College Ave Student Loans Review 2024

College Ave is a fintech lender that offers both private student loans and student loan refinancing. Whether you’re taking out or refinancing student loans, College Ave promises competitive rates, a range of repayment terms, and a customer-friendly experience from application through repayment. 

College Ave student loan refinancing

Best if:

• You earned your degree
• You need flexible loan terms to match monthly payments to your budget
• You’re comfortable working with an online lender that doesn’t have branch offices

College Ave refinancing interest rates and loan details

Although College Ave doesn’t offer student loan refinancing to those without degrees, it does offer a wide selection of loan terms ranging from 5 to 15 years. That makes it one of the best companies to refinance with, because it’s easier to select a loan with a monthly payment that matches your budget.

College Ave student loan refinancing review

As a fintech lender, College Ave doesn’t have branch offices where you can discuss your loan options in person. Everything is done online, with representatives also available through email, chat, and phone. But the company says that by specializing in student loans, it’s developed the technology and expertise to provide loans that are personalized to your needs.

Whether you’re paying back private or federal student loans, you may qualify to refinance up to $150,000 in undergraduate and graduate school debt with College Ave. Students who have earned medical, dental, pharmacy, or veterinary degrees may qualify to refinance as much as $300,000.

How to qualify

To qualify to refinance student loans with College Ave, you must have earned your degree and established a history of earnings and credit. College Ave does not disclose minimum credit score and income requirements.

Repayment

When you refinance student loans with College Ave, you'll be able to choose a loan term between 5 and 15 years. Generally speaking, the shorter the loan term, the lower the interest rate and total repayment cost. While spreading out your payments over a longer period of time may cost you additional interest in the long run, it can make your monthly payments more manageable.

Like many lenders, College Ave offers a 0.25% rate reduction if you agree to have your monthly payments withdrawn automatically from your bank account.

How to refinance student loans with College Ave

With an easy application process and wide selection of loan terms, College Avenue Student Loans can be a good choice for refinancing student loans. The rates you’ll be offered will depend largely on your credit score, so it’s wise to request rates from multiple lenders.

Credible makes it easy to request rates from College Ave and other lenders offering student loan refinancing without affecting your credit score. Take 2 minutes to fill out our form, and our integrations with credit bureaus and lenders lets you compare loans you’re prequalified for. Your personal information is not shared with lenders unless you see an option you’d like to proceed with.

College Ave private student loans

Best for:

• Parents who want control over funds
• Choice of repayment terms
• Multiple plans for in-school repayment

College Ave interest rates and loan details

College Ave offers a wide range of loan terms and repayment plans. Rates can be competitive, particularly if you (or your cosigner) has a strong credit score.

College Ave private student loans review

College Ave offers several student loans tailored for undergraduates, graduate students, and parents. The wide selection of loan terms and repayment plans makes it easier to choose a loan with a monthly payment you can manage.

Like many private lenders, College Ave offers a 0.25% interest rate discount if you sign up to have payments automatically withdrawn from your bank account.

How to qualify

College Ave does not publish minimum credit score and income requirements, but most private student loans do require a cosigner. That’s because students usually don’t have a history of credit and earnings that would qualify them for a loan on their own. Even if you don’t need one, using a cosigner can help you get a lower rate.

According to a recent analysis of a large pool of private student loans made by College Ave, the average borrower or cosigner’s FICO score was 759. Only 13% had FICO scores below 700, and none had FICO scores lower than 660.

If you do take out a College Ave student loan with a cosigner, you can request that they be released from their obligation after more than half of your repayment term has elapsed. In other words, if your repayment term was 10 years, you can apply for cosigner release after 5 years.

To be approved for cosigner release, your 24 most recent payments must have been on time, and your income for the last two years must be more than twice of your outstanding loan balance.

Learn More: How to Apply for a Student Loan

Repayment

Unless you’re taking out a parent loan, you can defer payments on College Ave private student loans until after leaving school. The length of your “grace period” depends on the degree you’re pursuing:

• Undergraduate and graduate students: 6 months
• College Ave Law School Loan: 9 months, with option to add up to 12 months deferment for clerkship
• College Ave Dental School Loan: 12 months, with option to add up to 24 months deferment for residency
• College Ave Medical School Loan: 36 months, with option to add up to 48 months of deferment for residency

If you defer payments while you’re in school, that will add to the cost of the loan. Even if you just pay some or all of the interest that accrues each month, that can save you money. Making full payments of principal and interest from the start saves the most.

Repayment of parent loans begins immediately, and you must at least cover the interest owed while the student is enrolled.

How College Ave compares to other lenders

Also see: Best Medical School Loans

How to take out private student loans with College Ave

Before applying for a student loan, you should first take advantage of college grants and scholarships available to you. Also know your federal student aid options when researching how to pay for college. If you still need money to pay for college expenses, compare student loans from multiple lenders to ensure you’re getting the best rates and terms for your situation.

You can use Credible to request rates from a range of lenders (including College Ave) who offer student loans. It takes less than three minutes to fill out the single form needed, and lenders don’t see your personal information unless you choose an option you want to proceed with.

How College Ave can improve

With competitive rates and a range of repayment terms, College Ave is a leading provider of private student loans and student loan refinancing. But College Ave could improve by:

• Providing more transparency into minimum income and credit score requirements
• Offering refinancing to qualified borrowers who didn’t earn their degree
• Providing more options for borrowers who experience financial hardship