Hi, I'm 22 and was about to start community college this fall but found out that I don't qualify for federal aid and would have to get personal loans in order to start. My school couldn't tell me why I didn't qualify but I think it might have had something to do with me not meeting a deadline for the paperwork. Anyways, I have been doing some research and have found that the average interest rate is 6.8% for student loans. I just moved to this state so I would be paying out of state tuition and this process was kind of rushed because I hadn't been planning on moving here. In fact I didn't know I was moving out of state until the end of May. If it wasn't so rushed I could have applied for other grants and financial aid. After finding out that I would have to get a private loan I am now considering waiting for an entire year to start school. I had been working since high school but when I moved (I moved with my dad) I quit my job and was planning on just focusing on school but now I'm thinking about trying to find a part time job for a year to save money for school. I can also start preparing for next year by researching different grants and start applying for them. My dad thinks I should just start school now and get the loans but the interest rates are getting me. The minimum loan I would need for the year would be $8000 and with a 6.8% interest rate I would be paying $3000 of interest on it if I paid it back in 10 years. What do you guys think I should do? Thanks for the help.
