When looking at starting your education in a college or university, one of the first things that comes to mind is the debt that you are about to accumulate. The great part for you as a student is that the government reconigizes that you need all the help you can get and can offer you a Federal Student Loan. If you must go into debt, this is the best kind to be in.
Because the government knows what your needs are and realizes that colleges and universities are raising tuition prices almost every semester, they also understand your needs. We are all encouraged to further our education and get the most out of it that we can, but at the same time it can be so expensive that for many people it is not even an option.
Though the best advice to give would be to try not to get any debt. Summers are still a good time to work hard and earn money to be spent during the school year. If you can really budget your money you may be able to earn summer money to provide during your school year. But if that really isn´t an option for you, then student loans may just be your best bet.
If you feel like you need to get some sort of loan, the best kind out there are those federal student loans. These are designed for you and they even give you a 6 month period after graduating to find that good, new job that will help you to pay for payments. The interest is lower then any other type of loan that you are going to find and they are a great way to build good credit.
If you need a bad credit private school loan, have a look at this article.
I was discussing student loans with a friend the other day when they mentioned a guaranteed student loan. We didn’t have time to get into it at the time, but I was intrigued – who was guaranteeing what?
An hour or 2 of research later, and it appears that Guaranteed student loan is really just another term for a subsidized Stafford loan – the kind we talk about in this article about Federal Student Loan Payback. The short explanation is this: Subsidized Stafford loans are backed with money from approved private institutions, and as long as you are in school, the Government pays that institution interest on your loan amount as well as the fees associated with managing a loan. Sounds like a good deal to me.
If you’ve been looking into financial aid for college, one ominous sounding acronym almost certainly popped up: EFC. EFC stands for expected family contribution, and plays an important role in determining how much financial aid you are likely to get.
Right off the bat, students often assume that the EFC is either how much money you’ll get from the government, or how much you’re going to have to pay for college. These are both wrong. The Expected Family Contribution represents the amount that your family is expected to contribute to your education. It is by no means a guarantee, but rather a very rough estimate used to help the Government assess how much aid you are in need of.
FAFSA, short for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, is the application form for federal studnt grants, work study aid, and loans. In some msituations, the application can be used to apply for private aid as well. In short, its a big deal, and everyone looking to receive some form of financial aid for college will likely need to fill one out.
Because of its popularity, there are many methods available for filling out the FAFSA.
An option common with graduating high school seniors is the Electronic Data Exchange for schools. High schools often provide a method for students to complete and enter their FAFSA forms to ensure they are done correctly, and in a timely manner.
You can also complete a FAFSA application on the web – simply go to http://www.fafsa.ed.gov, and follow the instructions there. If you need to renew your FAFSA application, this is where you do it.
You can complete it on paper and mail it in, ensuring that even if you dont have an internet connection or a school which participates in the Electronic Data exchange, you can still apply.
The FAFSA is also available in Spanish.
There are a few different deadlines to keep in mind when filling out a FAFSA form: First, there are School aid deadlines – these are the deadlines a school imposes for students requesting aid from them. Second, there are Federal student aid deadlines. These can be viewed by clicking here. Last, there are State student aid deadlines. These vary by state, and are often earlier than the Federal deadlines. To be safe, always try to submit your FAFSA application by early January.
Federal Student Loans | admin, 12 Feb 09 | 
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