You can typically ask for 3x 6 month "hardship" deferments on Federal Stafford loans on top of your 6 month grace period after you graduate. And, those deferments are re-set if you go back to school for a semester. So, theoretically, you could take 18 months worth of deferment and then go back to school for a semester, drop out, and take another 18 months of hardship deferment.

There are also repayment programs available to you if you have limited income. At lest a few years ago, there was a type of repayment program where you could pay a fixed percentage of your income for 30 years, and then your loans were considered paid in full. I remember reading about a Rhode Island School of Design film student who got a $150,000 film degree. That's the repayment program that she was in, so she could make ends meet and still pursue her art.

Now, if your student loans are to private lenders, that's a whole different ball of wax. They usually aren't as understanding.