NFAS hounding students for cash

[schumi]

Johannesburg - The National Financial Aid Scheme is hounding graduates who are yet to repay their loans by chasing them with debt collectors as part of a raft of measures it uses to improve its low recovery rate.

The use of private debt collection agencies, however, has raised fears that this will place a further financial burden on the majority of graduates already facing financial problems to pay.

The Sunday Independent spoke to several former students this week who revealed details of how NFAS has been hounding them, despite some of them being only employed as interns.

One such former student is * Mandla, a former University of Johannesburg graduate who completed his Diploma in Financial Information Systems in 2016.

He expressed shock at the drastic handover of his loan to debt collectors despite being unemployed. He said this has left him helpless.

“When I signed the NSFAS contract, it was agreed that I would only start paying back the money once I started working in the same line as my studies,” said the graduate from Soweto.

“I went to NSFAS because my mother couldn't pay my fees and now to be told to ask that very parent to start paying for me was puzzling. We looked for help because we don't have the money.”

He said he further recently received an e-mail from the debtors company that showed figures of the amount owed with the interest accumulation.

Another graduate, * Zandile, claimed to have been contacted by debt collectors several times to start paying her loan regardless of being only employed as an intern.

Zandile currently earns a stipend of R2 500 to meet her immediate needs, and from that amount she was asked by debt collectors to initially pay R500 but this later changed to R250 a month.

“Because I was confused and didn't understand, I contacted the NSFAS offices to verify and was told to start paying, just as long as I received a call,” she said.

“I really don't understand why I am being summoned to pay, whereas I am not permanently employed, and the little that I get I try to support myself.”

More at: http://www.iol.co.za/news/nfas-hounding-students-for-cash-7410201

 

[Genisys]

This is what the student protesters forced them to. As was mentioned many a time last year, free education only means someone else needs to pay for it.

 

[channelorange]

This is what the student protesters forced them to. As was mentioned many a time last year, free education only means someone else needs to pay for it.

Who is paying for it in this instance? NSFAS is hiring debt collectors to collect debt from the very students who took out the loan. Oh and a loan isn't free.

Demanding repayment from unemployed students is not right. Unfortunately you have to start paying if you're earning R30 000 or more a year so they had legal grounds to start asking the intern for repayment.

 

[3WA]

I believe this violates their contract, which states that repayment starts once they are employed in the field of qualification.

 

[TheChamp]

I believe this violates their contract, which states that repayment starts once they are employed in the field of qualification.

I can't remember the clear wording of the contract and maybe it might have changed over the years but in think there is more to it than that, e.g some who studied engineering but has a job in the finance sector and earns enough money is still expected to pay regardless of the field they are in.

 

[yebocan]

Solution : get NFAS tied into SARS...once you start working, your employer deducts your repayments directly from your salary. Your repayments are based on the salary. Salary increases, so does your repayments. No hide and seek required.

 

[Drifter]

Solution : get NFAS tied into SARS...once you start working, your employer deducts your repayments directly from your salary. Your repayments are based on the salary. Salary increases, so does your repayments. No hide and seek required.

That is a garnishee order and can only be issued by a court.

 

[supersunbird]

That is a garnishee order and can only be issued by a court.

In fact it is called an Emolument Order, but not that using that term would have given your point validity.

I assume what he means by tied into SARS, going ahead (not retroactively), you sign a contract with NSFAS and agree to let SARS get the money via its systems, cause it all would be linked by ID numbers...

 

[zizo911]

It's NSFAS

 

[3WA]

I can't remember the clear wording of the contract and maybe it might have changed over the years but in think there is more to it than that, e.g some who studied engineering but has a job in the finance sector and earns enough money is still expected to pay regardless of the field they are in.

Fair enough. Still, many graduates earning less than R5k a month, and already from extremely poor backgrounds, are simply not able to pay this.

And going back in their books to years past, I am sure NSFAS can find enough outstanding debt to recover from established professionals. One of my classmates refused to pay back for years until he was declined for a loan on the showroom floor of a luxury German car dealership.

