ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Federal Perkins Loan

Imagine you want to buy a toy that is very expensive, but you don't have the money to buy it all at once. So, you decide to borrow some money from your parents and promise to pay them back later.

Similarly, when you want to go to college, but you don't have enough money to pay for it, you can borrow money from the government through a program called Federal Perkins Loan. It's like borrowing money from Uncle Sam, who promises to give you the money you need to pay for your tuition fees, books, and other school-related expenses.

But unlike your parents, who might ask you to pay them back as soon as possible, the government gives you a lot of time to repay your loan. You can take up to 10 years to pay back the amount you borrowed, and you only need to start paying it back after you finish college or stop going to school.

The Federal Perkins Loan is a low-interest loan, which means you don't need to pay much extra money on top of what you borrowed. It's also a subsidized loan, which means the government pays the interest on your loan while you're in school, and for the first nine months after you graduate or stop attending college.

In summary, a Federal Perkins Loan is a way to borrow money from the government to pay for your college expenses. It's like borrowing money from Uncle Sam, who gives you a lot of time to pay it back and doesn't charge much interest on it.