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The expensive price tags that education comes along with makes many get nightmares. The only option out for them is to take up student loan debts. You can take loans for various expenses like school fees, tuition fees, books, food, clothing and so on.

All these loans fall due for repayment once the student finishes school. They prove to be a huge burden at that point of time because the student is just fresh out of college. They are inexperienced and will not immediately land on well-paying jobs. When the task of repaying a huge loan is added to this burden, they are absolutely daunted.

The best solution to this problem is to consolidate the student loans. In this method, all student loans can be combined into one. Next, the interest rate should be fixed based on the financial situation. The term of the loan should be fixed at some 25 to 30 years. This will reduce the monthly installment by 50% or more. Thus, it will make it easy for you to meet your loan dues.

Also, another ease also appears in consolidation. You make only one payment to one person as against multiple payments to various lenders. This makes it easy for you to plan your finances and ensures that you do not forget to pay your dues, which may lead to default. When you decide to consolidate student loan debt, shop around and get quotes from various lenders. Compare these figures and you will get the loan best suited to your needs.

For students going abroad for higher studies, it is imperative to provide proof of sufficient funds (at least for first year expenses). Mostly all universities require sufficient proof of financial aid for meeting expenses such as application cost, tuition fees, accommodation and living, health insurance, transportation etc. Therefore unless financial aid can be arranged, studying abroad may not be possible at all.

If you are an Indian student planning to go abroad for education, you can consider the various sources for financial aid apart from your/parents' savings. A main options are as follows -

Bank Loans

Various banks such as Bank of India, Andhra Bank, Canara Bank, State Bank of India, Axis Bank, HSBC Bank, Indian Bank etc. provide education loans for studying abroad.

Depending upon the loan amount, certain percentage of security (such as NSE shares, house mortgage etc.) is required and interest is charged accordingly. Recently, most banks usually do not ask for security or collateral for a loan up to Rs. 4 lacs. The interest rates would generally not exceed the Prime Lending Rates (PLR). Certain banks also accept a third party guarantee instead of security. (But this is usually for loans between 4 lacs and 7.5 lacs).

To avail of bank loans, the candidate needs to fulfill certain conditions such as he must be an Indian resident, confirmation of admission and requirement of minimum annual income. The repayment of loan generally starts after six months of course completion or one-month of job (if employed immediately after course completion) and the entire amount has to be repaid in 5 to 7 years (from the first payment).

Trust Loans
Trust Loans are either free or charge a lower interest rate (2 to 4 %). The loan amount is variable and is usually up to Rs. 1.5 lacs. However, they generally have a deadline by which you must submit the loan application forms. Few of the well known trusts are- J.N. Tata Endowment (soft loans between Rs. 50,000 and Rs.1.5 lacs), Sahu Jain Trust, Mariwala Trust, K.C. Mahindra Education Trust and R.D. Sethna Scholarship Fund.

Fellowships

Fellowships are comparatively difficult to acquire due to stiff competition. The popular ones are- Inlaks Scholarships, Aga Khan Foundation, Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarships and AT & T Leadership Awards (only for U.S.).

Apart from these, you can also acquire financial assistance abroad by way of University Funding - Scholarship/Fellowships/Assistantships, U.S. Banks Student Loans (for US) and other sources.

One must remember that most universities provide financial aid to overseas students on merit and not on need. It is easier to avail monetary assistance for graduate programs than undergraduate courses. The aid amount varies for different universities and fields of specialization. Also note that it is easier to receive financial assistance from U.S. and U.K. universities than those in Australia, New Zealand or Canada.

In case of undergraduates, Aid forms from the institute as well as the Foreign Student's Financial Aid Form has to be submitted along with a bank statement. Forms may ask details about your personal and total (family) annual income, average living expenses, asset details etc.

Postgraduate students must mention about financial aid requirement in their application forms. Meritorious students receive financial assistance most commonly in the form of tuition waivers, scholarship or fellowship and assistantships (a cash stipend to take care of their expenses and in return they work for certain hours a week- either teaching or research based).

Please note that Indians usually are able to manage some funding after one or two semesters.

A U.S. Bank loan is among the best alternatives for MBA students. When applying for bank loans in US, a co-signer (US citizen or permanent resident) is required. However, several banks will waiver the co-signer requirement.The relevant information will be available on the university website.

Ensure that you go through the university information thoroughly and understand the terms and conditions properly.

Even with bad credit, student loans are still a real option for achieving the necessary funds required to attend college and university programs that run for two and four years. Bad credit student loans are also useful for attending specific trade school courses.

Student loans are assumed to be out of the question when there's a prior money management problem leading to bad credit. Credit scores are often used in determining funding levels for students. If you are going through a private loan agency or company, student loans can be a problem even with thin credit, which is not the same as bad credit.

Here's a way to handle problems of bad credit and student loans with a thin credit or no credit history. Search and study student loan options that are not based on credit scores. The truth is the federal government gives many different federal student loans that are either subsidized or unsubsidized that are not tied to your credit score for eligibility. Examples are Stafford Loans and Perkins Loans. Many also include scholarships, Pell grants and other private grants and bursary programs.

Stafford loans being one of the most common bad credit student loan can actually prevent a student from paying interest on the loan provided they qualify for a subsidized loan. Note that students will still pay the principal or total amount of the loan. The government will not charge any interest provided they follow the payment plan.

Subsidized loans are granted based on a student's resources and financial ability to pay back the loan. Students will have six months to earn a living after graduation before payment starts. If the student drops down to a part time program or even drops out of school the payment process remains and interest may be charged.

Another option for a bad credit student loans that can be subsidized and can be applied yearly are Perkins Loans. Under the Perkins loan program, the total amount borrowed per student for all education years cannot exceed $20, 000 in total.

With both Stafford and Perkins loans the amount of the loan is capped, and will not typically be more than $5000 per year, even in senior years.

Graduation has become a basic qualification that everyone should possess but the cost of graduate school is pretty high. The only way you can wade through this is via graduate student loans. The money you obtain via scholarships is only a part of the solution. There is still a major amount that you need to complete your graduation. You can avail federal loans and private loans for the same.

A federal loan is given by the government and carries no interest during the schooling period and for nearly six to nine months thereafter. This deferment period is to help the students get adequate time to get a good job and settle down in their new after- graduation life. There are also options to defer the same even further if the student decides to go in for higher qualification.

They can be availed by both the parents and students. While millions have benefited by this program, there are still several problems associated with the same:

1)The federal loans have a lot of paperwork associated with them. It is a real hassle to wade through all these papers and documents.

2)You really have to answer a lot of questions satisfactorily before you can even be considered for this program.

3)You have to prove your financial need when you apply for this program. If you cannot adequately prove it, you may either not receive the full benefit of this program or you may not get the loan at all.

A private loan is given by private lending companies. Their terms are not so favorable as federal loans. Still people require the same as not everyone qualifies for federal loans. Even those who qualify may not be able to get the entire amount of money they require from the state loans. Graduate student loans are very important in everyone life. So, take them carefully and use them wisely.