Majority of college students are under the pressure of managing repayment of multiple student loans. Moreover, after completion of studies, if the earnings of students are not as high as expected, it becomes more difficult for the student to repay loans. Therefore, to help college students manage repayment of loans easily, student debt consolidation programs have come up. These programs are certainly an ideal way to deal with increasing loan interest rates. Nevertheless, debt consolidation is a step that must be taken after careful study. It is important for students to consider both sides of the coin, before they make a decision to consolidate their debts. Function of Debt Consolidation Programs for Students The term 'consolidation' means integration of two or more things. Hence, in financial terms, when we talk about student loan consolidation, it means that two or more existing student loans can be integrated into one single loan. Technically speaking, suppose a student has four multiple federal loans. Now, by taking help of some debt consolidation methods, all the four loans can be combined into one. The four existing loans will be considered to be paid in full. Merits

• It is effective in student debt relief. Students can just make one payment every month instead of four. It is easily managed due to less paperwork.
• A student has to pay relatively less installments, when all the multiple loan installments are combined. For example, if every month, a student pays $100 for four different loans (i.e, $400 in total), he may have to only pay around $380-$390, when all four installments are combined. This can help students who have just begun their careers, and are not earning enough.
• Debt consolidation also allows students to be more flexible in their repayment options. With lower interest rates and extended years to repay, consolidating debt makes it easier for students to repay loans.

Demerits

• The term of the student loan gets extended. Earlier, if you had to pay your loan within three or four years, you may have to now pay it for 10, 20, 30 or more years, depending on the type of debt consolidation program you opted for.
• Students with private loans may not qualify for such a program, as easily as those having federal student loans.
• People having bad credit card history may have to repay loans at a higher interest rates.
• Less monthly repayments extended for longer duration, may create a false sense of security in students. This may trigger spending habits.
• If married couples are consolidating debt together, both will be liable for debt repayments.

As we can see, such programs are a great way to manage loan repayments faster, however, extended terms of repayment and higher interest rates can be problematic for some borrowers. For student loan debt consolidation, Loan Approval Direct, Next Student, DebtConsolidation are the three very popular online companies providing effective services. By consulting people who have taken such programs from these companies, one can learn more about programs offered by these companies. Selecting a reliable company is a crucial part of the whole process, as only then a student can get information about various laws and regulatory measures related to loan repayment. It is best to consult college debt counselors and teachers, about companies, that provide services in such fields.