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ATTACHMENT D: TESTS OF ALTERNATIVES FOR NOTIFICATION AND CONFIRMATION The testing of various approaches to notification and confirmation is a very important component of implementing the MPN. These tests will provide important information to the Department, as well as to schools, lenders and guaranty agencies. The results should assist in the enhancement of the MPN process for the future. During the initial implementation of the MPN process, a series of research projects or tests will be conducted. While additional information about these tests will be published, a framework for the experiments is discussed below. The Department will select 20-30 institutions to participate in the project from those FFEL institutions that have indicated a desire to participate. A similar group will be selected from among the Direct Loan schools. A school does not have to be part of the research study in order to use the MPN or the multi-year feature of the MPN. Some of the schools selected will be those that participate in the FFEL Program and others will be Direct Loan schools. Any FFEL lender providing loans to students attending a school that is participating in the testing process may need to assist with the project. The objectives of the testing are to: Advance understanding of the Project EASI vision that places the student in the center of all information gathering and decision making; Test various methods of confirmation, notification, and debt counseling; Compare confirmation and notification systems; Test various points in the loan process for confirmation and notification, e.g., once for each loan, before the start of the first payment period for a loan, before each disbursement period, etc.; Assess the various methods’ impact upon customer service and consumer awareness; Assess participants’ reactions to the process options, including a comparison with non-test institutions. Test technologies, such as: - Voice Response at the school, lender, or guaranty agency - Home page-Internet - Card technology The Department anticipates that test participants will be selected and the individual tests will be designed during the 1999/2000 academic year. Each of the tests will include discussions with borrowers, the institution, and loan providers so as to secure feedback. Institutions participating in the testing will follow the same procedures and use the same forms adopted for all other institutions. Institutions may apply for participation as a test school on their own, in partnership with their loan providers, or as part of a consortium of schools. Additional information will be provided in the near future. |