Student loans
Find the right student loan for your path
Our undergraduate, career training, and graduate student loans can help you pay for school and reach your next goal with confidence
Student loans for wherever you’re headed
We have student loans tailor-made for different degrees and career paths. Choose the type that’s right for you!
Undergraduate student loans
For college students earning a bachelor's or associate's degree, or a certificate at a degree-granting school.
Career training student loans
For students in trade certificate courses (culinary, technical, aviation, etc.) or professional training programs for nurses and physician assistants.
Graduate student loans
For graduate students seeking loans for medical, dental, health professions, MBA, law, and master's/doctorate degree expenses.
Adding a cosigner can help you lock down your loan
Last year, students were 3x more likely to be approved for a Sallie Mae student loan with a cosigner.footnote 1 Cosigners are usually a parent or guardian but don’t have to be. Plus, having a cosigner may qualify you for a lower interest rate!
The top choice for private student loans
The leading private student lender
Over 1 million students trust our private student loans
More than 4,000 eligible schools
Get the money you need for school
Plus benefits to help you manage and pay back your student loan
Cover up to 100% of school-certified costs
Including tuition, housing, books, fees, and more.footnote 2
Save time, stress less
Apply once to get money for the entire school year.
Choose how you want to pay
Make payments while in school to save on total school loan costs, or wait until you’ve left school.footnote 3
Pay your college loan automatically and save
Set up auto debit and you could qualify for a 0.25% discount on your interest rate.footnote 4
No surprise fees
There are no origination fees or prepayment penalties.footnote 5
A student loan that gives you more
See how Sallie Mae compares to other lenders
Footnotes only apply to Sallie Mae loans
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Some frequently asked questions about student loans
A student loan is money that’s loaned to you by a bank or other financial institution to help pay for your education. All loans need to be paid back. When you pay back a loan, your repayment amount includes the full amount you borrowed, plus interest (the amount your lender charges you for borrowing the money).
There are student loans available for students in undergraduate, graduate, certificate, dental, medical, and health professions programs. Sallie Mae also offers student loans for graduates studying for the bar exam or relocating for medical and dental residencies.
Private student loans—offered by banks like Sallie Mae, credit unions, and other financial institutions—are based on your creditworthiness. This means your lender will check to see if you have a history of borrowing money and paying it back on time. Since many students haven’t had time to build up their own credit, applying for a private student loan with a cosigner—a parent, relative, or other adult with good credit—may increase your chances for approval and help get you a better rate.
You may be approved to borrow up to 100% of your school-certified costs for the entire year, if needed.
You should borrow only what you can afford to pay back later. Consider how much you may earn in your future career. Use a responsible borrowing approach. Use free money first and explore federal loans before considering a private student loan. To help estimate your future income potential, you can visit the US Department of Labor at bls.gov.
You can fill out a student loan application right on the lender’s website. There’s no cost to apply. You’ll be asked to enter some basic personal and financial information, and choose the type of interest rate and repayment plan you want for your loan. If you’re applying with a cosigner, they’ll also need to provide their financial info.
You can use student loan funds to cover any of your school costs included in your school's cost of attendance for the year, which might include the following for students attending school at least half time:
- Tuition
- Fees
- Books
- Housing
- Meals
- Travel to and from school
- A laptop
- Equipment, supplies, and tools
Repayment terms vary by lender. Because more interest gets added to your loan balance over time, you may be able to save money by paying off your loan sooner.
Use our Accrued Interest Calculator to see how much you can save by paying more towards your loan.
Yes, it may. Your lender will need to run a credit check to see if you qualify for the college loan, which may impact your credit score.
You may boost your chances of being approved by adding a cosigner (such as a parent, relative, or other responsible adult). Last year, 87% of Sallie Mae undergraduate loans were cosigned.footnote 8
A fixed rate is one that doesn’t change over the life of your loan, so your monthly payment stays the same. A variable rate can go up or down with the market, increasing or lowering your monthly payment as it does.
Our student loan reviews
Read why so many students trust Sallie Mae loans on their education journey.
It was very easy to apply and the process was seamless. Once approved they connected with the university and worked out all the details to process the payments on time.
Martha Z., California
Sallie Mae is one of the only places where you can get up to 100% coverage for your education. And that's a benefit you can't beat.
Clare J., Florida
The online application was easy, straight forward, and the approval turn around time was quick. Thank you!
Mathew S., Arkansas