Fed Loans Interests

[Cold Front]

Trying to figure out the following for a buddy..

how much interest will accrue on fed loans while a student in school each year, and the total of this interest by the time he graduates. The rate is 6.8%, and the principals is as follows:

1st year: $45K (total interest at this point?)
2nd year: $47k (total interest at this point?)
3rd year: $47k (total interest at this point?)
4th year: $47k (total interest at this point?)

 

[PedoLife]

I don't think the 6.8% is applied to the whole principle, some of the interest doesn't kick-in until after you graduate. You need to break them down to subsidized and un-subsidized.

 

[crazy_sherm]

Interest will only apply to the unsubsidized portion of your Stafford loan while you're in school. Just plug in the numbers into this formula to find out how much you owe:

Total = Principal × ( 1 + Rate )^years

or use an interest calculator:

http://math.about.com/library/blcompoundinterest.htm