While everybody would like to go to college debt-free, college student loans are unfortunately unavoidable in today’s educational world. While college student loan debt is a common occurrence of attending college, it does not have to be overwhelming. You can make the process of taking out a college student loan to pay for school less painful by educating yourself about the different types of college student loans available.

College student loans can be generally broken into the categories of federal and private college student loans. Private student loans are loans college students borrow from lending agencies, with credit requirements, interest rates and repayment schedules set by the financial institution, rather than by the Department of Education. Federal college student loans, on the other hand, are available for both college students and there parents, and have uniform interest rates and requirements. The most common federal student loans are Stafford Loans, Perkins Loans, and PLUS Loans.

Federal loans for college student borrowers are the most widely available form of federal student financial aid assistance, and are what many people first think of when they hear the term student loans. This financial aid is available in two varieties: subsidized and unsubsidized federal college student loans.

Perkins College Student Loans are a type of subsidized college student loan, with a fixed interest rate of 5% that will not start accruing until repayment starts, generally 9 months after graduation. Similarly, subsidized Stafford College Student Loans, often referred to as the good kind of Stafford Student Loan, do not accrue interest while borrowers are enrolled in school. Students begin paying interest on subsidized Stafford College Student Loans (currently fixed at 6.0%) 6 months after graduation, when they begin repaying the student loans.

Federal unsubsidized Stafford Student Loans, on the other hand, will charge borrowers interest while they are in school, with the rate currently fixed at 6.8%. While college students must have unmet financial aid need in order to be awarded a subsidized Stafford Student Loan or a Perkins Student Loan, unsubsidized Stafford Loans can be awarded as long as the student’s total financial aid award does not exceed their total cost of attendance.

There are limits on how much a college student can borrow each year in federal financial aid loans, however there is no cap on Federal PLUS Loans. PLUS Loans are generally taken out by parents and typically come with much stricter borrowing requirements than Stafford College Student Loans and Perkins College Student Loans, which cannot be denied to a college student based on credit or employment status. A PLUS Loan application does require a credit check, but being approved has become easier, and additional unsubsidized Stafford College Student Loans are available to a college student borrower if their parents’ PLUS Loan application has been denied.

You apply for federal college student loan by completing the FAFSA on the Web (the Free Application for Federal College Student Aid); an application also required for Federal Pell Grants and any other state and federal grant programs. While Stafford College Student Loans can be awarded at any time to any college student who meets basic eligibility requirements, Perkins College Student Loans are awarded by the school based on financial aid need and when the student applied for financial aid assistance.