What Can Federal Student Loan Money Be Used For?
So you know that you are going to be getting student loans. But, what can that money be used for, and what should you use it for? Before you decline everything other than your tuition, think carefully about the funds that you’ve got coming your way, and what you might consider doing with them.
First of all, you know that the majority of your student loans will be going to your tuition. This is kind of the point of student loans, so your major expense with them will be tuition. You also know that there might be changes that are made to this, depending on how many classes you are taking, how many credits you’ve got, and whether you are living on campus or not. All of these expenses will be included in your student loan, but they are not the only expenses that you should think about while you are taking out money for your loan.
Remember that federal student loans might also pay for room and board. If you live on campus, they’ll be paying for that through your tuition. But, if you don’t live on campus, you can use your federal student loan money to pay for your room and board off of campus. This includes money for rent, money for food, and for the general necessities of life. If you aren’t living on campus, you can still possibly use your federal student loan money to pay for your room and board - while private students loans are specifically designed to cover this type of school related expense.
Don’t forget about your books, either. With federal student loan money, you should be paying for your school books and for other supplies that you absolutely need for school. This is something that people often overlook, because it seems like it isn’t that important. However, books and school supplies can really add up. On a college campus, books are going to run you a considerable amount of money, so you want to be sure that you have factored this in to your overall school costs. You can use your federal student loan money to cover this as well. A very helpful read is the Department of Education’s 2007-2008 Guide to Federal student aid specifically entitled Funding Education Beyond High School
There are other costs that you might want to think about. Some colleges offer trips in the summer or during a school break which are trips for learning purposes. These trips can also be paid for with money from a Federal student loan, but also alternative student loans - so as you are taking them out, be sure that you are thinking about these things as well.