 

[yebocan]

In fact it is called an Emolument Order, but not that using that term would have given your point validity.

I assume what he means by tied into SARS, going ahead (not retroactively), you sign a contract with NFAS and agree to let SARS get the money via its systems, cause it all would be linked by ID numbers...

Yep, that is my thinking...thanks for the eloquence.

 

[TheChamp]

Fair enough. Still, many graduates earning less than R5k a month, and already from extremely poor backgrounds, are simply not able to pay this.

And going back in their books to years past, I am sure NSFAS can find enough outstanding debt to recover from established professionals. One of my classmates refused to pay back for years until he was declined for a loan on the showroom floor of a luxury German car dealership.

Agreed, it runs into billions as Nxasana said some time ago, let them recover that and leave those who are not yet earning enough to pay back the loans.

 

[konfab]

“When I signed the NSFAS contract, it was agreed that I would only start paying back the money once I started working in the same line as my studies,” said the graduate from Soweto.

NSFAS is very generous as they scale the payments to your earnings. This is done on the provision that you tell them how much you earn. This is what your contract says.
If he had done that, the monthly fee would have been R75.


You would think someone with a diploma in financial information systems would understand the simple concept of paying back a loan. The reality is a system like NSFAS is too good for the likes of the scum that study in South Africa.

 

[supersunbird]

In my opinion they should only going after 2015ers and before.

 

[3WA]

In my opinion they should only going after 2015ers and before.

Plenty of 2015ers are still jumping from internship to internship. I know people that have been in internships for almost a decade with stipends of R3k to R4k. Sad, but that's just the state of the economy, and the difficulty in breaking into the workforce.

The NSFAS rules are just fine; problem is their administrators are thick and now that they have a cashflow problem they're striking out reactively without thinking.

 

[karnuffel]

Plenty of 2015ers are still jumping from internship to internship. I know people that have been in internships for almost a decade with stipends of R3k to R4k. Sad, but that's just the state of the economy, and the difficulty in breaking into the workforce.

The NSFAS rules are just fine; problem is their administrators are thick and now that they have a cashflow problem they're striking out reactively without thinking.

If someone is still in an internship after almost a decade then that person is an idiot and must absolutely suck at his job. If you are an intern after 2 years you should consider a career change or an employer change. NSFAS should really reconsider who they give loans to.

I feel nothing for them, if you sign for a loan then repay the bloody loan.

 

[Mila]

The Sunday Independent spoke to several former students this week who revealed details of how NFAS has been hounding them, despite some of them being only employed as interns.

Employed is employed. if you ask the government and SARS you are employed.
What did you think was going to happen?

You loaned money. With the fallacy in mind that you will start earning millions from the day you have a qualification.

This is what grown up means. Accountability for your decisions.

 

[konfab]

This is what grown up means. Accountability for your decisions.

Such racist and colonial thinking..

 

[TheChamp]

If someone is still in an internship after almost a decade then that person is an idiot and must absolutely suck at his job. If you are an intern after 2 years you should consider a career change or an employer change. NSFAS should really reconsider who they give loans to.

I feel nothing for them, if you sign for a loan then repay the bloody loan.

Employed is employed. if you ask the government and SARS you are employed.
What did you think was going to happen?

You loaned money. With the fallacy in mind that you will start earning millions from the day you have a qualification.

This is what grown up means. Accountability for your decisions.

Terms and conditions of their contract with NSFAS, no employed is employed nonsense. The graduates in the article are not refusing to pay back their loans.

 

[SweetFennyAdams]

When you sign a loan agreement, you must take responsibility to pay that loan.
In this case there are thousands of feeloaders who simply wont pay, despite having the means to do so.
The issue here is that many millennials have zero sense of responsibility, just 'give me, give me, give me'!
And then there is the herd mentality that reject repayments as some type of political statement, where in fact it is just an excuse not to pay.