What happens if you are in college and you need to buy some extra textbooks? What if you need a new computer? And, what if you don't have any money to pay for these needs? Federal loans are slow to get and how you spend the money from government loans is very strict. As such, if you need money quick to pay for extra expenses, your only two options are getting the money from friends/family or getting a private student loan.

Private or commercial student loans are available for banks. If you apply online it will take about 15-30 minutes to fill out the application. Some of the bank's sites will tell you immediately if you are accepted or not. For others, it will take about a day or two. Once you are accepted it will take about a week to get your money.

To increase the approval time, increase your odds of getting accepted, and decrease the interest rate you are going to get on a private loan, do whatever you can to get a co-signer who is on stable financial footing and has a good credit score. If you want a student loan fast be sure to apply to as many banks as possible. There's a very good chance that, even with a co-signer, you are going to be rejected more times than you are accepted.

If you are looking for fast student loan you may not even need it in the first place. For example, if you need textbooks, don't buy them at the "official" book store. Instead, go to online used textbook sites to save money. If you need a computer, consider using the school computer labs.

Nick is the author of Fast Student Loans or Fast Student Loans Advice.