Some student loan companies have advisory boards composed of financial aid officials. According to lenders, the boards provide valuable insight into the loan needs of students and advice on how to improve the servicing of loans. Higher Ed Watch's recent investigation found that some advisory board members may have been illegally compensated for their participation. In addition, many of the student lenders are on the preferred lender lists at the schools of their advisory board members, raising conflict of interest questions.

According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, at least nine student loan companies have advisory boards:

1. Citibank
2. Citizens Financial Group
3. EdFinancial
4. JPMorgan Chase
5. NorthStar
6. Sallie Mae
7. Student Loan Xpress
8. Wachovia
9. Wells Fargo

The following financial aid administrators were members of Student Loan Xpress' advisory board, before the loan scandal was uncovered: 

• Lawrence Burt, University of Texas-Austin
  
  
• Walter Cathie, Widener University
  
  
• David Charlow, Columbia University
  
  
• Eileen Doyle, The New School
  
  
• Ellen Frishberg, Johns Hopkins University
  
  
• Jane Hojan-Clark, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
  
  
• Dana Kelly, High Point University
  
  
• Tim Lehman, Capella University
  
  
• David J. Pollock, Georgetown University School of Medicine
  
  
• Susan Swisher, Saint Xavier University
  
  
• Cathy Thomas, University of Southern California

There were two additional board members from Devry University and Universidad Interamericana whom we were not able to identify.