Once you have a diploma and have completed the courses necessary to graduate college, it is one of the most rewarding and best feelings of accomplishment and relief. But soon after, reality moves in and so do the student loan bills. OUCH! There can be some serious shock over what the monthly payments are and the mountain of debt that you might be looking at. But before you get overwhelmed, there are options.

President Biden extended the payment pause multiple times. Biden’s last extension is set to end on August 31.

While we wait to see what the federal government will do with the student loans in the next few weeks, there are some grants and scholarships for those who need added assistance paying their loans back. Specifically if you live in New York State.

One such loan forgiveness option is called The NYS Get ON Your Feet Program.

The NYS Get on Your Feet Loan Forgiveness Program provides up to 24 months of federal student loan debt relief to recent NYS college graduates who are participating in a federal income-driven repayment plan whose payments are generally capped at 10 percent of their discretionary income.

There are a variety of requirements for those who want to apply. But if you land this and get approved, it is a huge help and would make a big dent in that pile of loans.

-have a primary work location in NYS, if employed; -have an adjusted gross income of less than $50,000; -be current on all federal or NYS student loans; -be current on the repayment of any NYS award; and -be in compliance with the terms of any service condition imposed by a NYS award.

The biggest regret that I have looking back on my years in college and leading up to college is not applying for more scholarships and grants. There are ENDLESS amounts of them and, depending on your family situations, there could be big money coming your way. It is worth the time to apply for as many as possible and thanks to Google, you can search for dozens.