One of the biggest advantages of student loans is that interest does not begin to accumulate until the student completes half way through their schooling or actually finishes school.

As your children grow, the cost of their education becomes one of your biggest questions. No matter how smart you think your kids are they may not be able to get a scholarship. You might have to consider student loans to finance your children's college education.

There are various types of student loans from privately funded student loans to government funded student loans. So what is the student to do? Just go to their college of choice and ask for a generic loan form, sign it blindly and carrying on with his or her studies? Unfortunately, this appears to be the most common mistake made on the student's part.

Before accepting any loans, the student should do a fair amount of research work on the terms and conditions of the loans they are about to sign, even if they could only qualify for bad credit student loans.

The first step is to have a repayment plan for any student loans that are taken out, not forgetting or ignoring the interest rates that will be applied to them. Blindly signing a loan agreement with interest rates as high as 15% will dramatically cut into your pockets. Instead, search for college student loans offering interest rates from 5% to 8%, since this will really make a difference.

There are many student loans available, but one of the best that also provides low rates is the Perkins Loans with rates of interest set by the federal government and the bar is currently at 5%. Usually a college will not tell you about the existence of this type loan and will instead insist that you to take loan directly from the college, where interest rates will usually be overwhelming, with your payments starting at the moment you sign the application form, plus those payments being made to the college trust.

Another popular loan is the Stafford loan in which the interest is subject to being accrued after a period of 6 months once you graduate. While you are in school, the government pays the interest on your behalf, so you don't have to eventually seek out possible student loan refinance programs. The loans that traditionally have the best interest rates are the Perkins Loans though. These are federal student loan programs with rates that are set by the federal government and are currently at around 5%. They are available through your college, but usually the college will not mention them unless you specifically ask about them. This should be the first loan you apply for, before going through the more traditional sources.

The best way to know what's right for you is to weigh the pros and cons of each student loan and get the one that best meets your particular needs so you'll avoid being forced to consolidate student loan actions before you even get your first job. So, most of all, do not forget that it is a LOAN, its not free money! You HAVE to eventually pay it back.