TeresaBenedicta Posted July 15, 2008 Share Posted July 15, 2008 Hey folks. Without going into a lot of details on what's going for me, I would like to ask a kind of general opinion on finances/paying for school/debt. I'm the first in my family history to go to college, so my parents had no idea what to expect money-wise when I headed off last year. For a few different reasons, we didn't understand exactly how expensive college really is, especially going to a private university. Now my mom is beginning to freak out about finances, wants me to transfer to a state school or even community college (which is a bit difficult, considering I'm studying Philosophy & Theology) and has no idea how we're going to pay things off. Now, I'm trying to look at this from a level point of view... Education costs money. A higher education is not cheap and most people come out of school with debt, right? I can work it out to where I can graduate in three years, which saves $40,000. From my general calculations, that would leave me... about $50,000-60,000 in debt by the time I have my degree. Is that typical? Or is that a number I should be scared of, and consider ditching my education for something else? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatherineM Posted July 15, 2008 Share Posted July 15, 2008 I left college owing $400, and Law School owing $15,000. That was public schools, I think $17/hour for undergrad, and $36/hour for law school. That has obviously been many years ago. I paid as I went going to night school for my BA in pastoral ministry, and am doing the same for my masters of theology program, although I'm getting lots of scholarship help now. My grad classes average $175/hour. I understand the fear. I was the first in my family to go who wasn't covered by the GI Bill, so we had no idea. It's not just the tuition, it all the other stuff, like lab fees and drafting equipment, books, etc. Housing can cost as much as all the school expenses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havok579257 Posted July 15, 2008 Share Posted July 15, 2008 50,000-60,000 is a LOT of debt to come out of school with. Unless your going for your MD then that's to much debt to be considered normal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noel's angel Posted July 15, 2008 Share Posted July 15, 2008 Well, it's £3,000 a year (about $6,000), so that's £9,000 for a three year course, so that would be about $18,000 for a basic BA or whatever. The same again for housing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisieux Flower Posted July 15, 2008 Share Posted July 15, 2008 I'm going to be having the same amount of debt, and I'm going into elementary education so I don't think I'll be able to pay it off easily. This isn't typical, but I don't think it'll be impossible to pay off. I think typical is about 10,000-15,000, but then there's always those people who absolutely refuse to take out loans and then others who are super carefree about it and treat it like free money. I think it's important to get a fixed interest rate because the last thing you want to do is have the lender bump it up and then leave you in the poor house. I'm going through a lender who has a 8% fixed interest rate, which I think is pretty good. As long as you keep the attitude that you'll be paying it off for a long time, and you'll probably have to live pretty modestly for a while, then I think you'll be okay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Winchester Posted July 15, 2008 Share Posted July 15, 2008 I say if they can't legally force you to pay it off, just thumb your nose at them. Good enough for corporations, good enough for citizens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeyP Posted July 15, 2008 Share Posted July 15, 2008 [quote name='Winchester' post='1600648' date='Jul 15 2008, 08:08 PM']I say if they can't legally force you to pay it off, just thumb your nose at them. Good enough for corporations, good enough for citizens.[/quote] I wish i could avoid paying off my debt. I would do it in a heartbeat if it didn't screw up my credit. What is the punishment for defaulting on a loan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noel's angel Posted July 15, 2008 Share Posted July 15, 2008 Over here, student loans don't have to be paid back until you earn at least £15,000 ($30,000), and even then it is interest free, and quite reasonable. If after 25 years (I think), you haven't paid it off, the debt is written off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Winchester Posted July 15, 2008 Share Posted July 15, 2008 [quote name='JoeyP' post='1600650' date='Jul 15 2008, 07:12 PM']I wish i could avoid paying off my debt. I would do it in a heartbeat if it didn't screw up my credit. What is the punishment for defaulting on a loan.[/quote] From the government, you have to pay it or they can garnish your wages. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeyP Posted July 16, 2008 Share Posted July 16, 2008 [quote name='Winchester' post='1600669' date='Jul 15 2008, 08:33 PM']From the government, you have to pay it or they can garnish your wages.[/quote] One of mine is with a bank and the other with Sallie Mae. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brother Adam Posted July 16, 2008 Share Posted July 16, 2008 (edited) [quote name='havok579257' post='1600598' date='Jul 15 2008, 09:04 PM']50,000-60,000 is a LOT of debt to come out of school with. Unless your going for your MD then that's to much debt to be considered normal.[/quote] Where are you getting your facts from to consider $60,000 in debt abnormal? 100-200,000 is normal for 10 years of school to get a MD. $50-60,000 is normal to get a BA and MA from a private school. $30-50,000 is normal for a BA from private school. And all this is assuming that you do get some financial aid. At Franciscan, if you have to pay your schooling exclusively by loans and you stay on campus, it is possible to rack up $100,000 over a period of 4 years. I should know since I worked in financial aid/student accounts. I personally think it isn't fair since people who want to go into ministry in the Church either have to have rich parents, be rich, or live in deep poverty their whole lives paying off their debt. I will have $60,000 in debt getting my MA and that's only because I can pay for my grad classes in cash. Edited July 16, 2008 by Brother Adam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatherineM Posted July 16, 2008 Share Posted July 16, 2008 I've know a couple of people who run up credit cards for their tuition. At least you can get rid of that in bankruptcy easier than student loans. There was talk once about letting people work off their student loans with government service. I know that the military can work some off if you serve as enlisted rather than officer. I went to school with someone who did that. He served as a chaplain's assistant. I thought that would be like being a sacrastin or altar server, but he was actually a trained body guard, protecting the chaplain. That must look cool on a resume for director of religious education. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommas_boy Posted July 16, 2008 Share Posted July 16, 2008 (edited) [quote name='Winchester' post='1600648' date='Jul 15 2008, 07:08 PM']I say if they can't legally force you to pay it off, just thumb your nose at them. Good enough for corporations, good enough for citizens.[/quote] Most loans protect themselves from this happening ... I got one loan/scholarship that requires me to teach for 5 years or pay it back. If I don't, they use my social security number to track me down and eventually garnish my wages. These people are getting very serious about cracking down, now. [b]EDIT[/b]: Private group, too, not government. Edited July 16, 2008 by mommas_boy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veritas Posted July 16, 2008 Share Posted July 16, 2008 + This is a normal amount of debt. Just prepare to drive junker cars and make big payments the first few years and you will be fine. Have you been filling out your FAFSA's? You could be getting tens of thousands of dollars in grants if you do this. p.s. MD's have hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt at graduation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TeresaBenedicta Posted July 16, 2008 Author Share Posted July 16, 2008 Well, I'm glad it's normal? I mean, it would be much easier to not have to be facing that kind of debt... but what else can I do? I've filled out the FASFA and I have the top academic scholarship that my school offers. Then we have the Stafford Loan and another private loan. Problem is that that's not quite enough to cover the bill, and the government isn't giving much help. I need to come up with $5,000 for this year. I've been applying for scholarships like crazy, but it seems like the job market, there's not a lot out there. My mom wants me to transfer to a state school so I can live at home and work and go to school at the same time. Unfortunately state schools don't allow for what I want to study. And I honestly know, without a doubt, that God wants me in the fields I'm in now. My parents don't understand that debt is normal for kids going to college. But... I know things will work out. I know it will all be okay. I have this weird assurance, perhaps from God-- I don't know, that everything's going to be fine. They don't get that and it's making it so hard for me to continue on the path God has shown me, especially because they don't understand my faith. /rant Sorry folks for complaining to y'all. I just had a hard day/conversation with my mom about all of this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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