XML 44 R31.htm IDEA: XBRL DOCUMENT v3.2.0.727

Significant Accounting Policies Significant Accounting Policies Detail (Details)	Apr. 30, 2014 entity
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Number of publicly traded entities	2

X

- Definition

Spin-Off, Number of Legally Separate Publicly Traded Entities

+ References

No definition available.

+ Details

Name:	slm_SpinOffNumberofLegallySeparatePubliclyTradedEntities
Namespace Prefix:	slm_
Data Type:	xbrli:integerItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	instant

X

- References

No definition available.

+ Details

Name:	us-gaap_OrganizationConsolidationAndPresentationOfFinancialStatementsAbstract
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration