"If you're having trouble making your [student loan] payments, there are some programs that can provide some relief," CNN.com reports. "If your income isn't sufficient to repay a federal loan, you can apply for an economic hardship deferment or forbearance which would suspend or reduce your monthly payments. However, keep in mind that the interest will continue to grow on loans that are not federally subsidized."

You can read the complete March 5, 2008 CNN.com article on-line.

"When it was first introduced in the mid-1980s, student loan consolidation was touted as a much-needed solution for those struggling to pay their debts from college. Borrowers could combine their Stafford and Plus loans into one payment and lock in the prevailing interest rate - typically, one lower than the average rates that they were previously paying on their other loans," SmartMoney reports. "Times have changed, however, and consolidation is no longer the cheap and attractive option that it used to be. Thanks to the declining federal funds rate and the phasing out of variable-rate loans, consolidating your student loans now will actually cost you more over the lifetime of the loan. Eventually, consolidation will come back into fashion for variable-rate loans (rates should be much more attractive when they reset in July). But it will probably never again be the least-expensive solution for those with fixed-rate loans."

You can read the complete March 19, 2008 SmartMoney article on-line.