Why Consolidate Your Student Loans?

It’s January of your senior year and time to start thinking

about all those loans you took to help pay for college.

Between Stafford Loans, Perkins Loans and all the rest,

between subsidized and unsubsidized you begin to realize

that a year from now you will have run out of grace period

and have to start paying back all those loans. You’re going

to be paying back eight different loans at eight different

interest rates and eight terms. It’s time to start thinking

about a student consolidation loan.

A student consolidation loan could be worth it just to

simplify your repayment schedules. But more importantly, if

you can get a loan with a lower interest rate than you are

paying on your school loans, then you can save yourself

some money. If the consolidation loan extends the length of

your student loan payback term, then it may have the added

benefit of lowering the monthly payment now (when you

aren’t making a large salary). You can always increase your

payments as your salary grows.

How to Consolidate Your Student Loans

After deciding to consolidate your student loans, the next

step is to figure out how to go about it. You may have

several choices of lenders, and what you choose could affect

the amount you ultimately pay. Choose carefully.

The Department of Education provides the Federal Direct

Consolidation Loans Program. Numerous states have student

consolidation loans, some for your federal loans and others

for your state loans. Then there are private lenders offering

consolidation loans as well. You might first check with your

current loan providers to see what they have to offer. They

may have a better deal for current customers.

Federal Direct Consolidation Loans

Federal Direct Consolidation Loans are run by the US

Department of Education and provide a means to combine

multiple Federal loans into one.

You can apply online for the Federal Direct Program by

visiting the website at https://loanconsolidation.ed.gov/appentry/appindex.html.

State Student Consolidation Loans

Several states offer consolidation loans as part of their

education loan programs. Check with your state to see if they

have a loan consolidation program.

Private Student Consolidation Loans

Private loans can not be consolidated under the Federal Direct

Plan. If you can’t qualify for the federal and state student

loan consolidation programs because you have private loans,

there are many lenders who make private consolidation loans

available to students. Check with your own lenders first to

see if they have a consolidation program.