CRI Student Loans (or Central Research Inc.) is one of the newest and smallest Federal student loan servicers.
In April 2023, the U.S. Department of Education announced contracts with five new companies to service federal student loans.
Central Research was one of the new companies to receive a student loan servicing contract.
As a student loan borrower, this means your student loans may be handled by Central Research as your student loan servicer. Let’s explore Central Research’s background and how this might impact your student loan repayment journey.
What Is Central Research CRI Student Loans?
Central Research Inc (CRI) was founded by Scott Dillard and Johnny Dillard in 2002. Since its founding, the veteran-owned company has grown into a multi-million dollar company.
The most recent contract awarded by the Department of Education is a multi-million dollar deal. However, this is not the first time that CRI has worked with the federal government. Back in 2015, CRI was awarded a Department of Education contract to help student loan borrowers rehabilitate defaulted student loans (i.e. they helped with student loan collections).
CRI also works as a contractor for other federal agencies. But the focus of these other contracts is providing data management, IT services, call centers, and other supportive roles. With that, the recent contract with the Department of Education represents an increased amount of responsibility for CRI.
What Does It Offer?
Central Research is one of the newest student loan servicers (joining the ranks of MOHELA, NelNet, and others). But as a student loan borrower, you won’t have a choice between the various companies. Instead, you should be notified if you have a new student loan servicer by the Department of Education.
If you don’t want to wait for a notification, you can determine who your student loan servicer is by accessing the National Student Loan Data System. Central Research may already be listed as your servicer in this system.
If your student loan will be serviced by Central Research, here’s what to know about the company.
Online Access
CRI Student Loans offers online access to your student loans via the Department of Education CRI Portal.
By the time Central Research officially takes over your student loan repayment plan, you should have access to their online options.
You can find access at cri.studentaid.gov, and you'll know you're on the correct portal because it will have the official FSA seal:
Smaller Award
In contrast to some of the other companies awarded contracts by the Department of Education, Central Research has been awarded a relatively small contract amount.
Central Research’s contract amount is $24.3 million. While that represents a lot of loans, when compared to Maximus Education’s $970.4 million contract award and MOHELA’s $299.6 million award, it’s significantly smaller.
Since Central Research is new to the student loan servicing field, the smaller workload should make for a smooth transition. Of course, only time will tell how Central Research’s role as a student loan servicer will play out.
How Does Central Research Student Loan Compare?
Central Research isn’t the only company with a government contract to service student loans. MOHELA and Aidvantage have been providing this service for many years.
MOHELA, the Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority, has been servicing student loans for several years. Unfortunately, many borrowers have experienced repayment issues through the company, including complaints of excessive phone calls.
Aidvantage, the federal student loan processing department of Maximus Education, took over servicing federal loans after Navient was let-go from the role. Aidvantage is relatively new to the role. But the hope is that this company will be more fair to borrowers than Navient ever was.
How Do I Contact Central Research Student Loan?
You can get in touch with Central Research by calling 479-419-5456 from Monday to Friday from 8 AM to 5 PM central time. Another option is to fill out the contact form on Central Research’s website or send information via snail mail to 106 N. Bloomington Suite S Lowell, Arkansas 72745.
It’s too early to tell what the customer service experience will look like. Hopefully, the company will offer a smooth repayment journey. But it will take some time to determine what borrowers experience when working with this company.
However, there have already been Reddit threads highlighting that the transition to CRI hasn't always been smooth for everyone.
The Bottom Line
CRI Student Loans is new to the federal student loan servicing scene. As one of the smaller players, very few student loan borrowers will end up working with this company. But the smaller workload might play to Central Research’s favor because it can focus on doing a great job instead of being overwhelmed by a massive influx of borrowers.
Editor: Colin Graves Reviewed by: Robert Farrington
Sarah Sharkey is a personal finance writer who covers banking, credit, student loans, and insurance for The College Investor. She has written for leading financial outlets including Bankrate, Business Insider, and more, helping readers make confident choices about borrowing, saving, and building wealth.
Sarah holds both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree from the University of Florida, and her background in management and research informs her clear, practical approach to complex financial topics.