I can’t believe it’s already that time of year, but current high school seniors who are going to college next year are starting to get their financial aid award letters. So the question over at Your Money is about federal student loans- if both subsidized and unsubsidized are offered, do you have to take both? The answer is NO. Subsidized loans are a great deal- no interest while you’re at least half time in school and for a 6 month grace period after you graduate. Fur unsub loans, interest accrues and capitalizes. If you can afford it, subsidized loans only.
Posts Tagged ‘student loans’
Blog Feature: Money for College Project
24
Dec
Today’s featured blog is Money for College Project, a personal finance blog that tries to focus on ways to pay for school without getting student loans- something I am highly supportive of, though I don’t find student loans to be the boogeyman that some do.
This week the question was specifically asked: Is a College Degree Worth Taking Out a Student Loan?
It is not a rhetorical question. It is a question the Occupy folks are asking, though after the fact. It’s a question that we as a society need to be answering. Should an education require mortgaging your future?
Citibank is screwing up my student loan payments, AGAIN
06
Jun
Citibank has once again screwed up payments on my federal student loans. This makes the third time this year. It’s getting beyond frustrating. For some reason, their online system and their auto-debit system do not communicate with each other. This bugs me because every other creditor I deal with is able to link the two.
Right now, if I check my payment history online, it doesn’t show any of my auto-payments. And last month, because I made an extra payment online (even though I made it following all their rules) it decided not to take my full auto-payment this month.
Colleges and Credit Cards
20
May
I remember being shocked last year, when I saw a college freshman’s student ID card was also a credit card- a regular Visa card that could be used anywhere, not just on campus. So I wasn’t too surprised by this thread about student loan money being given out on a credit card.
Colleges, especially state colleges, keep having their budgets cut, so they’re looking for money from everywhere, including credit card companies.
Do I think this is good for teenagers getting their first taste of freedom, not really, but the solution isn’t yelling at colleges, its teaching teenagers about credit.
Student Loan Debt
15
Apr
Student loan debt has been in the news again. The reality of college is changing. More and more employers expect a college degree, even for entry level jobs, and colleges are becoming more and more expensive. It is becoming less and less possible for students to pay their own way through school working part time and getting federal aid. It creates this space for private lenders to mortgage the future of the next generation.
And this wouldn’t be YM if there weren’t at least a couple mentions that loans are okay for Pharmacy school, but not for an English degree.
Student Loan Frustration
05
Jan
Citibank owns my graduate student loans. In December, I called to complain that my auto-payment had been cancelled. They said it was because I had already made a payment that billing cycle. Well, I made a payment this billing cycle, so imagine my surprise when an auto-payment was taken from my account this morning. It’s what I wanted, but not what they told me, and there was no communication letting me know the terms of their auto-pay had changed. And worse, the amount wasn’t for my new minimum payment, my old minimum payment, or even the difference between the two.