to manage all the different signatures and pieces of paperwork they need to verify student placements. It’s easy for information to get lost in the shuffle, particularly during periods of high turnover.
In advance of July 1, 2023, consider implementing a tool to streamline your placement processes and ensure accurate placement rates.
Shore Up Compliance In All Areas
One key component of the new regulations is that group claims can be formed based on prior actions against the school, including fees and findings. To prepare for changing BDR regulations, you must look at your school and compliance holistically.
You may be able to prove that a student got the education you promised and that your placement rates are accurate, but if you’ve received fees and findings in other areas, your school may still be at risk for a claim.
Preparing For BDR Regulation Changes With CourseKey
CourseKey helps schools better prove that they provided students with the education they promised. We add an extra layer of security and oversight to your school’s operations, helping you identify potential issues BEFORE they become long-term problems. Plus, our placement tools simplify student placement tracking and help you forecast placement rate changes early.
We are not a complete solution for preventing BDR claims, and we do not guarantee that your school will not receive a claim while using our product. For a more comprehensive review of how BDR changes may impact your school, please connect with Career Education Colleges and Universities.
Request a demo to learn more about the BDR regulation changes we support.
Recent Articles
