Student Loans Questions :-)

[rhinox99]

I figure there's a lot of students that read these boards so maybe a couple of you could help me with some questions.

1) How do I get an application and roughly when is it due? (planning to enroll Fall 01)
2) Is it worth it to get a loan if I have other options?
3) What determines how much or if I get a loan at all?

Thanks in advance, I hope that wasn't too many questions

 

[BiggieN]

you need to fill out a fafsa first, after you figure out which school you are going to, the financial aid office is where you will go for your money matters. the fafsa goes to the fed gov and they determine you and your family's expect contribution. which they then deduct out of the cost of your yearly expected expenditures for school, ie, room, board, tuition, books. that leftover amount is your need. then the finaid office determines what grants and scholarships they can give you. then the fed gov dtermines what grant, scholarships, and loans they can give you. hope that answers some of your questions.

 

[BiggieN]

you can get an application from any college finaid office or a local high school as well. the notion is that the earlier you turn in a fafsa the better because it gets processed earlier and you get the pickings of a bigger pool of money that is available to you. but typically you want to turn in you fafsa with enough time to pay off your tuition before your school charges you late fees, think 8 weeks before the start of the semester.

 

[rhinox99]

So if I apply now for the Fall 2001 semester it would be too early or can I still apply anyways? Should I just wait until June 2001 before filing? Sorry about the questions

 

[Regine]

Don't wait until June for god's sake. The sooner the better.
I think FAFSA forms come out late winter/early spring.

Check online, I think you can even fill them out there now.

 

[rhinox99]

By the way, How are the interest rates on student loans?

 

[BiggieN]

apply as soon as humanly possible. i made the mistake of pplying in august and i am still waiting for my tuition hold to be cleared. i can't register until the govt gives my school their money.

 

[sciencewhiz]

The first date that you can turn in a fafsa is January first. You should try to do it as soon as possible after that. It requires information from your parents (and your) federal tax returns, so you at least need to have those done.

You shouldn't be able to get most types of aid that is distributed through the school unless you fill out the fafsa.

As for your question about loans. There are two types of loans that you can recieve. The best are the need based type. Based on the information from the Fafsa, the government will figure out how much need based aid you need. These need based loans are in the students name and are at a very low interest rate (I think it is only slightly larger than prime) and you don't need to start paying them back until 6 months after you graduate.

The second type are considered non-need based. These loans are for the part of the amount of tutition that isn't covered by need-based aid. These loans can be in the name of either the students name or the parents name. They have a higher interst rate and you need to start paying immediately.

Hope this helps!