Nursing loans really that bad? 120K

[nursequery1]

Hi all!

I was recently accepted into NYU's accelerated nursing program and initially was super excited to begin this journey. When I received the bill all the excitement was kicked out of me by the whopping $20K I would need to take out in loans PER SEMESTER. This means I would graduate in 2017 with about $120K TOTAL in loans.

I've talked to several nurses that I know and they have nothing but great things to say about the NYU College of Nursing. HOWEVER, none of them had to take out excessive loans because their parents covered the cost. This is an AMAZING opportunity for me but frankly the thought of having a $120K loan hanging over my head makes me want to drink myself to sleep.

I could go on and on about how unfair the educational system is (because it is) but that's not what I want this thread to be about. This is my situation right now and I want to make the best decision for myself.

If anyone else has been in this situation PLEASE SHARE YOUR STORY. IF YOU'VE TAKEN OUT EXCESSIVE LOANS TELL ME YOUR EXPERIENCE WITH THAT. IS IT WORTH IT? IS IT TOUGH TO BE A NURSE AND KEEP UP WITH SO MUCH DEBT?

Thank you guys so much in advance!

[windsurfer8, BSN, RN]

The Army loan repayment was up to 120K. And after taxes it was 30K a year which would be 90K. So that person would have still owed 100K.

[Mindylane]

NYU was the first school I got into (I lived on Long Island and would have commuted while also paying my $1250 rent, somehow). I would have had probably around $90k in loans, due to some scholarships, but I am glad I didn't go. I ended up taking out close to $45k (and paid off $23k in less than a year :)) but 90-120 is NOT worth it.

[Mindylane]

I do have to admit that the hospital I work out DOES favor the big name schools and the one particular recruiter likes to have her unit associated with the "good" (read: EXPENSIVE) schools in the area. *shrug*

[Wrestler133, BSN, MSN, RN]

Thats WAY too much IMO. I also have a BSc degree and opted to try out community college programs which for me comes out to about 600 dollars a semester and thats including the cost of textbooks. I'll eventually go back and get the BSN but 120k in loans is ridiculous.

[Msmedic68w, MSN, RN]

That's the most absurd thing I have ever heard... If you're going to pay that kind of money then skip the RN and just go be a doctor. My school is a total of 26K, but I have the VA paying for it because I was in the military, so I owe nothing. And no offense, but why are you just NOW finding this out? Price wasn't a consideration before you applied? Even if the school doesn't directly say 20K a semester on their website you can see how much a unit is and do the math yourself....If the school is 120K then it makes me wonder how much that application fee was that you paid just to find this information out. Go somewhere else, nurses make decent money but it's not worth 120K.

This price doesn't even seem legal, I am assuming this including room and board and fees that they just assume (gas, food, clothing). There's no way JUST the tuition is 20k a semester?

[meganec17]

I personally wouldn't do it, but don't give up your dream. I was enrolled in a four year nursing program, it was in the city, and I was dorming. One year would have cost me $34,000 so by the end of my education, I would have been $136,000 BEFORE INTEREST. A normal loan you would be paying about 7% interest I believe. After one semester, I decided it was not worth the money, and transferred to a local university (still a great nursing reputation) but I will be commuting and only paying $10,000 a year. Three years will cost me less than one full year at my old school. Sorry for all this excessive information, just thought id give you my experience.

[xxdiscoxxheaven]

Really? Like for real for real?

[L♡vER]

10k a year? Still.....ouch! I believe my entire program (state college, great reputation) was 9k total. Did you catch that!? TOTAL. 120k is an absolutely mind boggling amount for a nursing degree. Nothing you could say would convince me it's *worth it*

[Dranger]

The Army loan repayment was up to 120K. And after taxes it was 30K a year which would be 90K. So that person would have still owed 100K.

ROTC pays for everything there was no tuition limit.

[windsurfer8, BSN, RN]

Gotcha. Thought you were talking about Loan repayment.

[ThatBigGuy]

Let's take a look at the numbers here.

If you pay off $120k in the normal 10 year repayment schedule, and are assessed an average interest rate of 7%, you'll be paying $1393.30 a month. You will pay an additional $47,000 in interest, for a total bill of $167,000.

Maybe you can qualify for an income based repayment plan. In this case, a $750 a month payment results in repayment after 37 years, and an extra $216,000 paid in interest.

The average RN in NYC earns $77,000 annually. Subtract the federal and state income taxes (25% and 6.85% respectively) and you have a take home pay of $52,000 annually. Subtract the yearly $17,000 you'll be paying in student loans and you'll have $35,000 left over for living expenses. Can you live in NYC on $35,000 a year?

Take some time and run some numbers. You need to put a little more effort in understanding your financial future than you put into your decision to attend NYU.

[RNsRWe, ASN, RN]

The average RN in NYC earns $77,000 annually.

Just a quick question for clarification: is that $77k the average a new grad earns, or the average for an RN in NYC (meaning very experienced nurses and newbies averaged together)?

I sometimes see people refer to the "average pay" and they haven't realized that significantly higher than that is the experienced nurse with certs, and much lower than that is the new grad.

Just curious on this one.