Just a general survey: About how much debt are ya'll, if any, looking at upon graduation?
I calculated what I think I might end up owing when I graduate, which ended up being somewhere around $35,500. I thought I was going to get by with $19k, but after summer school, Stafford loans, and pulling $8k out of somewhere after my 4 year scholarship ends, that's where it may very well end up. I would like to buy a house after I graduate and buy a car for myself (because I know I have gone long enough without one), but money is going to be stretched making loan repayments. On top of that, I would like to purse my Master degree in Public Health and Health Informatics, but if I'm not at a place that offer tuition reimbursement, then that's a shot plan. Ergh, what do ya have to do, sell your soul to pay off debt?!
There are always outside scholarships, but they aren't a sure thing and don't cover the full cost.
I know I'm not the only one, so feel free to share financial woes.
THREE classes for $600?!?? Wow! Around here a single CC class will run you $500-600...
IDK, I may be wrong, but when I took A&P II at a CC, which is 4 credit hours, I only paid like $200 something. Times that by 3 and it should be a little over $600. Its pretty cheap and I was able to pay for that class out of pocket with money I saved.
My debt when I graduated...$0. Scholarships and grants covered almost all of it. A check covered a few classes during the summer semesters. Now I'm in grad school, my job is paying for half of it...so I'm stuck paying the other $10,000. But since I'm working and have no other debt, I'll be able to pay that as it comes, no need for loans.
I just finished my first semester but I don't think I'll have any debt. My pell grants paid for pre-reqs, then mom has been paying for books, testing fees, etc. Fee waiver still in effect for next sem :)
Not like I'd get approved for a loan anyway *shrugs* So glad I stayed with a jc.
I hope you reached across that table and smacked some sense in to her. I hate this mentality.
This is what my lil sis said her counselor told her, even though she explained that our eldest sister did that and is now in super debt and I went to a jc for free. She is now doing gen Ed at the local cc :) $26/unit vs $350/ unit.
I got my BSN from a private college and initially owed about $42,000. I signed a 4 year agreement with the hospital where I work and they paid off $10,000.
I'm on the extended repayment plan and pay about $100 more a month then the minimum...my payment is around $300.
IDK, I may be wrong, but when I took A&P II at a CC, which is 4 credit hours, I only paid like $200 something. Times that by 3 and it should be a little over $600. Its pretty cheap and I was able to pay for that class out of pocket with money I saved.
Wow, that's crazy! Around here, a community college class will cost you between $130 and $150 per credit hour -- I think it's $142 at my local CC (so approximately $400-600 for a 3 or 4 credit course). Still much cheaper than anywhere else, like my college for example where it's over $500/credit hour.
For the ones graduating without any debt, are you coming out of 4 year universities or community colleges? I imagine if I went to a community college too I wouldn't be in this predicament.
There are ways to get through four year universities without debt. I'm outraged at the bad advice your advisor gave you and that other people weren't more help to you. I hope this post doesn't feel like dumping on you, but am risking that because I want other people who are where you were to hear a different perspective than you heard.
My husband did it by taking longer than usual to get through school so he could earn enough as he went. He also picked an affordable four year university.
My daughter has done it faster than usual at one of the better state schools primarily by maxing out the options for lowering costs, then working for the rest. She did things like took her first year of college while a high school senior through dual enrollment, maxed out what she could transfer from a community college, maxed out what she could CLEP. Being an RA paid for her room and board. She used four libraries (the community college, the university, and the public library in each town) and interlibrary loan to borrow as many books as she could instead of buying them, became an expert on the best timing for buying books on Amazon and similar websites. She made finding and applying for scholarships her second (or sometimes third) job for a few years and got some scholarships, not a whole lot but enough to be worth putting that time into it.
I plan to graduate from a community college, then from a four year university. I worked for a while to save up before I started taking classes. Then took one or two classes at a time while continuing to work. I currently have enough set aside for both the associates and the bachelors. When I start taking classes at the more expensive school I'll apply for some scholarships and hopefully that will allow me to save some of my savings for a masters. If I don't get any, I plan to either take a little longer or shift my work/volunteer balance more toward the work side until I have enough.
I went to a 4 year school. Still no debt. It just takes some planning and good grades. I went to a private highschool so that gave me my scholarship for the pre-reqs and start of college. I was actually a Chem major and swapped over to nursing school. So having a 3.5+ GPA with Physics, Organic Chem and all that on my transcript opened up another scholarship into nursing school. The first 3 semesters of my BSN I was actually getting a $1200 check back at the end of the semester because state scholarships, nursing scholarships, and work related grants paid it all and they gave me the extra. But no one paid for the stupid summer, so I paid that. Grad school is a little more pricey($1300 a class), so my work is only paying half of grad school. This time they are making me work 1 month for every hour they pay. BUT I can work those months off as I go through the program. So I decided to have them pay for my Spring semesters and I work those months off by Christmas...this way I'm not stuck after graduation, make any sense?
For the ones graduating without any debt, are you coming out of 4 year universities or community colleges? I imagine if I went to a community college too I wouldn't be in this predicament.
I thought I was going to get by with $19k, but after summer school, Stafford loans, and pulling $8k out of somewhere after my 4 year scholarship ends, that's where it may very well end up. I would like to buy a house after I graduate and buy a car for myself (because I know I have gone long enough without one), but money is going to be stretched making loan repayments. On top of that, I would like to purse my Master degree in Public Health and Health Informatics, but if I'm not at a place that offer tuition reimbursement, then that's a shot plan. Ergh, what do ya have to do, sell your soul to pay off debt?! 
citylights89, BSN, RN
316 Posts
IDK, I may be wrong, but when I took A&P II at a CC, which is 4 credit hours, I only paid like $200 something. Times that by 3 and it should be a little over $600. Its pretty cheap and I was able to pay for that class out of pocket with money I saved.