Worried about paying off student loan debt

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Hi all,

I thank you in advanced for any replies to my post.

As I further into my BSN degree, I find myself collecting more and more student loan debt. By the time I am finished with my degree, I will accrue approximately $100,000, and this worries me- a lot. My question is:

Would anyone be able to give me some faith that I won't be killing myself paying off this huge sum? I hate to go through all of this, only to find a job that will just allow me to get by in life when trying to pay down this debt.

Is anyone going through/went through the same sitaution?

Any comments would be appreciated!

Thanks

Some background information: I live on Long Island which isnt known to be particularly cheap!

I have 65K which I will start paying on next year. Fact is, I will do what I can each month but I am not going to let mortgage/utilities/fuel/food suffer to pay the loan back. Yes, I know I owe it. Yes, I intend to pay it but with jobs as low paying as they are where I live and as scare as they are - $1500 is an absolute no go - in fact 1/2 of that would be for me - I too went to a private school. I will do what I can but am not going to stress over it - I stress enough about meeting day to day expenses that rise continuously while my salary stays the same.

Couldn't agree more. At this point where I am-What am I going to do? Quit?

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Specializes in Adult Internal Medicine.

Remember that cheapest doesn't always mean it's the best investment.

100k is a lot of loan money, but if you are in a urban medical area and 100k buys you an education and a good paying job right out of school vs either spending a year searching for a good job or having to work your way up then it may be a better investment over a 30k program.

A real life example: I have two neighbors that both went back to nursing school as young moms. The first did a cheap ADN program and immediately did a BSN bridge online, spending about 18k total plus an extra 6 months. The second went to a pricey but well-known school in the city for an aBSN at 80k finishing 6mo faster. The aBSN got a job offer at a academic hospital in her final semester and went to work at 65k/yr and it is her dream job/speciality and she has been there 3 years now and has seniority. The ADN-bridge spent 6mo longer in school and another 6mo (actually longer) finding a job, ending in LTC. She worked in LTC for 2 years at 45k/yr and is now trying to interview for a job at the same hospital/floor as the aBSN.

aBSN has 70k more in loans but pre-tax made 65k more the first year plus 20k more for the past 2 years. More importantly she is already in her dream job with seniority.

Granted this is overly simplified. It does cover interest or tax.

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Specializes in Adult Internal Medicine.

There is also an epilogue to that example if anyone wants to hear.

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Specializes in Hematology/Oncology.
I go to a private school and tuition is about $10K per year.

10k a semester or year? I havent heard of a private school that is 10k a year

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Specializes in Neonatal Nurse Practitioner.
10k a semester or year? I havent heard of a private school that is 10k a year
Per year. I just got my fee bill for next semester and the total charge is $5562.48 for 12 hours. I do need to add another class so it will go up some.
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Specializes in public health.

That's a lot of money for nursing school. If you really like your school, program, and just want to be a nurse, you should stick with your plan. After you graduate, look for jobs in rural Alaska. The reason being: 1. you are more likely to find a job as a new grad since most people don't want to live there. 2. even with high cost of living, you can still save several thousand dollars a month and you can use that to pay off your student loans in a few years. Last time I checked some of the most rural places in Alaska pays new grad nurses up to $9000 a month. The downside of course is the weather, unfamiliar environment (huge adjustment) and just a whole different culture, but the experience will make you a better person and a better nurse. :) Good luck!

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Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.

I think what we have here is the next financial crisis.

default of student loans.

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Specializes in Emergency, Trauma, Critical Care.

I owe 75k, my payments are 750/month between private/federal. I struggled my first three years. I did my LVN, then started my BSN which I had to leave because my husband got sick, then finished an ADN and went back to the BSN. Not ideal, but I had a sick husband and a baby at home. Last year, I was lucky enough to land a job in a higher paying area where rent was still fairly cheap.

But I'm still frugal. I have netflix no cable, I have cheap phone plans and I budget with meals and do a lot of my cooking for the month in one day,...sooo much cheaper. I also have managed to save 10k this year towards a down payment on a house.

I will say it's possible, but it's not ideal, not everyone lands a job making over 100k a year. Not everyone has no car payments or credit cards. Etc. I highly recommend sticking to a strict budget, and focusing on paying off the private loans. I pay extra every month on my private loan, the interest rate is much higher than my federal loans. Good luck to you!

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There is also an epilogue to that example if anyone wants to hear.

would love to hear it lol!

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Ortho, Subacute, Homecare, LTC.

Can't you make payments based off your income? I know it's the longer route, but at least the monthly payment could be more affordable.

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Can't you make payments based off your income? I know it's the longer route, but at least the monthly payment could be more affordable.

For federal loans yes- but you have to qualify for it. I don't know, I may be wrong for saying this but I would much rather pay less/month and increase the time of loan than kill myself for a shorter period of time. Sure I'll be paying an insane amount of interest at the end, but I won't be thinking about it when I'm able to live a normal life and not struggle to the point of insanity!

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You have to have a BSN to be accepted into NP school though. And then OP will just be piling more debt on top of the $100k they already owe.

I realize that! My point is if you're going to spend 100K on just a BSN, get a BSN from a community college or hospital nursing program and then enroll into a NP program getting the best bang for the 100K buck. To pay 100K for a BSN is absurd! You can complete the NP route for 100K and have a lot more to show for your money.

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