Student Loans

Student loans provide educational opportunity to people who want to pursue their studies but do not have enough money. The federal government funds the nation’s student loan programs. Banks may also offer commercial loans targeting students who are enrolling into professional programs.

Government loans

All Canadian citizens can avail of government-funded student loans. They must have lived in the country for at least a year. If you want to avail of a government-funded student loan in your province, you must apply for that loan through your provincial government. Depending on which province you live, there is a particular limit to the loan that you can avail of per year. If you have been moving from province to province, what will be considered your province of residence is the place you have lived for the last twelve months. Government loans are open to students pursuing post-secondary and professional degrees.

Commercial loans

If you are pursuing a professional degree, such as medicine, you can apply for a commercial student loan through a bank. Do not worry. Even if you already have a government loan, you can still apply for additional coverage through charter banks. Banks are offering student loans in fairly low rates.

Advantages of student loans

The most obvious advantage of a student loan is being a lifeline to people who cannot pay for their education. Government student loans are especially attractive because they offer many of these loans at zero interest. All you need to do after you have graduated is pay for the exact amount that you have borrowed. Commercial student loans, on the other hand, come with interests. Still, they are preferable to other types of loans because they offer the funding at low interest rates.

Disadvantage of student loans

The only problem with student loans is that after graduation, you cannot really fully savor your first few paychecks yet. They will be used to pay for your student loans first.