Federal Loan Programs

Due to escalating costs, borrowing money to cover college tuition has become commonplace. The Department of Education administers a couple of low-interest loan programs available to students and their parents. Stafford, PLUS, and Consolidated Loans can be acquired through two different programs - the Federal Direct Student Loan Program (FDSLP) and the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) - while Perkins Loans are obtained directly through your school. Direct loans, as the name implies, come directly from the federal government. Since not all schools participate in the FDSLP program, the alternative is to get an FFELP loan through a private lender. These two methods are very similar because they are both subsidized by the federal government. The major difference is simply the source of the funds.

We begin this section on what has become the biggest financial aid program in terms of funding and recipients: the Stafford Loan program.

Advantages & Disadvantages of Federal, Private Student Loans >>>