173,000 DeVry University students will share in $49 million settlement
Updated on July 6, 2017 at 11:12 AM
Posted on July 6, 2017 at 10:43 AM

BY LEADA GORE
lgore@al.com



DeVry University has agreed to a $100 million settlement in connection to ads federal officials said misled students about their job and earning prospects. (Leada Gore | lgore@al.com)

If you attended for-profit DeVry University, you may have some money coming your way.

The Federal Trade Commission announced Wednesday 173,000 former DeVry students will be receiving refund checks as part of a $49 million settlement with the Illinois-based education chain. The checks will average about $280 per students.

DeVry has more than 42,000 students at 55 campuses throughout the U.S. as well as through online classes.

The settlement includes an additional $51 million in student debt forgiveness. The debt includes the full balanced owed - about $30.35 million - in unpaid private student loans that DeVry issued to undergraduates between September 2008 and September 2015, as well as $20.25 million in student debts for things like tuition, books and lab fees.

The refunds are part of a settlement over claims the school's advertisements deceived students on the likelihood they would find a job in their majors after they graduated.
The FTC alleged DeVry misled potential students with claims that 90 percent of its graduates actively seeking employment landed jobs in their field within six months of completing their education. DeVry also misled students by claiming graduates with bachelor's degrees earned about 15 percent higher one year after graduation than people receiving their degrees from other colleges or universities.

To be eligible for a refund, students must have been enrolled for the first time in a bachelor or associate degree program at DeVry between Jan. 1, 2008 and Oct. 1, 2015 and paid at least $5,000 in tuition through cash, loans or military benefits. Recipients are also required to have completed at least one credit class and not be a recipient of debt or loan forgiveness under the same agreement.

The amount of each refund will depend on how much a person paid to DeVry but won't cover the complete cost, the FTC said.

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