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◆ The CSLA Institute

A standards body for student loan advice

We set the education, examination, experience and ethics requirements for the Certified Student Loan Professional® designation, maintain the public register of certificants, and adjudicate complaints against them.

Why we exist

Designations are only as good as the body behind them

Student loan advice sits in a gap: servicers may explain programs but not recommend them, and general financial training barely touches federal repayment law. The Institute exists to define what competent student loan advice is, test for it, publish who has met the standard, and remove the designation from anyone who abuses it.

The people

Built by practitioners

JH
Jantz Hoffman, MBA — Founder & Executive DirectorA Registered Investment Advisor who has been advising on student loan strategy since 2010, before it was a recognized planning specialty. His analysis has been cited by PBS Nightly Business Report and The New York Times.
HJ
Heather Jarvis, J.D. — FacultyA nationally recognized student loan attorney who has testified before the House Education Committee and trained thousands of professionals on federal repayment and forgiveness law.
Optional: a Board of Standards member list belongs here if you want the standards-body framing to carry full weight. It isn't on the current site — send names and titles and I'll add the block.
What we maintain

Four functions

The standardEducation, examination, licensing and ethics requirements for the designation, revised as the rules change.
The examinationA proctored 100-question comprehensive final and an annual renewal exam.
The public registerA searchable directory of certificants with current status, so borrowers can verify before they trust.
EnforcementA published complaint process and a Disciplinary Committee that can revoke the designation.
The network

Certified professionals practice across the country

They appear in our public directory, which borrowers use to find qualified help — and which advisors consistently report as a source of new clients.

View the directory ↗

Meet the standard.

Enrollment for the 2026 edition is open — $1,495, including the new Transition section.

Enroll in the 2026 edition