What OSLA student loan borrowers need to know
Key takeaways
- Oklahoma Student Loan Authority (OSLA) is a third-party company that services federal student loan debt.
- OSLA handles Direct Loans and Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) Program loans.
- The U.S. Department of Education has recognized this loan servicer as an exceptional performer.
The total amount of student loan debt has increased to $1.75 trillion as of the beginning of 2024. Nearly 43 million people hold federal student loan debt. The U.S. Department of Education assigns each of these borrowers to one of eight companies that service student loans.
The Oklahoma Student Loan Authority (OLSA) is one of these federal student loan service providers. While it’s based in Oklahoma, it services loans for borrowers nationwide.
What is OSLA?
OSLA has been servicing loans for the U.S. Department of Education for more than 50 years. It’s a third-party company that handles the administrative tasks related to your loans.
If the Department of Education assigns OSLA as your loan servicer, OSLA will handle things like:
- Managing your monthly payments
- Changing your repayment plan
- Explaining deferment and forbearance
- Helping you qualify for loan forgiveness, like Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF)
Is OSLA a good loan servicer?
OSLA was recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as an Exceptional Performer for meeting and exceeding the standards the department established for the Federal Family Education Loans (FFEL) Program loans. Recently, OSLA’s website was redesigned, making it easier for borrowers to navigate and use.
Through internal surveys conducted by OSLA, 90 percent of the time, its staff received either “Good” or “Excellent” customer satisfaction marks.
What types of student loans does OSLA service?
OSLA handles two types of federal loans: Direct Loans and FFEL Program loans. It has announced that it will transfer FFEL Program loans to another servicer. However, it will continue to assist borrowers with FFEL Program loans through February 2025.
How do I know if OSLA is my servicer?
To determine if OSLA is your loan servicer, you can log into your Federal Student Aid (FSA) account, where your loan service will be identified. You can also check your credit reports at AnnualCreditReport.com. Your credit reports will list all of the companies that service your student loans. If you’ve taken out multiple student loans, you may have multiple servicers.
How do I make my OSLA student loan payments?
To make your OSLA student loan payments, create an account on OSLA’s website. You can either set up autopay to have your payment automatically deducted from your account every month or login every month to manually make your payment. and sign up with your account information. From there, you’ll be able to log in every month to make your payment manually.
How can you contact OSLA?
OSLA has customer service representatives available to assist you Monday-Friday from 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. CST. You can contact OSLA by phone and email:
- Phone: 800-261-7529
- Email: custserv@osla.org
How to file a complaint or settle a dispute with OSLA
If you’re running into problems with your loan servicing, the first step is to contact OSLA directly. They may be able to resolve the issue internally. However, if after talking with an OSLA representative, you still want to file a complaint, there are several places you can go:
- Federal Student Aid: An arm of the U.S. Department of Education
- Your state’s attorney general office: May be able to help with resources and repayment options
- Your state’s consumer protection office: Can investigate the complaint and work on your behalf
- Your senator or representative
If filing a complaint doesn’t resolve your problem, the final step you can take is to file a dispute with the Federal Student Aid Ombudsman Group. This is a neutral agency created to resolve complaints about the federal student aid program.
Can you switch student loan servicers?
For borrowers who have federal student loans, it’s typically not possible to change your loan servicer. But if you intend to consolidate or refinance your loans at any point, you will be able to select the servicer you would like during the consolidation application process.
If you have federal student loans and do not want to switch to a private loan, you can consolidate the debt using the Direct Consolidation Loan program. As part of this official federal program, you can select the servicer to handle your loan.
Bottom line
OSLA is a student loan servicer that handles loans for federal student loan borrowers. If OSLA services your student loans, you can log in to its website to make payments, manage your account and explore different repayment options.
Learn more:
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