New RN w/$99k debt - Pay Off Plan

goodstudentnowRN · Apr 26, 2010

Hmmmm....is this doable?

Jules A, MSN · Apr 26, 2010

Call me skeptical but as someone who worked the entire time, went to a community college starting with my LPN and paid for school completely out of my pocket I just can't imagine this story is even true, and she bought a new car? :confused: Was there a therapist fee included in that budget.

Lizzy88 · Apr 26, 2010

wow! how can you accumulate so much debt just for a Nursing degree (I think a PA's tuition in a private school is around the $100,000s) and on top of that buy a new car? Sounds like a dumb girl to me (no offense) or that story is not so true

PAERRN20 · Apr 26, 2010

Pay off your debt with your tax refund?

Too bad my tax refund was a whopping $100!!! :hhmth:

Parrotletlover · Apr 26, 2010

While $99,000 does seem like a huge amount of money for a degree, it sounds possible. The school I attend charges about $36,000 per year and if you don't get any or much financial aid, you would owe nearly $144,000 after four years. (Thankfully my tuition bill isn't nearly as much.)

But yeah, it seems possible.

SASlong · Apr 26, 2010

Why didn't the article tell what "government program" will help pay off the student loans? That would have been really helpful.

**RosesrReder, BSN, MSN, RN** · Apr 26, 2010

I went to a private college (very expensive) in CT and have nowhere near that amount of student loans. Although very well possible in her case. I still think these must be combined with maybe a previous degree and nursing could very well be her second degree? That or she failed and re-took MANY classes.............confused

Mulan · Apr 26, 2010

Did anyone read the article?

It says right in the article why she had a larger than average

student loan debt.

llg, PhD, RN · Apr 26, 2010

I think it is irresponsible for the paper to publish that hogwash. The vast majority of people who graduate with a BSN and over $100,000 in debt will NOT be able to breeze through it as easily as they suggest it will be. And note ... the nurse in the story has NOT successfully accomplished this loan repayment yet. The numbers they are giving in the article are not numbers she is actually seeing yet.

I'd like to re-visit that story in another 5 years and see how well she is doing While though I do wish her the best of luck, I doubt things will be as rosy as the newspaper suggests. They make it sound like it is perfectly fine to accumulate so much debt while in school and that it is easy to pay it off. That's irresponsible.

MinnieMomRN · Apr 26, 2010

I read this article in Sunday's paper. She went to Simmons College (40k per year) for 2 years, then transfered to UMASS Boston (public) for the next 2. UMASS Boston is still about 19k/year. Also said she received no financial help. Crushing debt!! I couldn't have imagined buying a new car on top of that. Staggers the mind! :eek:

Ahhphoey · Apr 26, 2010

I don't see how that is do-able on a new grad salary. Never mind how she accumulated such debt, what new grad job pays enough to pay all your bills including that $700 student loan payment plus put away $500 a month for savings? My student loans are nearly $30,000 less and include a graduate degree, and I have been a nurse for nearly 11 years and I'm struggling to just pay my bills. Forget putting anything significant into my savings! I make decent money for the area I live in, but my full-time job is salary (thus no overtime), so I have to work a second per diem job just to make sure all the bills are covered.

I would like to see more details of that plan she put together because I just can't see that being feasible.