Higher education is expensive. Just about anyone who has applied for college lately can attest to that fact. The depressing news is that costs for all forms of higher education will continue to rise, and these costs will affect many individuals as they consider whether or not they can afford to go to school. These increasing costs makes finding the best student loan programs imperative for many would-be students as well as for those who are already enrolled.
A student loan is simply a form of financial aid to help pay for the costs of attending a college or university. This money must be repaid (with interest) which is why it is a loan and not a grant or a scholarship. Grants and scholarships usually do not have to be repaid.
There are three main types of student loans: Private student loans which are also known as alternative student loans; parent loans such as the PLUS student loan programs, and then there are the more traditional and well known student loans such as the Stafford and Perkins loans.
These are the primary types of student loans, but there is one other off-shoot type of loan that is commonly known as a student consolidation loan. This type...