Cohort Default Rates Remain Unchanged, Reflecting Student Loan Payment Pause
By Hugh T. Ferguson, NASFAA Managing Editor
For the third straight year, the national cohort default rate (CDR) for federal student loans that entered repayment in fiscal year (FY) 2022 remained at 0%, continuing to reflect the payment pause as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
FY 22 covers the date range of October 1, 2021, through September 30, 2022. During this period, more than 3.5 million borrowers entered repayment, which was 4.3% fewer than in FY 21.
Next year’s CDR, FY 23, will capture the end stages of the student loan payment pause, as most borrowers had their first payment due in October 2023.
However, due to the year-long on-ramp period and other changes to the repayment system, such as SAVE plan litigation, the CDR metric will less accurately reflect borrowers' financial well-being for the next several years.
ED distributed cohort default rate packages to eligible individual institutions late last week, notifying them of the begin dates for appealing the official rates.
Publication Date: 9/30/2025
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