College students may be paying more interest on their student loans than they really should, according to the Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation (TGSLC).
The organization releases information to students on how they can reduce their interest amounts and on how to keep from taking out large loans.
The corporation also provides information to students who have large multiple loans on how they can benefit from the Federal Student Consolidation Loan program. This program helps students lower their interest rates so that they can pay off their loans sooner than they had previously planned.
The TGSLC also provides information to students on how they can avoid taking out a large number of loans by suggesting that students look for scholarships and pay attention to deadlines so they can apply for as many as they are eligible to receive.
Students should also consider joining service organizations and other groups to increase scholarship opportunities, the corporation advises.
Research by other organizations - stemming from information from the TGSLC - has shown that students do not fully realize the full extent of taking out student loans.
Carole Anderson of the Office of Institutional Research at The University of Memphis said statistics show the number of students in loan debt has tripled in the last 10 years.
Students often underestimate their loans, she said. A survey done by OIR showed 45 percent of students underestimated their loans on average by $6,700. The average of actual student debt for non-white students was slightly over $16,000. For whites, the average loan indebtedness was nearly $13,000.
However, 31 percent of students surveyed at The U of M reported they took out more in loans than they actually needed for educational expenses.
Anderson based this on results from TGSLC that showing loan indebtedness had increased from $4,312 per student in 1989 to $12,221 per student in 1999.
Students said they are more worried about finishing school and getting degrees than they are about paying off loans. Nearly 74 percent of students surveyed by OIR said they would worry about paying off loans once they graduated.
Even though loan debt has increased, nearly 90 percent of students at The U of M said their education and personal growth outweigh the cost of attending college.
