Title IV Program Responsibilities

An institution shall demonstrate that it complies if required with the Title IV program responsibility requirements of the Higher Education Reauthorization Act as most recently amended. Therefore, institutions will make available for HLC review any documents it requests concerning the institution’s program responsibilities under Title IV of the Act, including any results of financial or compliance audits and program reviews, audits reports by the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Education, and any other information related to its fulfillment of its Title IV responsibilities.

Default rate. An institution shall make reasonable efforts to ensure that its students do not take on excessive debt either through federal or private loans. An institution shall also demonstrate that it is appropriately fulfilling its Title IV responsibilities to manage its student loan program, to minimize student default on such loans, and to provide accurate information to the U.S. Department of Education when required in conjunction with its loan program. Therefore, an institution will make available to HLC information it requests about its participation in federal and private loan programs as well as its three-year Title IV default rates and any default reduction plans provided to the U.S. Department of Education.

Policy History

Last Revised or Edited: November 2025, effective September 2026
First Adopted: February 1996, effective September 1996
History:* revised February 1998; edited October 2003; renumbered November 2010; revised and renumbered June 2012; renumbered November 2012 (former policy number 4.0(e)); revised June 2019 (effective September 2019); edited February 2021; revised November 2025 (effective September 2026)
Notes:

* In the history, “revised” indicates that the HLC Board of Trustees adopted changes to the policy, and “edited” indicates that HLC staff made technical amendments or minor editorial revisions that did not require formal Board approval.