Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Student Loans: What They're All About

By Kim Archer

For students who do not have the cash to directly pay for their college, student loans are commonly used to obtain the money they are needing. Student loans are one of the most common ways young adults use to pay for their schooling after high school.

A lot of parents do not have the money to directly pay for their children's post-secondary education. So a blend of scholarships, grants and student loans is used to pay for the costs of college or university. This usually involves not only tuition fees but the cost of textbooks, living expenses and other fees that come along with post-secondary education.

New students can use several types of student loans. The most frequently found is the federal loan. This financing option has smaller limits, and is usually limited to paying for tuition fees only. The federal student loans are tightly regulated by the government, and can be obtained through the university's financial aid packages. They typically have an extremely low interest rate. The student does not need to start paying back the amount owed until they have either finished school or are no longer going to school full time.

When a young adult goes to register for federal student loans, there are a few things that should be kept in mind. To start, there is usually a six month no payment period associated with these kinds of loans. Therefore, from after the point in time in which the student graduates or has cut back to half-time classes, they won't have to begin returning money to the lender for the set amount of time. Interest, however, starts accruing as soon as you finish university or have fallen to half-time attendance. All payments and funding owed show on the student's credit score.

There are also student loans that are given to guardians rather than to the student. Higher maximums are available with these loans. The interest rate may also be higher than the federal student loans that are more commonly issued. Interest also begins to accrue immediately. This is due to the fact that the adult is the one responsible for the loan, not the student. Choosing this route does not help build the student's credit score.

Finally, there are private alternative student loans. These go outside of the government regulated process, and are typically saved for people who require more than the amounts issued to typical students. Private loans have the highest available, and may also come with the highest interest rates in addition to this. Personal student loans are issued either to the adults or the students, and can be done through a variety of banks as well as private lenders. This option is usually utilized by people going to very high cost schools where federal cash is not enough. Students can use both private and federal student loans at the same time if necessary.

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