I have a student loan through the US Dept of Ed (Direct Loans). In June, I contacted DOE to consolidate my loan and to lock-in the lower interest rate before the July 1st deadline. The lady I spoke with at Direct Loans said I could do this over the phone with her since this was my only student loan. (I didn't have to sign anything--everything was done over the phone). I'm a littled worried now because included with my most recent Direct Loans billing statement was a notice informing me of an interest rate increase from 3.37% to 5.30%. I also checked my online account statement and it showed the same thing. Do you think that they are just running behind? I hope they didn't lose my application. Did anyone else with a student loan from Direct Loans who consolidated before July 1st receive a similar notice?

I would assume that the CSR simply started the paperwork for you. A consolidation loan cannot go thru without a physical signature or an
e-signature via your pin number. From my understanding all lenders are severly backlogged due to the volume of applications. It could be awhile before you get anything to sign. Maybe call and check the status.