Depending on your credit score the rate can be from 7.25% to 13.75%. A co-signer may be needed and could reduce the interest by a 1/4 %.

Keep in mind that private loans have variable interest rates.

To be honest, unless you are consolidating so you have one loan with one servicer, I would just set up automatic payments on the 3 loans until you absolutely need to consolidate. Once you consolidate, you can not re-consolidate at a later time. Since your rate is variable either way, I'd keep the consolidation as an ace in the hole if you ever need it to reduce your payment or get a better interest rate in the future.

Hipe this helps
(worked for Sallie Mae for many years)

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The best bank through which to consolidate students is the one that will give you the lowest interest rate and who will actually approve your loan. This is really something you need to research yourself. The best bank for me or anyone else will most likely not be the best bank for you because our credit reports are different.

But either way, it's definitely a good idea to consolidate your loans as soon as possible. Even if you lose a month or so of payment deferment you get a jump on paying the loans off. which, now that you've graduated, is your goal.

There are a myriad of places to consolidate your loans, generally the rates on federal loans will be the same, but the repayment terms can vary. Be sure to talk with several companies and ask if they have any discounts available if you consolidate with them. Some offer a discount on the rate if you do an auto-deduct for the payment, others offer a discount for 24 months of on-time payments.

A couple I recommend are Chase Bank, they have a dedicated student loan division that just down consolidation loans. You can reach them through http://www.usadegrees.com/consolidate/ also try Student Loan Advisors at http://www.StudentLoanAdvisors.com

As for what you'll need, most will need your social security number they can look up the loan files (for federal loans) and they can handle it from there. The whole process is pretty easy and only takes about 10 minutes online and another hour or two reviewing the paperwork.

Student loan interest IS tax-deductible. The maximum amount you can claim each year is $2500. If you paid more than that, you can not deduct anything over $2500.

(Can I assume that your starting salary won't be in excess of $55,000? If you do make more than $55,000, you won't be able to take the full deduction for student loan interest.)

Do you have to be employed full-time in order to consolidate? No.

Should you consolidate your students loans? Ah, now that's the tough one.

Here's what the Department of Education has to say about consolidation loans:

Always Consider the Cost

"You should keep in mind that although consolidation can simplify loan repayment and lower your monthly payment, it also can significantly increase the total cost of repaying your loans. Consolidation offers lower monthly payments by giving borrowers up to 30 years to repay their loans. So, you'll make more payments and pay more in interest. In fact, in some situations consolidation can double your total interest expense. If you don't need monthly payment relief, you should compare the cost of repaying your unconsolidated loans against the cost of repaying a consolidation loan. You also should take into account the impact of losing any borrower benefits offered under non-consolidated repayment plans. Borrower benefits, which may include interest rate discounts, principal rebates, or some loan cancellation benefits can significantly reduce the cost of repaying your loans.

Once made, Federal Consolidation Loans cannot be unmade. That's because the loans that were consolidated have been paid off and no longer exist. Take the time to study your consolidation options before you submit your application. This checklist has been designed to help you determine whether and how you should consolidate your loans."

I hope that helped, good luck!