Box 5 is scholarships and grants - NOT student loans. Box 5 has nothing to do with student loans at all. If the school put something in box 5 that other than what the 1098-T instructions say, then they need to issue a corrected 1098-T form. [NOTE the instructions explicitly *exclude* loan proceeds.]
https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1098et_18.pdf
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Box 5. Scholarships or Grants
Enter the total amount of any scholarships or grants that you administered and processed during the calendar year for the payment of the student's costs of attendance. Scholarships and grants generally include all payments received from third parties (excluding family members and loan proceeds). This includes payments received from governmental and private entities such as the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Defense, civic and religious organizations, and nonprofit entities. However, see Exceptions, earlier.
A scholarship or grant is administered and processed by you if you receive payment of an amount, whether by check, cash, electronic transfer, or other means, and such payment is designated as a grant or a scholarship by the payor, or the circumstances make it clear that the payment is a grant or scholarship. A Pell Grant is an example of a grant administered and processed by a college or university in all cases.
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**Disclaimer: This post is for discussion purposes only and is NOT tax advice. The author takes no responsibility for the accuracy of any information in this post.**
