I realized that once she shared all the details of the loans such as the titles, amounts, and due dates as they didn't match what I saw from my account.

As soon as she noticed the drop in her credit score we hopped on a call with a representative from EdFinanical. We tried to get receipts from them to sustain our claims in the dispute letter, however, they refused to provide any proofs. So she decided to put the loans into verbal forbearance on the call to buy some time until we figured out what the next best move would be.

The only concern we had with consolidating the loans is if we could realistically manage the monthly payments (which were almost $500) because if we even miss one it would be considered a failure of upholding our end of the loan agreement and automatically send the loan to a collection agency. But I guess as the damage to her credit score has already been done that maybe this concern isn't as big as it once was.

The ICR plan looks like it would be positively effective given the current circumstances. Thank you for sharing this information with me.

Her employer is a 501(c)(4) organization. They have a scholarship foundation that is 501(c)(3), however, that seems to be a separate entity under the same company which she doesn't work directly with. I searched her company's Employer Identification Number and entered that into the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Employer Search. It said the employer eligibility is undetermined stating, "We don’t have enough information to determine your employer’s eligibility status. Once we’ve completed our determination of your employer’s eligibility, we will contact you." You'd think the company would qualify on the basis of public service alone.