Finding Bad Credit Student Loans without a Cosigner

graduate student loan celebration

There's no question that a college education is important to get ahead in today's society, but in the last thirty years the cost of college has risen 1,130% on average. There's no point in even comparing that to wages or inflation – hands down college is an expense that is rapidly growing out of control for many individual people, especially if they are struggling with bad credit. Finding a bad credit student loan without a cosigner takes some research, but don't give up because there are options out there for you!

The old combination of partial scholarships, increasingly shrinking federal grants, and federal student loans often doesn't cover expenses anymore. However, if you want to get ahead a great education gives you a major leg up. To close that payment gap you may need to learn about the best private student loans for bad credit.

Who Needs These Types of Loans?

The first step is understanding where your credit score is and how that affects your options as far as getting funding. If you have a 630+ credit score you are probably in good shape finding funding, but if you have a poor credit score (generally considered 600 and below), then you will need to do some research to find what your best actions are going to be. However the good news is if you have ever asked the question: "Can you get student loans with bad credit?" the answer is absolutely!

The next step is to start contacting the lenders who are most likely to work with you on this process to get you funding.

Where Can You Get Student Loans with Bad Credit?

There are several options to get yourself the funding you need. Ideally the best student loans for bad credit will come from government student loans – which offer a level of protection and management from the school that makes the process a lot easier if they are available. However, most people will find they either need private loans in place of government loans, or in addition to them.

There are several companies that go that extra step to specialize in private student loans, even for those borrowers who don't have any credit or have the challenge of bad credit. You need to check out each of these specific banks and even the peer to peer lending companies who specialize in providing students with bad credit with the educational loans they need to press on.

Avant Student Loans for Poor Credit

Avant is one company that specializes in providing loan options to people with poor credit, and they are one of the first names that is going to come up when looking for these types of loans. What is available will depend on a variety of factors, but for students with poor credit looking for funding, Avant should be one of the first options that gets checked out.

One Main Financial Student Loans for Poor Credit

One Main Financial is another company that offers some bad credit student loans without a cosigner being needed. Generally, you still need to have a credit score of at least 500 to 550 in most cases, but even many bad credit scores fall into that range, making it a viable solution for many students of all ages.

Many people assume if they are under a 600 credit score that they automatically won't be able to qualify but that simply isn't the case, as these numbers prove.

Citizen's Bank Student Loans for Poor Credit

Citizen's Bank is another bank that is willing to take a risk on many students with bad credit to get them the loans they need to get through the many expenses of modern college. They have an array of lending options depending on actual credit score and the overall credit history of the borrower, and that means many people will get to find a good private student loan for bad credit with no cosigner needed – a detail that is make or break for many people.

Peer to Peer Lending Solutions

Whether you go through Lending Tree or some other p2p lending organization, this can be a great opportunity for students who are struggling to find private student loans through conventional banks and other lending organizations. Students with bad credit may find that peer to peer lending is their solution for getting quality private loans to help pay for the next semester and even the ones to follow that!

Why Is the Cosigner Such a Big Issue?

The reason that finding loans without a cosigner are important usually falls in one of two categories. Some people are embarrassed at the prospect of needing more help, and they don't want others close to them to know that they need additional loans in order to finish up school.

The second reason is that student loans are much harder to discharge than other types of loans if something should go wrong financially in the future. A student might not be able to find a cosigner at all or they simply don't want to take the chance of placing a repayment burden on someone else in the family if there is a major recession, injury, or other reason the student might not be able to make payments in the future.

This is why many people with bad credit want a loan without a cosigner – it's an important selling point for them!

Look at (and Compare) the Terms

The terms of every loan are going to be different and generally speaking private student loans will have a higher interest rate than those offered by the federal government. The best student loan for bad credit is one that is going to give you a fair deal on the disbursement and keeps the interest rate as low as possible so the total amount owed doesn't roll up on you.

This isn't about the friendliest banker or the best sales pitch – you want the bottom line best interest rates that you can get so your monthly payments are less and your total amount owed is less.

In Conclusion

There are many options when it comes to finding bad credit student loans without a cosigner, and you shouldn't just assume that because you have poor credit there are no options. Multiple lenders specialize in these types of loans and it is even worth noting that because student loans offer lenders additional protections, many are willing to take more of a chance with them. Do your homework, see who will meet with you, and you might be surprised just how easy it is to get the loans you need to finish your degree and make your splash in the job market!

 

Shane Dayton
 

Shane is a writer, blogger, and travel-addict who is interested in anything and everything under the sun. While he'll write on about anything, he especially loves writing articles that will actually help people out in all facets of their lives.