The tightening in the credit markets has not stayed away from the student loan market. One way you can avoid traditional lenders as a prospective borrower is to give peer-to-peer lending a shot. Two main sites have tried to take advantage of the troubles at traditional student loan lender: Prosper and Virgin Money. These sites help facilitate peer-to-peer lending among friends and family, or with the general public. According to Virgin Money, the typical negotiated rate is around 4-5%, which is pretty darn good and much lower than you may pay at some private lenders, without a lot of the hassle. Prosper advertises loans as low as 7.68% on its homepage. If you’re feeling a little adventurous, in a bind, or just want to stick it to Sallie Mae (NYSE: SLM), you may want to considering giving these sites a shot.