Students’ rights are under assault. We’re fighting back.

Student Defense works to advance educational opportunity and ensure that higher education provides a launching point for economic mobility.

About us
About us
Featured
Making Relief Automatic for Borrowers with Total and Permanent Disabilities
Making Relief Automatic for Borrowers with Total and Permanent Disabilities

Over 633,000 borrowers obtain more than $18.7 billion in discharges

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Student Defense Unveils “Student AI Bill of Rights,” Calls For Adoption From Higher Education Institutions
Student Defense Unveils “Student AI Bill of Rights,” Calls For Adoption From Higher Education Institutions
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Challenging the Trump Administration Over Its New PSLF Eligibility Rule
Challenging the Trump Administration Over Its New PSLF Eligibility Rule

Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights, American Immigration Council, The Door — A Center of Alternatives, Inc., and the League of United Latin American Citizens Institute, Inc., v. the U.S. Department of Education

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Landmark settlement reached in class-action lawsuit against Walden University over targeting Black and female students with false advertising
Landmark settlement reached in class-action lawsuit against Walden University over targeting Black and female students with false advertising

Court previously determined "reverse redlining" claims are actionable in college recruiting context

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Holding USC and 2U, Inc., Responsible for Deceptive Enrollment Schemes
Holding USC and 2U, Inc., Responsible for Deceptive Enrollment Schemes

Favell v. USC

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Our work

Our focus spans the entire student lifecycle, from recruitment to educational quality to completion to student loan repayment

Featured
Litigation Efforts
Litigation Efforts

Defending students’ rights through legal action.

Democracy and Oversight
Democracy and Oversight

Holding federal agencies accountable for upholding the rule of law.

AI in Higher Education
AI in Higher Education

Ensuring AI is developed and deployed responsibly in higher education.

Advocacy and State Policy
Advocacy and State Policy

Stopping predatory practices and promoting effective, data-driven rulemaking.

Anti-Poverty and Basic Needs
Anti-Poverty and Basic Needs

Supporting students struggling to access food, housing and childcare.

Accountability and Civil Rights
Accountability and Civil Rights

Ensuring every student has an equal opportunity to earn a meaningful degree.

SHAPE AI

AI is Rapidly Transforming Higher Education

The SHAPE AI initiative is working to ensure that AI drives opportunity and works for students, not against them.

Learn more
Learn more

Student stories: The faces of the for-profit crisis

Each year tens of thousands of American college students fall victim to predatory for-profit colleges. These are their stories.

Experience their stories
Experience their stories

Support our work.

Our team is working around the clock to stop attacks on students and families — donate today.

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