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The aim is to ensure that students can afford to go to college and will be able to repay their loans once they graduate.

"I believe, as you believe, that higher education is one of the best investments that anyone can make in their future," Obama told students at Georgia Tech in Atlanta. "And it's one of best investments you can make in your country's future."

The president signed a memorandum directing the Department of Education to develop a new system for students to file a complaint when there's a problem with their loans.

This will give students "a way to ask questions about their loans, file a complaint, cut through bureaucracy and get faster response," said Obama.

The DOE and the contractors it uses to service billions of dollars in federal student loans will also be held to higher standards.

They will be required to do more to alert borrowers when they fall behind on a payment or when the contractor managing the loan changes.

Related: Private colleges with the biggest payoff

In addition, payments must be put towards loans with highest interest rates first, so that more expensive loans are paid off faster, unless a borrower says otherwise.

"The businesses that service your loans will be clear about what your options are," said Obama.

The administration will ensure that debt collectors do not charge student borrowers excessive fees and help them get back on track when a loan is past due. It will also clarify how student debt is treated in bankruptcy court and will work with the Treasury Department to help students with income-based repayment plans.

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Obama offers help for student borrowers

President Obama urged student borrowers Tuesday to stand up for their rights, and announced a medley of modest steps to bring some order to a notoriously chaotic system.

Obama unveiled his "student aid bill of rights" before a gymnasium packed with nearly 10,000 students at Georgia Tech in Atlanta, where he said the nation must mobilize to bring about deeper changes to student loans. Not only should every American be able to afford college, Obama said, they also should be able to afford the loan payments that kick in once they graduate.

"We're trying to tackle this problem from every angle," Obama said. "We want to make this experience more affordable, because you're not just investing in yourselves, you're investing in your nation."

In the Oval Office ahead of his visit to Atlanta, Obama signed a presidential memorandum with policy tweaks that don't require new legislation from Congress. The memo targets third parties like Navient formerly Sallie Mae that contract with the government to collect on loans. Those companies will be required to better inform borrowers about repayment options and notify them when they are delinquent, the White House said.

Obama also called for a single website where students can see all their federal loans in one place a major problem for students with multiple loans or debt that's been sold from lender to lender. He also called for a website where borrowers can file complaints.

The presidential steps aim to crack down on a student loan system known for being complex and confusing to navigate. In recent years, lawsuits and critical government reports have cast a light on industry abuses and the difficulties facing borrowers.

A Consumer Financial Protection Bureau study last year found that borrowers were getting little help when they ran into trouble and had few affordable repayment options. And in May, Sallie Mae reached a $60-million settlement with the Justice Department to resolve allegations it charged military members excessive interest rates and improperly sought default judgments.

Obama also floated the possibility of proposing legal changes to how student loans are affected by bankruptcy. Currently, student loans cannot typically be discharged even in bankruptcy. His memo also requires servicers to apply early payments to loans with the highest interest rates, helping students pay off debt faster.

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Obama calls for more rights for struggling student borrowers

President Obama's hope of closing out his second term with legacy-shaping achievements on the world stage has invited the same bitter congressional opposition that has long thwarted his domestic agenda, producing a new power struggle that challenges the traditional limits of partisan battles in Washington.

The disclosure this week that Republican senators sent a letter to Iran about its nuclear program is the latest example of how Obama's GOP critics have ignored the traditional deference to a commander in chief on foreign policy, while also reframing an issue of bipartisan concern in more starkly political terms.

The letter was released days after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned at a rare joint meeting of Congress of the consequences of what he considered a "bad deal" with Iran.

Another point of contention is whether Congress should have a voice in approving any deal with Iran. Senate Republican leaders moved last week to start debate on bipartisan legislation subjecting any agreement to ratification by lawmakers, prompting Democrats to insist that the proposal be put on hold while talks proceed.

White House officials characterize the Republican strategy as reckless and partisan, designed to derail a foreign policy crafted by the Democratic president. They argue that the new level of attack on the president's policy breaks with a decades-long practice of the U.S. speaking with one voice the administration's on foreign policy.

"This letter sends a highly misleading signal to friend and foe alike that that our commander in chief cannot deliver on America's commitments, a message that is as false as it is dangerous," Vice President Joe Biden said in an unusual and lengthy statement, adding that he couldn't recall senators writing to advise another country during his more than three decades in the Senate.

Republicans say their reaction is guided more by the president's lack of respect for Congress' constitutional prerogative to advise and consent in foreign affairs.

"I will take blame for maybe Republicans being pretty aggressive," said Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.). "But this president, unlike any other president I've ever known, is confrontational, noncommunicative, even to Democratic members of Congress. So you get a poisoned environment, almost the likes of which I've never seen."

Party leaders view Obama, not Republicans, as controverting the post-World War II bipartisan tradition on foreign policy, one Republican aide said.

Public disputes between presidents and members of Congress over foreign policy are not new. Lawmakers have broadcast their contrary viewpoints repeatedly over the last century, on issues that include the formations of the League of Nations and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization alliance, and the Vietnam War and U.S. policy in Central America.

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Obama-GOP rift over Iran talks redefines partisan battles

The aim is to ensure that students can afford to go to college and will be able to repay their loans once they graduate.

"I believe, as you believe, that higher education is one of the best investments that anyone can make in their future," Obama told students at Georgia Tech in Atlanta. "And it's one of best investments you can make in your country's future."

The president signed a memorandum directing the Department of Education to develop a new system for students to file a complaint when there's a problem with their loans.

This will give students "a way to ask questions about their loans, file a complaint, cut through bureaucracy and get faster response," said Obama.

The DOE and the contractors it uses to service billions of dollars in federal student loans will also be held to higher standards.

They will be required to do more to alert borrowers when they fall behind on a payment or when the contractor managing the loan changes.

Related: Private colleges with the biggest payoff

In addition, payments must be put towards loans with highest interest rates first, so that more expensive loans are paid off faster, unless a borrower says otherwise.

"The businesses that service your loans will be clear about what your options are," said Obama.

The administration will ensure that debt collectors do not charge student borrowers excessive fees and help them get back on track when a loan is past due. It will also clarify how student debt is treated in bankruptcy court and will work with the Treasury Department to help students with income-based repayment plans.

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Obama to offer help for student borrowers

President Obama Selma Speech 2015 on 50th Bloody Sunday at Edmond Pettus Bridge, Alabama
President Obamas Powerful Selma Speech on Race and Civil Rights: President Obama Delivers His Most Profound Speech Ever At Selma Anniversary. Barack Obama address on civil rights in Selma,.

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President Obama Selma Speech 2015 on 50th Bloody Sunday at Edmond Pettus Bridge, Alabama - Video