These are provided by private lenders as opposed to federal student loans being back by the government. The rates and terms vary from lender to lender so it’s best to talk to a couple of places to try to get an idea of what the best offer is for you.

If you have limited income and/or credit history you would probably need to find a co-signor, but it won’t hurt to start on your own and see if you can qualify without one.

There are a couple I typically recommend, Chase Bank has a dedicated private student loan division, you can reach them online through http://www.usadegrees.com/chase/ also Student Loan Advisors at http://www.StudentLoanAdvisors.com

Both have online request forms you can complete at anytime and they will call you to review your options. It’s easier to do it online than sitting on hold when you call into the call center. 🙂