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Search, Compare, and Apply for Private Student Loans
By
Will Geiger
Will Geiger is the co-founder of Scholarships360 and has a decade of experience in college admissions and financial aid. He is a former Senior Assistant Director of Admissions at Kenyon College where he personally reviewed 10,000 admissions applications and essays. Will also managed the Kenyon College merit scholarship program and served on the financial aid appeals committee. He has also worked as an Associate Director of College Counseling at a high school in New Haven, Connecticut. Will earned his master’s in education from the University of Pennsylvania and received his undergraduate degree in history from Wake Forest University.
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Maria Geiger is Director of Scholarship Services at Scholarships360. She is a former online educational technology instructor and adjunct writing instructor. In addition to education reform, Maria’s interests include viewpoint diversity, blended/flipped learning, digital communication, and integrating media/web tools into the curriculum to better facilitate student engagement. Maria earned both a B.A. and an M.A. in English Literature from Monmouth University, an M. Ed. in Education from Monmouth University, and a Virtual Online Teaching Certificate (VOLT) from the University of Pennsylvania.
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After you exhaust federal student loans, including unsubsidized and subsidized Direct Loans, your next best financing option is private student loans. The best way to begin your private student loan search is through a private student loan marketplace.
Private Student Loan Marketplaces allow students and parents to compare different student loan interest rates and terms. This is the most time effective way to find the best student loans for you.
Related: Scholarships360’s free scholarship search tool
Rundown of the top student loan marketplaces
Credible
Credible is a private student loan marketplace that allows students and parents to compare multiple lenders with a single form (this is important, because other marketplaces will require you to complete applications for each potential lender). Students can use Credible to compare both undergraduate and graduate student loans. Credible also works with a wide variety of specific lenders, including:
- Brazos
- Citizens Bank
- EdvestinU
- Elfi
- InvestEd
- LendKey
- MEFA
- Risla
SimpleTuition
SimpeTuition by Lending Tree offers students a number of lenders to compare. Similar to PrivateStudentLoans.com, SimpleTuition asks students to begin their student loan search with the college or university that they will be attending. Top SimpleTuition lenders are:
- Brazos
- Ernest
- Citizens Bank
- EdvestinU
- Elfi
- InvestEd
- LendKey
- MEFA
- Risla
After comparing various student loan rates and shopping around, students can choose the private student loans with the most favorable rate, repayment terms, and loan term.
How to use private student loan marketplaces:
Student loan marketplaces will allow you to search, compare, and apply for student loans in a very efficient manner. However, before you finalize your student loans, you should make sure that you have borrowed all of the possible federal student loans available to you.
When you take out private loans, you should take out the minimum amount of loans that you will need to pay for school. In order to get the most competitive student loan rate, it is ideal to have a co-signer (such as a parent) who possesses a high credit rating.
Related: How much student loan debt is too much?
Consider income-share agreements
In recent years, the income-share agreement (ISA) has become an increasingly popular alternative to traditional student loans. While it is not available in every field, many students have begun taking advantage of these agreements, which take the pressure off of finding a job immediately after you graduate.
Under an ISA, your lender will provide funds under the agreement that you pay them back a certain percentage of your tuition for a specified number of years after graduation.
If students do not land a lucrative job after graduation, income-share agreements are much more accommodating than traditional loans. The lower your salary is, the less you’ll have to pay back, and if you are not earning above a certain threshold, you won’t have to pay anything back at all.
While ISAs are currently limited in their availability, many STEM students and medical students can take advantage of them. Check with your individual school to see if they offer any options.
Checklist for using student loan marketplaces
- Use student loan marketplaces to compare different loan opportunities side-by-side
- Credible allows you to fill out a one-size-fits-all form and see the offers you can receive from any of their providers
- You can use student loan marketplaces to compare interest rates, amounts, and which providers will accept you
- Before you make any decisions, you should make sure to educate yourself thoroughly on what each term and condition means
- You’ll want to decide between variable and fixed interest rates, and learn about all other terms that might apply
Don’t miss: The ultimate guide to federal and private student loans