Ignorant question about student loans?

[Anonymous]

Can a kid whose parents don’t qualify for need based aid take out student loans in their name? If so, how.
I thought colleges expected parents who didn’t qualify for aid to pay the entire cost themselves.
What if a parent is unwilling to foot the entire bill? How does a kid go about securing their own loans?

[Anonymous]

You'd have to be an independent student, but that's not very likely:

https://scholarships360.org/financial-aid/how-to-become-an-independent-student-if-under-24/

[Anonymous]

Yes of course. Parents have to cosign. If a parents won't cosign then a kid can be SOL. My ex had to drop out of college and go to community college because he couldn't get student loans cosigned. His parents were divorced and both argued nonstop and refused to cosign- his dad made 300k+ even back then.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can a kid whose parents don’t qualify for need based aid take out student loans in their name? If so, how.
I thought colleges expected parents who didn’t qualify for aid to pay the entire cost themselves.
What if a parent is unwilling to foot the entire bill? How does a kid go about securing their own loans?

community college or military if they really want to go to college.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can a kid whose parents don’t qualify for need based aid take out student loans in their name? If so, how.
I thought colleges expected parents who didn’t qualify for aid to pay the entire cost themselves.
What if a parent is unwilling to foot the entire bill? How does a kid go about securing their own loans?

This about this OP. Why would anyone lend money to a kid who has nothing without someone cosigning it?

There a number of ways to pay for college - military, CC, parents pay, merit aid, parents cosign. If you are not willing to accept any of these choices, your kid is screwed.

[Anonymous]

A student can borrow up to about $27,000 total through the federally guaranteed student loan program without anyone co-signing. Not chump change but certainly not enough to get you through 4 years of college.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes of course. Parents have to cosign. If a parents won't cosign then a kid can be SOL. My ex had to drop out of college and go to community college because he couldn't get student loans cosigned. His parents were divorced and both argued nonstop and refused to cosign- his dad made 300k+ even back then.

If a parent has to co-sign then what’s the point? What’s the benefit of a kid taking a loan in their name with a parent co-signer other than the parents taking out the loan themselves?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You'd have to be an independent student, but that's not very likely:

https://scholarships360.org/financial-aid/how-to-become-an-independent-student-if-under-24/

You don’t have to be an independent student. Any dependent student can take out an unsubsidized direct federal student loan if their parent co-signs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can a kid whose parents don’t qualify for need based aid take out student loans in their name? If so, how.
I thought colleges expected parents who didn’t qualify for aid to pay the entire cost themselves.
What if a parent is unwilling to foot the entire bill? How does a kid go about securing their own loans?

This about this OP. Why would anyone lend money to a kid who has nothing without someone cosigning it?

There a number of ways to pay for college - military, CC, parents pay, merit aid, parents cosign. If you are not willing to accept any of these choices, your kid is screwed.

But then why are they student loans and not parent loans? When a parent is trying to figure out how to borrow for college what are the factors for determining whether they would be better off acting as a co-signer for their kids loan or just taking the loan out directly? Either way the parents are liable so what are the pros/cons for each type of loan?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A student can borrow up to about $27,000 total through the federally guaranteed student loan program without anyone co-signing. Not chump change but certainly not enough to get you through 4 years of college.

Are you sure? I thought parents had to co-sign for this?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A student can borrow up to about $27,000 total through the federally guaranteed student loan program without anyone co-signing. Not chump change but certainly not enough to get you through 4 years of college.

Are you sure? I thought parents had to co-sign for this?

Up to 27k is the total over all four years. That is the limit that the student can borrow by themselves, without a cosigner. It's only 5-7k per year.

[Anonymous]

My parents never co-signed for my loans, which exceeded $27K. That was 30 years ago, so maybe it's changed. In law school I was able to get unsubsidized loans without their signature.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My parents never co-signed for my loans, which exceeded $27K. That was 30 years ago, so maybe it's changed. In law school I was able to get unsubsidized loans without their signature.

Grad school loans are different limits.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My parents never co-signed for my loans, which exceeded $27K. That was 30 years ago, so maybe it's changed. In law school I was able to get unsubsidized loans without their signature.

Undergrad has very different rules. (I too borrowed for law school without a cosigner, though I was 25, plus the lender was the law school itself.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can a kid whose parents don’t qualify for need based aid take out student loans in their name? If so, how.
I thought colleges expected parents who didn’t qualify for aid to pay the entire cost themselves.
What if a parent is unwilling to foot the entire bill? How does a kid go about securing their own loans?

You (student) can take out $27k spread over 4 years without a co-signer. Beyond that you need a co-signer.