FINANCIAL AID

Loan/Scholarship Repayment Information

Loan/scholarships are awards that carry a repayment obligation. Money is loaned to students in certain high-demand majors, such as nursing and teaching. To receive the money, a student signs a contract with the state to fulfill a service obligation after degree completion. If the student completes the service obligation, the loan converts to an interest-free scholarship. If the student fails to complete the service or otherwise abrogates the contract, the loan becomes due with interest.

ECSI Services Mississippi Loan/Scholarships

ECSI is a thirdy-party vendor that services all of the state's loan/scholarship programs. Students who receive money from Mississippi through any loan/scholarship program will receive informatin from ECSI regarding repyment once the student separates (graduates or stops out) from the program of study.

You may now access your account online or call ECSI Customer Service to make payments, file deferment/cancellation forms, set up automatic payments, etc. When calling or accessing your account online, you will need the following information:

MIHL School Code: 8T
Account Number: Your Social Security Number
PIN: Your assigned PIN

Please feel free to contact ECSI about your account at:

Website and Live Chat: www.ecsi.net
Email: webcservice@ecsi.net
Phone: (888) 549-ECSI or (888) 549-3274
Fax: (866) 291-5384
Mail: Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning (MIHL)
        c/o ECSI
        181 Montour Run Road
        Coraopolis, PA 15108

Grace

Students in most loan/scholarship programs receive a 12 month grace.

At the conclusion of the grace period (if grace period is applicable), a student must either: 1) provide proof of employment to qualify for a service deferment or 2) begin making payments. Failure to do one of these two things may result in the student account going into collection status.

Deferment and Cancellation

A "Deferment" is a postponement of payment. A student borrower should request a deferment of debt if the student is pursuing a required residency or if the student is working to complete the service obligation.

A "Cancellation" is a cancellation of all or part of the debt after working. A student borrower should request a cancellation of debt after completing each year of the service obligation.

Residency Deferment

Students in the following programs may request a deferment for residency training:

State Dental Education - Residency in General Dentistry for 1 year
Graduate and Professional Degree Programs - Residency in Podiatry for 4 years; Residency in Chiropractic Medicine for 1 year
State Medical Education - Residency in Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Obstetrics/Gynecology, or Pediatric Medicine for 4 years
SREB Regional Contract Program - Residency in Optometry for 1 year; Residency in Osteopathic Medicine for 4 years
Veterinary Medicine Minority Program - Residency in Veterinary Medicine for 4 years

At the beginning of each year of residency, a student borrower should submit a Residency Deferment Form:

Health Care Related Professions (Non-Nursing) Residency Deferment Form

Service Deferment and Cancellation

At the beginning of each year of employment, a student borrower should submit the appropriate form to defer payment of the debt, because the student is currently working to complete the required service obligation. At the end of each year of employment, a student borrower should submt the appropriate form to cancel all or part of the debt, because the student has completed all or part of the required service obligation.

IMPORTANT: A student may cancel debt for a completed year of service and request deferment of a current year of service by using the same form.

Other Allowable Deferments

Mississippi loan/scholarships are not federal loans. They do not carry all of the deferment options that some federal loans carry. Students should consult their contract for allowable reasons for deferment.

Disability Deferment and Cancellation

Repayment of Mississippi loan/scholarship debt may be deferred in cases of temporary disability.

Mississippi loan/scholarship debt may be cancelled in cases of total and permanent disability. To qualify for cancellation of a state student loan on the basis of total and permanent disability, the borrower must be unable to engage in any substantial activity by reason of a medically determinable physical or mental impairment that can be expected to result in death, that has lasted for a continuous period of not less than 60 months, or than can be expected to last for a continuous period of not less than 60 months. A recipient is not considered totally and permanently disabled on the basis of a condition that existed before he/she applied for the loan, unless the recipient's condition has substantially deteriorated since he/she submitted the loan application, so as to render the recipient totally and permanently disabled.

To apply for loan deferment or cancellation on the basis of disability, a student borrower should submit the following form:

Request for Disability Deferment/Cancellation Form

Update Contact Information Regularly

It is the responsibility of the student to update his/her contact information regularly with ECSI.

Contact ECSI

When calling or accessing your account online, you will need the following information:

MIHL School Code: 8T
Account Number: Your Social Security Number
PIN: Your assigned PIN