There are several types of Student Loans available to college students. Federally funded loans are administered through the US Department of Education's Federal Student Aid programs and are usually the easiest to obtain. They are also tax deductible, and usually lower in interest as well.

Private student loans are administered by standard lending institutions, and will most often charge higher interest rates than the Federal loans. Another disadvantage of private loans is that they are not tax deductible. Private and federal loans can be combined to fund your education. but they cannot be combined when it is time to pay them off. There are strict rules against this, so be sure to consolidate the Federal loans first, then the private ones separately. Next Student is one firm which can process both Federal and private student loans. Citibank and Sally Mae Signature Student Loans are well-known administrators of private student loans.

Once you've graduated, you must begin repaying your student loans. You'll usually have a grace period, so this is the time to explore Loan Consolidation. There are many ways to reduce your debt load, the most common being to consolidate your student loans.