Was Taking a Loan Out, Worth It?

llg, PhD, RN · Dec 10, 2007

What happens if you pay it off early?

If there is no penalty, you could pay it off early (in just a few years) and avoid paying all that interest.

Then it wouldn't be an expensive loan and would probably be worth it. Do you see what I mean?

If you are allowed to pay it off early without any penalties, then it doesn't matter what the interet rate is.

Make sure you understand the answer to that question before you make a final decision.

bethin · Dec 10, 2007

Your parents won't co-sign?

You do what you gotta do. Like the old adage, you got to spend money to make money. 4.5 times does sound awful high. What's the intrest rate on this? My last loan was through Sallie Mae and I think the rate was 4%. Is this $15,000 for one year or several? Did you shop around for loans and compare?

Last year I enrolled in a very expensive private school. Many people had very negative things to say about how much I was paying (such as ridiculous to pay that much, that's stupid, etc), which was ~$21,000 a year. BUT I got so many grants and scholarships that I never even applied for that it lowered my tuition to less than $5000. That's cheaper than tuition at most public schools.

Are you planning on working any during school or on breaks? If so, hoard that money! Also, if you're not already, consider becoming an aide. Where I work, and most places have this, if you are studying nursing they will pay for a portion of your tuition with an agreement that you work for them so many months or years after - depending on how much they paid.

If this is what you truly want, then go for it! Look at grants and scholarships. There's a scholarship out there for everyone. Talk to financial aide and get ideas. Good luck!

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Dec 10, 2007

Back in 2004 I was 23 years old, living in my own home, and independent of my parents when I applied for a $20,000 private student loan. Since I had a 5-year established credit history, the loan was approved with good terms, no cosigners, and no questions asked. Back then, I was working hard labor at a factory and felt the desire to escape that dead-end job.

Obtaining a loan was worth it, since the dollar amount has repaid itself several times over. 2006 was my first year working as an LVN, and I earned just under $47,000. I have already earned $45,000 during 2007 (my second year as an LVN), and the year is not even over yet. In 2 years, I have earned nearly $100,000 on an initial investment, which was the $20,000 student loan. By the way, I paid the loan off early.

nphan2 · Dec 10, 2007

What happens if you pay it off early?
If there is no penalty, you could pay it off early (in just a few years) and avoid paying all that interest.
Then it wouldn't be an expensive loan and would probably be worth it. Do you see what I mean?
If you are allowed to pay it off early without any penalties, then it doesn't matter what the interet rate is.
Make sure you understand the answer to that question before you make a final decision.

There are no penalties if I pay if off early, but the quickest I can pay it off (once I have a job) is still five years. That still makes it a little over twice as much.

Your parents won't co-sign?
You do what you gotta do. Like the old adage, you got to spend money to make money. 4.5 times does sound awful high. What's the intrest rate on this? My last loan was through Sallie Mae and I think the rate was 4%. Is this $15,000 for one year or several? Did you shop around for loans and compare?
Last year I enrolled in a very expensive private school. Many people had very negative things to say about how much I was paying (such as ridiculous to pay that much, that's stupid, etc), which was ~$21,000 a year. BUT I got so many grants and scholarships that I never even applied for that it lowered my tuition to less than $5000. That's cheaper than tuition at most public schools.
Are you planning on working any during school or on breaks? If so, hoard that money! Also, if you're not already, consider becoming an aide. Where I work, and most places have this, if you are studying nursing they will pay for a portion of your tuition with an agreement that you work for them so many months or years after - depending on how much they paid.
If this is what you truly want, then go for it! Look at grants and scholarships. There's a scholarship out there for everyone. Talk to financial aide and get ideas. Good luck!

My parents can't co-sign for me. My mother is unemployed, and my father is bankrupted. So with that being the case, I'm S.O.L... my uncle couldn't co-sign for a loan either because the bank said that he had to many new, open accounts. That's pretty much the only people I had. As for the scholarships, I actually applied to like 7 scholarships that I found online, but I havent received notice about any of them yet. Still hoping on those though.

nphan2 · Dec 11, 2007

Back in 2004 I was 23 years old, living in my own home, and independent of my parents when I applied for a $20,000 private student loan. Since I had a 5-year established credit history, the loan was approved with good terms, no cosigners, and no questions asked. Back then, I was working hard labor at a factory and felt the desire to escape that dead-end job.
Obtaining a loan was worth it, since the dollar amount has repaid itself several times over. 2006 was my first year working as an LVN, and I earned just under $47,000. I have already earned $45,000 during 2007 (my second year as an LVN), and the year is not even over yet. In 2 years, I have earned nearly $100,000 on an initial investment, which was the $20,000 student loan. By the way, I paid the loan off early.

If you don't mind my asking, how long did it take you to pay it off?.. and approximately how much was the total payment?

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Dec 11, 2007

If you don't mind my asking, how long did it take you to pay it off?.. and approximately how much was the total payment?

It took about 2.5 years to pay off the $20,000. Since the loan was being financed at only 7 percent, not very much interest had accrued.

Trauma Columnist · Dec 11, 2007

I used student loans to pay for my BSN/MSN to the tune of $40,000. However, I figured in my earning power and it was still well worth it.

nphan2 · Dec 11, 2007

In truth, I guess I have no other choice but to accept this loan. I'm going to try to figure/calculate how to pay if off in about 5 years instead of the original 20 years. Other bills and whatnot comes into play when regarding how much I can afford a month to pay off this loan after I graduate. But.. I would like to thank everyone who responded to my question so quickly. I really love this forum. Everyone is so nice and helpful!.. :)

future L&Dnurse · Dec 11, 2007

Look into loan consolidation programs available in your area. Where I live, new grads can consolidate their loans with a 0% interest rate (thank you nursing shortage) and I have a friend in another area of the country who has similar options available to her. So that might be a way to minimize the growth of the loan - see what you can do about consolidating student loans after you graduate.

Even if you can't do anything like that, I would say it's worth it. If you aggressively pay off the loan when you graduate, you won't have to worry about it for long. I would do it, personally. I'll graduate with a hefty load of debt because of the cost of preschool/day care for my kids, and I think it's absolutely worth it!

JaxiaKiley · Dec 11, 2007

I took out a loan to pay for nursing school and some living expenses. The interest rate isn't pretty at all, but I'm doing what I can to counter that, such as putting the money I don't need right this moment into money market accounts and CDs. With the interest I'm earning, it makes it like my loan rate is only around 4% or so.

In the long run, I decided it was worth it for me. Best of luck to you!

nphan2 · Dec 12, 2007

I took out a loan to pay for nursing school and some living expenses. The interest rate isn't pretty at all, but I'm doing what I can to counter that, such as putting the money I don't need right this moment into money market accounts and CDs. With the interest I'm earning, it makes it like my loan rate is only around 4% or so.
In the long run, I decided it was worth it for me. Best of luck to you!

I mean I KNOW that everything will be worth it in the end (if I ever actually finish), but it just seems so depressing that a $15G loan with interest (if paying it off in 20 years) is gonna be like around $70G... but hopefully I can pay it off in like 4 years instead.. *sigh*