AES Student Loans Review – Personal Experience

AES Student Loans were created by the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA) in 1963. Originally, AES managed private student loans and federal loans under the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP).

Although the FFELP ended in 2010, many borrowers still repay their AES Student Loans today. AES continues to service these loans. Read the full article on AES student loans rate for repayment details.

What is American Education Services?

AES Student Loans is a loan servicer, not a lender. It was created by the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA) to manage federal and private student loans.

As a servicer for AES Student Loans, it handles –

• Processing payments
• Assisting with repayment plans
• Answering borrower questions
• Reporting to credit bureaus

The earnings from AES Student Loans servicing help PHEAA fund financial aid programs like the Pennsylvania State Grant.

Types of AES Student Loans

AES currently services private student loans and commercially held FFELP (Federal Family Education Loan Program) loans, but not FFELP (Federal Family Education Loan Program) loans owned by the U.S. Department of Education. They also do not handle other federal loans. AES works with multiple lenders, including banks, credit unions, and financial institutions such as –

• Private student loans
• Commercial FFELP loans (not U.S. Department of Education-held FFELP loans)

Lenders serviced by AES include –

• Alaska Student Loan Corporation
• Brazos Student Loans
• Education Loan Finance (ELFI)
• INvestEd
• MEFA
• PNC Bank
• University Credit Union

What Does American Education Services (AES) Do?

AES helps borrowers manage FFELP and private student loans by handling payments, repayment options, and loan forgiveness programs.

Loan Management & Repayment

• Payment Processing – Make payments online, set up autopay, or manage billing.
• Repayment Plans – Choose from standard, extended, or income-driven repayment (IDR) plans.
• Financial Hardship Help – If struggling, AES offers deferment, forbearance, or alternative payment plans.
• Co-Signer Release – Some private loans allow co-signers to be removed after meeting requirements.

Loan Forgiveness & Discharge

• Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) – For qualifying government/nonprofit employees.
• Teacher Loan Forgiveness – For eligible educators.
• Discharge Options – Due to disability, school closure, or death.

Account Tools

• Online Access – Check balances, view statements, and update loan details.
• Credit Reporting – AES reports payments to credit bureaus.

For assistance, contact AES directly about your loan options.

How to Repay AES Student Loans

Here’s a step-by-step breakdown of all payment methods for AES student loans –

1. Online Payments

Website: AESSuccess.org

1. Create an Account (if new) –
   • Click “Register” and enter your name, date of birth, and loan account number (or Social Security number).
   • Set up a username, password, and security questions.
2. Log In & Make a Payment –
   • After signing in, click “Make a Payment.”
   • Enter your bank account/routing number and payment amount.
   • Review details carefully, then click “Submit.”
   • You’ll receive a confirmation email once processed.

Autopay Option –

• Enroll in automatic payments under “Payment Options” to avoid missed due dates.

2. Mobile App Payments

Download the AES App –

• Available on Google Play (Android) or the Apple App Store (iOS).
  Steps –

1. Log in using your AESSuccess.org credentials.
2. Tap “Make a Payment” and follow the prompts.
3. Save your bank details for faster future payments.

3. Phone Payments

Call – 1-800-233-0557
Steps –

1. Have your loan account number (or SSN) and bank account/routing number ready.
2. Follow the automated prompts or speak to a representative.
3. Confirm payment details verbally before authorizing.

Note –

• Available 24/7 for automated payments.
• No fees for phone payments.

4. Mail Payments

Address –

American Education Services
P.O. Box 65093
Baltimore, MD 21264-5093

Steps –

1. Write a check or money order payable to “American Education Services.”
2. Include your AES account number on the check/money order.
3. Mail at least 5–7 business days before your due date to avoid late fees.

Tips –

• Do not send cash.
• Use tracking services (e.g., USPS Certified Mail) for security.

Important Notes

• Accepted Payment Methods – Only checking/savings accounts. Debit/credit cards are not accepted.
• Due Dates – Payments are processed on business days (Monday–Friday, excluding federal holidays).
• Late Payments – Contact AES immediately if you miss a payment to discuss options like forbearance or adjusted plans.
• Security – AES will never ask for your password or full SSN over email.

For help, visit AESSuccess.org or call 1-800-233-0557. Always keep records of your payments!

My Friend’s AES Student Loans Experience

Hi and welcome back! I’m Rahul, and today I’ll be talking about my friend’s debt-free journey—specifically, their experience with the American Education Services (AES) system.

A Little Background on My Student Loan Debt

To summarize my friend’s journey – When they graduated law school, they had a hundred and twenty thousand dollars in student loan debt. Can you believe that?

