Private Loans: There are many private loans available also. InternationalStudentLoan.com offers loans up to $30,000 for US citizens who are studying abroad for one or two semesters. These loans do not use FAFSA information, but instead are based on the credit of the applicant. A Cosigner is highly recommended for approval.
StudyAbroadLoans.com also offers a very similar loan for students also. Both sites also offer graduate study abroad loans. There are different repayment options also. One starts right away, another is interest only right away, and the final is after your education is completed. You can apply for the study abroad loans on their websites.
If this loan does not suit you, other private college loans are widely available on the internet. NextStudent.com offers a similar private loan. So it is relatively easy to find different private loans that you may qualify for.
Alternative Student Loan: The Alternative Student loan from AlternativeStudentLoan.com offers the same packages available to the high school Alternative Student Loan. This loan is based on the credit of an applicant, and does not require a FAFSA.
It loans up to $30,000 a year with a minimum loan amount equal to $1,500. Preliminary approval can be made in 15 minutes, and full approval in 5 days.
One advantage the college Alternative Student Loan has over the the high school student loan is that it offers a different repayment schedule. The college version offers an imediate repayment, interest only repayment 48 months later, or deferred repayment 48 months later.
The interest rate is variable for these loans, and is around 7 to 9%. The APR is about 9%.
Scholarships: Scholarships can almost always be used to finance a study abroad. Some special study abroad scholarships are the Benjamin A Gillman International Scholarship. AIFSabroad.com also offers different study abroad scholarships