Default Prevention Plan Step 1: Identify and Share Default Issues

Default prevention is not just a financial aid issue – it affects your entire school. For a default prevention program to be successful, buy-in is needed from across the institution and, particularly, from key institution stakeholders. To understand why default is an issue, you must get a feel for the entire student experience at your school. The perspective of different institution departments is vital to a successful program.

If you don’t already have cross-institutional buy-in, gather data about your school’s default rates and problems and share them with key stakeholders. Here are some examples of information that can be presented:

• What is your school’s Cohort Default Rate? Has it worsened or improved in recent years?
• Why is default an issue at your school? What is the source of risk?
• Do you have the right default prevention team in place? If not, who needs to be included?
• What are cost implications of losing students before they complete their programs?
• Share specific stories of defaulted students, if possible.

Even if higher-level executives aren’t part of your default prevention team, schedule regular meetings or communications to update them on the status of your school’s default issues.

For more information about creating a plan for your school, visit our Default Prevention page.