You will get student loan offers in the mail sometimes before high school is what you’ve graduated from. It may seem like a blessing to be offered such an abundance of help towards your college goals. But here are some things that you need to consider before you sign up for a future of debt.

Learn about your loan’s grace period. This is the period of time after your graduation before your payment is due. When you have this information in mind, you can avoid late payments and penalty fees.

Don’t worry if you can’t make a payment on your student loan due to a job loss or another unfortunate circumstance. Most lenders have options for letting you put off payments if you are able to document your current hardship. Your interest may increase if you do this.

Never panic when you hit a bump in the road when repaying loans. Job loss and health crises are bound to pop up at one point or another. There are options that you have in these situations. Just be mindful that interest continues to accrue in many options, so at least consider making interest only payments to keep balances from rising.

If you are in the position to pay off student loans early and inclined to do so, make sure you begin with the loans that carry the highest rate of interest. If you get your payments made on the loans that have the lowest or the highest, it can cost you extra in the end.

Choose the payment option that is best suited to your needs. Most student loan companies allow the borrower ten years to pay them back. There are often other choices as well. For instance, you might be able to get a longer repayment term, but you will pay more in interest. You might even only have to pay a certain percentage of what you earn once you finally do start making money. Some loans are forgiven in 25 years.

Choose payment options that best serve you. Many loans offer payment over a decade. There are other ways to go if this is not right for you. If you take a loan at a higher interest rate, for example, you can extend your time to pay. You may negotiate to pay just a set percentage of the money you begin to earn. It may be that your loan will be forgiven after a certain period of time as well.

Financing your college education may be one of the most important decisions you will make. Borrowing a large sum of money at high interest rates can turn into a huge financial burden. Keep in mind all that you read here as you prepare for both college and the future.