Conduent Services (Originally ACS Student Loans) Review

❗ Editor’s note: Conduent Education Services stopped servicing federal student loans as of September 1, 2019. It transferred all its loans to other servicers. Conduent changed its name from ACS Student Loans after facing charges of abusive collection practices and mishandling borrower accounts.

More about Conduent’s legal troubles

⚠️ Conduent has been involved in multiple settlements for mishandling loans, including a $3.9 million fine imposed by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). It was found to have delayed loan adjustments, misapplied payments, and misinformed borrowers about repayment options, particularly those involving income-driven repayment plans.

⚠️ Conduent also agreed to a $9 million settlement with the state of New York in 2019. The investigation revealed that Conduent had engaged in illegal practices, such as steering borrowers into forbearance instead of income-based repayment plans and failing to inform servicemembers of Public Service Loan Forgiveness eligibility. As part of the settlement, Conduent agreed to stop servicing most student loans for five years.

The company has shifted its focus to other business areas, and its previous settlements likely continue to influence its decision to avoid resuming these operations.

In 2017, Conduent Business Services acquired ACS Student Loans, rebranding it as Conduent Education Services. Although the name changed, borrowers’ loan terms and payment options remained the same.

However, following lawsuits over account mishandling, Conduent ceased servicing student loans in 2019. This review covers important historical information about Conduent’s role in student loan servicing.

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ACS student loans lawsuit and acquisition
More about Conduent Education Services

ACS student loans lawsuit and acquisition

In 2016, ACS was fined $2.4 million in Massachusetts for delaying income-driven repayment applications for thousands of borrowers. The servicer also faced penalties for charging excessive fees and violating interest rate caps under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act.

Although ACS admitted no wrongdoing, some suggest the rebranding to Conduent Education Services was an attempt to move past the negative press. However, little has changed in how Conduent handles student loans.

Conduent Education Services benefits

Conduent Education Services offered borrowers a range of tools to manage student loans, including access to payment information, express and recurring payment options, e-billing, and electronic tax forms. Borrowers could also apply for deferment or forbearance on FFEL loans via the online platform.

Conduent serviced various loan types, such as private loans, Perkins Loans, campus-based loans, and FFEL loans. For FFEL loans, borrowers could choose from repayment plans like the standard 10-year plan, graduated repayment, or extended repayment up to 25 years. Automatic and prepayment options were also available.

Issues with Conduent Education

During its transition from ACS, Conduent faced several borrower complaints, including users being locked out of their accounts, making it difficult to make payments.

Borrowers reported high call volumes, which made it challenging to reach a loan representative for assistance. These issues have added to the concerns around Conduent’s servicing practices.

Contact information

Most borrowers interacted with Conduent through its online platform for tasks such as applying for deferment, making payments, or requesting loan documentation.

However, Conduent also offered phone support with different contact numbers for specific loan types:

FFEL loans: 1-800-835-4611 (Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. Eastern)
Perkins and campus-based loans: 1-800-826-4470 (Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern)
Private loans: 1-800-508-0806 (Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. Eastern)

As of September 1, 2019, Conduent ceased servicing student loans and transferred all loans to other servicers. If Conduent used to handle your loans, contact your new servicer for any inquiries.

How to switch from Conduent Education Services

One of the downsides of federal student loans is the reality that student loan borrowers cannot select the servicer to manage their loans.

The Department of Education selects the servicer that will handle the loan and its interest calculations, repayments, and deferment or forbearance applications. In order to change a servicer on a federal student loan, a borrower would have to refinance student loans through a private lender.

Private loans held with Conduent may be more easily changed to another servicer through the refinancing process. Refinancing requires a borrower to select a private loan company and then apply for a new student loan that will ultimately replace the current loan held with Conduent.

The benefits of refinancing include the opportunity for:

A lower student loan interest rate.
An extended repayment term (to lower monthly payments).
Better customer service.
Easier access to make payments or changes to an account.
Other benefits, such as educational resources and borrower discounts on other financial products.

However, refinancing a federal student loan from Conduent to a private student loan with another lender takes away inherent federal loan benefits, including forbearance and deferment options, income-driven repayment plans, and student loan forgiveness in the future.

Best student loan refinance companies

Federal vs. private student loans

Student loan repayment