Final answer:
Under a Standard Repayment Plan, federal student loans are typically paid off within 10 years. The time may vary based on the loan amount, interest rate, and payment amounts, with larger loans possibly taking up to 30 years to repay.
Step-by-step explanation:
Under a Standard Repayment Plan, federal student loans are typically paid off within 10 years. However, the actual time can vary depending on the total amount borrowed, the interest rate, and whether the borrower chooses to make more than the minimum monthly payment.
As an example, paying off a loan amount of $2,000 with minimum payments could take about 15 years and end up costing over twice that amount in interest. In contrast, large loans, such as a $1,000,000 loan, might have a term of up to 30 years, resulting in over double the original loan amount paid back due to interest.
Thus, the duration and total repayment cost of a federal student loan can be greatly affected by the loan amount, interest rate, and repayment strategy.