JB Pritzker, Governor, State of Illinois

Human Services Professional Loan Repayment Program

(last updated December 18, 2024)

The number of awards made through this program, as well as the individual dollar amount awarded, are subject to sufficient annual appropriations by the Illinois General Assembly and the Governor.

Program News 
Program Overview
Eligibility Requirements
Application Procedures
Eligibility Certification
Award Determination and Payment

Program News

Fiscal Year 2025

The 2025 fiscal year (July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2025) appropriation for the Human Services Professional Loan Repayment Program is $5,250,000.

The Award Year 2025 (i.e., 2025 fiscal year) application for this program is available for applicants to access online via the Program Applications & Status Checks area of the ISAC Student Portal. In order to be considered timely, a complete application must be submitted on or before May 31, 2025, which is the priority consideration date. Applications received after that date will be considered for awards only if funding remains available after all timely, qualified applicants have been awarded.

ISAC has begun sending e-mails to community-based human services agencies, providing the information needed for completing the employment certification process that is required to determine an applicant's eligibility status for this program. In order to ensure applicants are considered for program funding, employing agencies are encouraged to complete the certification process as soon as possible.

Program Overview

{ISAC Rules, Part 2752}

The Human Services Professional Loan Repayment Program provides loan repayment assistance to qualified human services professionals. The program was designed as incentive for recruitment and retention of those who work for community-based human services providers. It seeks to help address the high turnover rate and struggle to maintain consistent staffing levels at human services agencies. The amount of the annual award to qualified applicants to repay their student loan debt is based on the degree earned from a qualified program.

Eligibility Requirements

{ISAC Rules, Part 2752.20}

In order to qualify for the Human Services Professional Loan Repayment Program, an applicant must:

  • be a U.S. citizen or eligible non-citizen.
  • be an Illinois resident.
  • have been a full-time employee for at least 24 consecutive months as a human services professional, immediately prior to applying, at a community-based human services agency which currently has or did have a contract with, receives funding from, and/or is grant-funded by one or more State of Illinois agencies (listed below)* for the purpose of providing direct or indirect human services.
  • remain a full-time employee as a human services professional in the same community-based human services agency for at least 12 months after receiving this grant.
  • have a balance remaining on their eligible student loan(s) – these loans include:
    • Stafford Loans;
    • Perkins Loans;
    • Graduate PLUS Loans;
    • consolidation loans;
    • Supplemental Loans for Students;
    • alternative loans; and
    • other types of government and institutional loans used for educational expenses.
  • not be in default on a federally guaranteed educational loan, nor owe a refund on any grant or scholarship program administered by ISAC.

*State of Illinois agencies include: the Department of Human Services, the Department of Children and Family Services, the Department of Juvenile Justice, the Department on Aging, and the Department of Public Health.

Application Procedures

{ISAC Rules, Part 2752.30}

All applicants must submit a complete Human Services Professional Loan Repayment Program application to ISAC each academic year. In order to be considered timely, the complete application must be submitted on or before the priority consideration date, which will be announced when the application is made available each year.

If the application is incomplete, a letter will be sent to the applicant to request the missing information. Processing cannot take place prior to the date a complete application is received in ISAC's Deerfield office.

Qualified applicants will be sent a Notice of Eligibility letter from ISAC.

Eligibility Certification

Following ISAC’s review of the information provided on the application to determine that the applicant has met initial eligibility requirements, certification of an applicant’s eligibility by the approved community-based human services agency takes place via an e-mail sent from ISAC to the employing agency. The link, unique PIN code, and instructions needed to complete the employment certification process are provided in the e-mail. In order to ensure the applicant is considered for program funding, the certification process should be completed as soon as possible after the e-mail has been received.

The following demo video provides information regarding the employment certification process for this program:


Questions regarding the employment certification process may be submitted to isac.communitypartnerservices@illinois.gov.

Award Determination and Payment

{ISAC Rules, Part 2752.30}

Recipients are selected from among qualified new and renewal applicants. The total number of awards each year is contingent on available funding. If funding in any given year is insufficient to pay all eligible applicants, awarding will be determined in the following order:

  1. Renewal applicants, in the order in which their applications were received; then
  2. qualified timely new applicants; then
  3. qualified untimely new applicants

The award amount is based on the applicant's remaining balance on eligible educational loans, not to exceed:

    • $15,000 per year for a master's degree or higher from a qualified program;
    • $10,000 per year for a bachelor's degree from a qualified program;
    • $2,000 per year for an associate degree from a qualified program; and
    • $5,000 per year add-on if applicant is independently licensed as a licensed clinical social worker, a licensed clinical professional counselor, a licensed practitioner of the healing arts, a licensed marriage and family therapist, a board-certified behavior analyst, or a registered behavior technician.

Proceeds will be remitted directly to the holder of the loan(s) to be repaid. There is a minimum of 6 – 8 weeks turnaround from the date approved recipients are notified by ISAC to when funds are disbursed.