My parents helped by paying off the interest while I was still in school so the loans themselves weren't insurmountable when I graduated and started paying them off myself. It was an early life lesson in interest rates that made a big difference in my quality of life. Thanks Mom and Dad!

In the long term, government backed loans are a big part of why schools got so expensive in the first place. If they actually had to compete for money instead of being guaranteed large payouts they might never have inflated to this point where whole generations are looking at college as an unwise expense that doesn't pay off. I really hope this new DoE shuffle completely re-evaluates the system in general and finds a way to encourage schools to provide affordable education rather than maximize profits.