How to Get or Refinance Mississippi Student Loans

Note that the situation for student loans has changed due to the impact of the coronavirus outbreak and relief efforts from the government, student loan lenders and others. Check out our Student Loan Hero Coronavirus Information Center for additional news and details.

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Student loan debt plagues college students nationwide, and students in Mississippi are no exception. According to The Institute for College Access & Success, 58% of students in the Class of 2018 graduated with Mississippi student loans and the average debt was $30,117.

While student loans can help you pay for college, you need to be careful to avoid borrowing too much or getting stuck with high interest rates. Whether you’re borrowing for the first time or refinancing debt you already have, here are your best options for Mississippi student loans:

Getting Mississippi student loans Repaying Mississippi student loans Avoid borrowing too much Getting Mississippi student loans

We’ll start with where to turn if you need to borrow money for your Mississippi education. Make sure you first exhaust all your options for scholarships and grants that generally don’t need to be repaid (Check out our guide for more on this.)

After that, you have two main choices when if comes to borrowing:

Federal student loans Private student loans

Federal student loans

While scoring as much money as possible through scholarships and grants is ideal, Mississippi residents can also tap into federal student loans to pay for college. The Department of Education can help fund your education through federal loan options. These loans tend to have lower interest rates and more flexible repayment options compared to private student loans.

Below is a chart of what’s available from the federal government. Note that the rates given are accurate for July 1, 2020, and before July 1, 2021, while the fees are for loans borrowed on or after Oct. 1, 2019 but before Oct. 1, 2020.

Private student loans

Even if you’ve secured some scholarships and federal loans, you might have an education funding gap, since federal loans come with borrowing limits. That’s when you could consider private student loans.

Unlike federal options, private loans aren’t issued by the government. Instead, they’re offered by private lenders, such as a bank or credit union. That means eligibility, interest rates and repayment terms can vary from one lender to the next. Because of this variance, it’s important to shop for the best private student loan company that suits your financial situation.

If you don’t qualify for a private student loan due to your credit history, you might need to find a cosigner. A cosigner with a strong credit history can help ensure you get a private loan with reasonable terms. However, keep in mind that a cosigner is equally responsible for a loan’s repayment. If you fail to make payments, their credit could take a hit.

Further, private student loans don’t have access to federal benefits, such as income-driven repayment (IDR) plans and the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program.

Repaying Mississippi student loans

Now let’s take a look at what you can do to ease your repayment of Mississippi student loans, whether through loan forgiveness or refinancing.

Mississippi teacher loan forgiveness programs Federal repayment programs Refinancing Mississippi student loans Mississippi teacher loan forgiveness programs

In past years, Mississippi offered a couple of student loan repayment programs for teachers, administrators and other school personnel. Its William Winter Alternate Route Teacher Forgivable Loan, for instance, was an annual loan of up to $4,000 (for up to two years) that could be forgiven if you met certain criteria. And its Mississippi Teacher Loan Repayment program offered up to $3,000 per year in undergraduate loan forgiveness for up to four years.

Unfortunately, neither program is currently offering awards for the 2019-2020 school year due to budget constraints. But if you’re a teacher in the state, it could be worth checking the Mississippi Office of Student Financial Aid website to find out if these programs start operating again.

Federal repayment programs

Assuming you have at least some federal loans, know that you might qualify for federal student loan forgiveness.

This comes in many shapes and sizes, though the best-known program is probably Public Student Loan Forgiveness, which can potentially score you full forgiveness within 10 years if you work for an eligible employer.

Check out our guide to federal student loan forgiveness programs for more information.

Refinancing Mississippi student loans

One key way to keep repayment costs down post-graduation is to refinance your student loan debt.

When you refinance, you take out a new loan to pay off one or more student loans. You may qualify for a lower interest rate or better repayment terms on your Mississippi student loans. You could also consolidate multiple loans so you only need to worry about one monthly payment.

But there are many pros and cons of refinancing to consider. While you could get a lower interest rate and have your loans consolidated into a single monthly payment, you could also lose federal benefits, including forbearance and deferment options, IDR plans and student loan forgiveness programs.

Make sure to research student loan refinancing companies to ensure you’re getting your best deal.

Avoid borrowing too much

Exploring your options for Mississippi student loans can help you find a loan with the lowest long-term costs of borrowing. But even if you’re able to snag a low interest rate, it’s important to avoid borrowing more than you need.

You might reduce your borrowing by working a part-time job during college or applying for scholarships. For even more strategies, here are other steps you can take to avoid taking on too much student loan debt.

Rebecca Safier contributed to this report.

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