Scholarship News

With the recent bank crashes, and the country’s bad economy, getting a student loan without a cosigner is going to be very difficult for most students. People with good credit are having trouble getting secured loans for things like vehicles and mortgages, and the lenders that typically provide private student loans without a cosigner have tightened their books as well. All hope is not lost though if you need a student loans that isn’t based on credit and doesn’t require a cosigner, as there are federal loans still available for students who have no credit history, and cannot come up with a cosigner.

While there are many different kinds of federal student loans, the most popular one is the Stafford loan. This is a loan that is offered to most students without interest until after graduation, and is not based on credit, and can therefore be made regardless of a student’s credit score, or ability to produce a cosigner. The proper way to apply for this loan is by going ahead and filling out a FAFSA, also know as free application for student aid. This is the government’s universal application for federal student aid, and by filling one out on time, a student will not only make him, or herself eligible for the Stafford federal loan, but they will also be making themselves eligible for the variety of other federal aid that is out there, including the Perkins loans, and the Pell Grant.

If you are looking to get a student loan privately, through a bank or other financial institution, it is going to be a lot more difficult when compared to the process you’ll have to go through for a federal student loan. First you can try your own bank or credit union if you have a good credit history and relationship with them. They may have specialized loans or even credit cards for students that you may be eligible for. More than likely however you are going to need a cosigner, or enough money to put down to make it a secured loan. If you are approved for a loan, you must be careful to read the fine print. Many of these loans will come with hidden fees and high interest rates.

Avoid all payday loans and cash advances regardless of your level of desperation, as the interest rates on these loans are very high, and the payment clauses aren’t always clear, and it is very easy to get trapped and pay sometimes triple to quadruple of what you originally borrowed in interest and fees. In the end your best option is to apply for a Stafford loan, and other grants or scholarships. If you can’t get enough money this way, try to find a relative that will cosign for you, or try to take out a small secured loan. You don’t want to fall into the popular trend of drowning in student loans after graduation. If you can’t afford to go school full-time, maybe go part-time until you can really afford it, and always be careful not take out debt you have no intention of paying back.