Work Paying for Student Loans??

[CoCo612]

I have a question....I have done a little bit of reading on these boards, and have seen some people saying that some places will agree to pay a certain amount on your student loans....which I know means some sort of a commitment to them. Has anyone heard of any places in Houston doing this? If so, where? Also, how would you go about finding a place that does this? Or is it just something you ask them when you are interviewing? Thanks for all the help!

[RN1989]

Read the fine print of the contracts carefully. Although it sounds like a fabulous idea, it is not always the wisest choice.

Generally, if a facility is paying for nursing school up-front, they often have a dire need for nurses - TRANSLATED AS the hospital is chronically short-staffed, has crummy managers/schedules/benefits/ etc. and they can't keep people there and you will likely be unhappy. In which case you could be horribly miserable or very worried about keeping your nursing license if you work there. And when you try to leave and break the contract, they can kill you with outrageous fee repayment schedules. I've seen one person who was expected to pay back $20K as a lump sump within a couple months of leaving the job. And the hospitals generally do sue people for the money, ruin credit, etc. if you default on the contract or repayment schedule.

Then there are always the unexpected things in life that happen to us all. So even if the hospital was great to work for - even 2years can be a long time to be locked into a contract when the one you love is transferred, you meet someone and marry and they are transferred, your family has chronic illness/death occur and you need to move back home, etc.

Look at the big picture and be honest with yourself. It is better to get loans that do not restrict your ability to move, transfer positions, etc. than to be stuck in an unhappy or unsafe situation because you were not able to leave that job. And yes, even 2 years sounds like nothing but believe me - it is a LONG time when you are actually locked into that time period with no chance for a reprieve.