4 North Dakota Student Loan Forgiveness Options to Consider 

North Dakota has fewer than one million residents, according to recent Census data. Still, 66% of graduates in the class of 2019-2020 had student loan debt, with an average balance of $31,939, according to The Institute for College Access & Success (TICAS). Whether you’re in Bismarck, Fargo, or somewhere else in North Dakota, if you have student loans, you want to know what loan forgiveness options may be available. Read to learn about North Dakota student loan forgiveness options. 

4 North Dakota student loan forgiveness options

If you’re looking into North Dakota student loan forgiveness options, there’s good news. On April 26, 2023, North Dakota signed and approved SB 2344 to reenact the Healthcare Professional Student Loan Repayment Program. 

Below, you can review the latest North Dakota student loan forgiveness programs available. 

1. ND Healthcare Professional Loan Repayment Program

Through the North Dakota Health & Human Services Department, student loan borrowers in the healthcare profession may be eligible for the ND Healthcare Professional Loan Repayment Program. The funding for this program has a state match and community match, and what you receive depends on your profession. Candidates ideally will work in a Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA). 

Eligible medical professionals include:

• Physicians (MD/DO)
• Primary care nurse practitioners (DNP, NP)
• Physician assistants (PA)
• Certified nurse midwives (CNM)
• Clinical psychologists (PhD)
• Licensed addiction counselors (LAC) 
• Licensed professional counselors (LPC) 
• Licensed social workers (LSW) 
• Registered nurses (RN) 
• Specialty practice registered nurses
• Behavioral analysts (BA) 

Service commitment: Up to 5 years 

Award amount:

• Up to $22,000 for behavioral health
• Up to $75,000 for clinical psychologists
• Up to $22,000 for advanced practitioners
• Up to $150,000 for physicians 

Find more information about the ND Healthcare Professional Loan Repayment Program application process.

2. Veterinarian Loan Repayment Program 

One North Dakota student loan forgiveness option is through the Veterinarian Loan Repayment Program. This program incentivizes eligible veterinarians to work in rural areas, ideally with fewer than 5,000 residents or other smaller communities.

Eligible candidates must:

• Have a degree in veterinary medicine from an accredited college 
• Have a license in North Dakota
• Commit to working full-time in a veterinarian clinic for two to four years 

Service commitment: Two, three or four years 

Award amount: 

• Up to $80,000 with $15,000 in the first and second year of service
• $25,000 offered in the third and fourth year

Learn more about Veterinarian Loan Repayment and access the application. 

3. The ND Dental Loan Repayment Program

If you’re a dentist in North Dakota, you may qualify for student loan repayment assistance through the ND Dental Loan Repayment Program. This program helps dentists willing to work in a Dental HPSA and with underserved communities, with priority given to applicants who have a dental specialty or work in pediatric dentistry. 

To be eligible for this program, dentists must:

• Have a license in North Dakota 
• Work full-time directly working with patients
• Dentists who apply and work within 15 miles of a large city must meet other commitments like working on a sliding scale twice a week at a clinic and receiving $20,000 in reimbursement for medical payments

Service commitment: Up to 5 years

Award amount: 

• Up to $100,000 

Learn more and access the application on the ND Dental Loan Repayment program page. 

4. ND Federal Loan Repayment Program

The ND Federal Loan Repayment Program is designed to attract healthcare professionals to shortage areas. The work sites must be an HPSA, nonprofit, or work with underserved communities. 

To be eligible, you must meet the following criteria:

• Be a U.S. Citizen or U.S. Naturalized Citizen
• Not currently participating in any other loan repayment program
• Have outstanding educational debt

Additionally, you must serve in one of the designated professions

• Physicians (MD/DO)
• Advanced practice (NP/CNM/PA)
• Dentists (DDS/DMD)
• Dental hygienists (RDH) 
• Registered nurses (RN)
• Pharmacists (PharmD)
• Clinical psychologists (PsyD/PhD) 
• Licensed professional counselors (LPC)
• Licensed clinical social workers (LCSW)
• Marriage and family therapists (MFT)
• Licensed addiction counselors (LAC) 

Service commitment: Two years (with the possibility to extend your contract for a third, fourth, and fifth year) 

Award amount: 

• Up to $50,000, but will vary by discipline 

Find out more about the ND Federal Loan Repayment program and get application guidance. 

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Other student loan forgiveness options for North Dakota borrowers

North Dakota student loan forgiveness options may be slim and only available to borrowers in the healthcare profession. However, not all is lost if you have federal student loans. There are other federal student loan forgiveness programs that you may be eligible for that aren’t state-based. 

Public Service Forgiveness Program

One of the most generous loan forgiveness programs out there for federal loan borrowers is the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program (PSLF). This offers employees in the public sector an option to obtain loan forgiveness after a decade of service. 

Public service positions include some government entities as well as nonprofits. To receive this type of forgiveness, you must make a total of 120 monthly payments. Additionally, you must serve at an eligible employer and work full-time. 

Your federal student loan debt must be from Direct Loans (including a Direct Consolidation Loan), and you must be on one of the four repayment plans under Income-Driven Repayment (IDR). 

PSLF is attractive as it can offer debt relief in a matter of 10 years with zero tax consequences. To get started, you can use the PSLF Help Tool and talk to your loan servicer. 

Income-driven repayment 

Income-driven repayment (IDR) is a term that refers to four different repayment options, including:

• Income-Based Repayment (IBR)
• Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR)
• Pay As You Earn (PAYE)
• Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE), formerly Revised Pay As You Earn (REPAYE) 

Through these student loan repayment options, you can get a maximum monthly payment that’s based on your income. These plans vary, but you won’t pay more than 5% to 20% of your income. This can be a major benefit, especially if you’re considered low-income. 

IDR isn’t just a way to make your federal student loan payment more manageable. It’s also a way to achieve student loan forgiveness. While getting any remaining balance forgiven under IDR after your repayment term is possible, there’s a much longer runway compared to PSLF. For this type of forgiveness, you’ll be required to make payments for 10, 20 or 25 years. 

Any tax owed under this program is suspended until 2025, but there may be tax consequences in the future. If you’re not already on one of these plans, talk to your loan servicer about your IDR options. 

Teacher Loan Forgiveness

Teachers in North Dakota can consider the Teacher Loan Forgiveness program. To be considered, teachers need to fulfill certain employment obligations, such as working at an eligible low-income school for five years in a row. 

You also must meet certain eligibility requirements, such as being a “highly qualified teacher,” to receive this type of forgiveness. There are two forgiveness amounts:

• $17,500 for math teachers, science teachers, or those in special education
• $5,000 for teachers in other subjects 

This can be an excellent option for teachers, but there’s a notable downside. You can’t get the Teacher Loan Forgiveness payments to count toward PSLF. Since it offers total forgiveness, PSLF is likely the better option unless you’re ready to get out of teaching soon and into the private sector. 

Get help with your student loans 

North Dakota student loan forgiveness options are available, but there are still loan forgiveness options from the federal government, too. Sadly, private student loans do not qualify for this type of help. Borrowers looking to reduce the interest rate on their loans should consider student loan refinancing. As a major caveat, this route will turn your federal loans private, making any forgiveness options inaccessible. 

If you want help figuring out what to do with your student loan repayment and what’s best for you, book a consultation with Student Loan Planner.