That amount included community college (oh God), undergrad for sure, and then law school. And not only was it federal loans, but it was also private loans. (Private loans are a separate topic altogether.)

When they graduated law school in 2002, like most, they had that six-month grace period and quickly realized they were not going to be able to afford these student loans in the aggregate—meaning, separately. So, they decided to consolidate.

Over the twelve to thirteen years since they’ve been out of school, they’ve seen that loan bought by different companies. At one point, they were with Great Lakes, then something called XFS (Xpress Financial Services) (or Express Funding—they can’t recall). But now, they’re with AES.

My Mindset Shift – From “Good Debt” to Debt-Free

My friend wasn’t always aggressive about paying off their loans. Like most people, they thought, “Hey, student loans are good debt. I’ll just have this for the rest of my life—or at least the next 30 years.”

They believe their consolidation was structured as a 30-year loan—though they could be wrong; they haven’t even bothered to check. But they don’t plan to stay in debt that long. In fact, they’ve vowed to knock it out within a year—“mark my words,” they said.

At the time, it was November. By December 2018, they were determined to erase that student loan entirely. The remaining balance? Somewhere around fifty thousand dollars.

The Problem with AES: “Paid Ahead” Status

Now, here’s where their AES story begins.

They recently learned about something called ‘paid ahead’ status—where extra payments don’t automatically go toward the principal. Instead, AES applies them to future payments, meaning interest continues to accrue on the full balance.

When they consolidated their loans, they had three student loans:

• One at $24,000
• One at $26,000
• One at $2,600

They wanted to pay off the smallest one first ($2,600) as part of their debt snowball strategy.

The Frustrating Process of Paying Off a Single Loan

When my friend called AES, the first representative said, “No problem! We can do that.” She was ready to take their payment over the phone—they were thrilled! But then, she put them on hold and realized, “Oh, this is a consolidation loan. You have to write a letter requesting to separate the payment and apply it to a specific loan sequence.”

They called it Loan Sequence 1 and told my friend to –

1. Write a letter explicitly stating they wanted to pay off Loan Sequence 1 in full (not put it in “paid ahead” status).
2. Mail a certified check (or money order) to their “paid in full” address.

At first, my friend thought, “Really? I have to write a letter?” But fine—they did it.

The Two-Week Wait… And Then Nothing AES said it would take two weeks to process. After two weeks, my friend checked their account daily—nothing. No update. No payment applied. They freaked out because it was a cashier’s check—if AES lost it, they’d have to deal with stopping payment, reissuing, etc.

The Big Mistake – Missing the Account Number

When they called back, the representative found the payment—but there was a problem. My friend had forgotten to write their account number on the check’s memo line. Instead, they used their Social Security number (since that’s how they always verified themself when calling AES).

The representative explained –

• If AES doesn’t know where to apply a payment, they still cash it—but it sits in a reserve fund, unapplied.
• They found the payment by the check number and amount, but without the account number, they couldn’t process it correctly.

The Fix: Faxing a Canceled Check Copy

To fix this, my friend had to –

1. Get a front-and-back copy of the canceled check from their bank (Wells Fargo).
2. Fax it to a special AES department.

The representative warned – “It’ll take 2–5 business days for them to receive the fax.” (Mind-boggling, right?)

Another Hurdle – The “Stop Payment” Confusion

When they called back after two days, the next representative told them, “You need to stop payment on that check.”

My friend was stunned—the check had already been cashed!

At that point, they politely asked to speak to a supervisor.

Finally, a Solution (Thanks, Beverly!)

The supervisor, Beverly, was amazing. She –

• Saw all my friend’s documentation (original letter, fax, check details).
• Confirmed AES would apply the payment correctly.
• Warned them about interest discrepancies—advising them to request a credit refund for any overpayment.

She explained –

• The department that applies payments is separate and slow.
• Their account would eventually update, but it might take weeks.

The Takeaway – How to Deal with AES

1. Call ahead to remove “paid ahead” status.
2. Otherwise, extra payments won’t go toward principal.
3. Attacking individual loans may not be worth it.
4. If consolidating, just treat it as one debt.
5. Avoid AES if possible. Their system is archaic and frustrating.
6. If you can refinance elsewhere, do it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Final Thoughts

The whole process took over a month—from sending the payment to finally seeing it applied. If my friend had known about “paid ahead” status earlier, they could’ve saved time and stress.

Their advice? If you’re dealing with AES, call ahead, double-check instructions, and document everything.