Government Student Loan

The foundation of a good society is its educated people but like everything else education too comes with a heavy price tag these days. There has been a hike of nearly 40% in the education fee in the past five years. A degree might cost around $40,000, an amount not affordable by everyone. What’s the solution then? Students Loans. Sounds familiar but not many are taking the benefits it has to offer as it is looked upon as something very complicated, but that’s entirely true. Just get the basics right the rest will follow.
Student loans are a way to realize your dream of getting into the college of your choice and the options available are plenty. There are various government programs to aid students to pay for their education. The US Department of Education offers three different types of programs in the student loan category namely, Stafford and Federal Perkins loans for students and PLUS loans for the parents of the students.
Stafford Loan is divided into two categories: Subsidized and Unsubsidized. Under subsidized loans the government takes care of the interest only the principle amount has to be paid by the student. This is suitable for families coming under the low-income group. With unsubsidized loans the student has to pay both the interest and the principle amount but has the option of deferring the payment till a certain period of time.
Federal Perkins loan is for those with special financial needs. The amount of the loan is fixed up to $40,000 a year with low-interest. It is a campus-based loan.
PLUS loan is for parents of the students to pay for their undergraduate dependent children. A good credit history is the eligibility criteria for it and one gets to borrow money at a favorable rate of interest. It will cover only the cost of attending the college sans other financial needs.
The eligibility criteria for Federal student loan is primarily based on the financial needs of the student for the purpose of education but other factors count too. Being eligible for the program, to be working towards getting a degree or certificate, is a US citizen or eligible non-citizen, a valid social security number and other factors like these will be taken into consideration. The financial aid administrator officer at the college or the career school one plans to take will determine the eligibility.
To apply for a program the first step is to fill up the Free Application of Federal Student Aid form or FAFSA as commonly known. After receiving the form the Department of Education will send back a Student Aid Report based on the information provided in the form. The government on the basis of SAR will decide what program is one eligible for. Universities and colleges often use SAR to qualify students for need- based grants and scholarships, so it becomes important to fill FAFSA for everyone aspiring to get a college degree.
Taking a student loan is an important decision and has to be taken wisely. All the aspects of a program should be studied in detail to avoid being a graduate in debt. The right program not only makes the realization of your educational but your career goals easy and hassle- free.
RACHNA SINGH is a voice& accent cum softskills trainer by profession.She started writing as a hobby, her areas of interest include computers, life, fashion, travel and relationships.She now works as a freelance writer too with clients in various industries and does content writing for websites and articles for magazines.
rachna.ss@gmail.com
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