With the fall semester approaching at warp speed it’s now officially scramble time for those looking to tie up loose financial ends.
At this point you should have already completed your FAFSA and received your awards letter from the school outlining your financial aid options, which may include the following;
- Pell Grant
- Scholarship (Institution or Private)
- Federal Work-Study
- Federal Perkins Loan
- Federal Stafford Loan
- PLUS loan
The first two options, grants and scholarships, are obviously the best as they are free money which you don’t need to repaid. Next, if you were offered a work-study I hope you took it. A work study is the amount you are eligible to earn while working either on campus or at an approved off-campus job. This helps to further decrease your cost of tuition. After that comes the land of borrowed funds.
Perkins and Stafford loans are those listed in a students name which do not require repayment until after school. PLUS loans are available for either the parents of a dependent undergrad student or a student attending graduate school.
Unfortunately most students will not have all of the options listed above available to them, and if they do they are still short funds which is why private loans are generally needed to help bridge that gap. Private student loans have favorable interest rates at this time due to the stale economy. Both the LIBOR index and prime rate are at historic lows. In the summer of ‘06 the prime was at 8.25%, last summer it was down to 5%, and today it’s at a jaw dropping 3.25%!
To qualify for a private loan you will most likely need to be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident with a credit worthy co-signer who is also enrolled in school at least half time or greater as defined by the school (usually 6 credits). In a tough economy it’s good to know you still have options. Get the funds you need today!
ScholarshipPoints code: PRIVLOANS.
Comments on this entry are closed.