Worried about paying off student loan debt

sbostonRN · Nov 17, 2013

My husband and I had 135K combined for our undergrad degrees (me: previous bachelors + ADN and him: bachelors). I think this is quite shocking to many people who live in areas of the country with lower costs of living. In New England and New York/tristate area, it's just a fact of life. Not a pleasant fact of life, but it is what it is.

We have good-paying jobs and have been paying extra on our loans for the past 3 years (about triple the monthly payment). We have 8 months left til we pay them off (that's about 20 years ahead of schedule). We live well below our means and were lucky to have good jobs. I don't know where that formula gets it's numbers but DH and I make nowhere close to $172K combined. With our level of debt, our monthly payment was about $1200.

I think you're really just looking for support here. I don't see you transferring schools or moving somewhere to transfer to a 5k/year BSN program. So my support and advice is to make as many connections as possible to ensure a good job upon graduation. Do your research and find out what your options are as a new grad. Try to get a foot in the door as a CNA or tech. Start good frugal habits now. Try to pay your interest while you're in school if you can, because when it capitalizes, it adds up fast (I had 10K capitalize when I finally graduated...wish I had paid that as a went).

I can't wait to pay off the debt in 8 months and finally start saving for a house! That's been our only gripe with the student loan debt...it's prevented us from from moving forward.

KelRN215, BSN, RN · Nov 17, 2013

tomato tomato, you're out of school 6-1/2 years and still have 40K in student loans. I think that's awesome that you have a great credit score, you own your own home, and are so smart that you qualified for free tuition at any public university in your state. That's the beauty of this country, if you want to spend 100K on something you could get your for free, that's entirely up to you. Please keep in mind, you get out of whatever program you attend what you put into it. I myself went to a private school costing me roughly 40K, but I graduated with zero debt because I took no loans, no interest, I paid upfront. I did not let my school shape me, I took what I learned and shaped myself into the person I am.
There are so many variables to your argument, and quite frankly we're way off the original OP's issue, no university is worth 100K for a BSN, he is going to have a hard time paying that off, you got out at the right time, you have a job, he's facing a poor economy, and less available jobs for those without experience.

OP's question was whether or not anyone had graduated with a similar amount of debt and if anyone could offer him some hope that he wouldn't kill himself paying him back. I graduated with a very similar amount of debt and, for that reason, responded to him that I knew where he was coming from and I have not- to the best of my knowledge- died from debt. Like I said, I own my own house, I drive a new car and I travel outside of the country several times/year. I don't know what part of the country you're from but, up here, what the OP is describing is very typical. You can't get a job without a BSN and I can't think of any private schools in my city that you could get a 4 year degree for $100K at. At the schools here, a 4 year degree will cost $200-$250K. The economy is not great by any means but I've seen the situation improve for BSN new grads over the last year and a half to two years. When I left the hospital in 2012, they were exclusively hiring new grads (BSN only, of course) because they could pay them less.

NurseGirl525, ASN, RN · Nov 17, 2013

My sister graduated with over $250,000 in student loan debt. Granted she has her doctorate in physical therapy but still she has a huge amount of debt. But she makes enough to pay it and recently consolidated it into 15 years instead of 30. I would look at all of your options when you graduate and see what plan fits you to repay it.

manusko · Nov 18, 2013

OP's question was whether or not anyone had graduated with a similar amount of debt and if anyone could offer him some hope that he wouldn't kill himself paying him back. I graduated with a very similar amount of debt and, for that reason, responded to him that I knew where he was coming from and I have not- to the best of my knowledge- died from debt. Like I said, I own my own house, I drive a new car and I travel outside of the country several times/year. I don't know what part of the country you're from but, up here, what the OP is describing is very typical. You can't get a job without a BSN and I can't think of any private schools in my city that you could get a 4 year degree for $100K at. At the schools here, a 4 year degree will cost $200-$250K. The economy is not great by any means but I've seen the situation improve for BSN new grads over the last year and a half to two years. When I left the hospital in 2012, they were exclusively hiring new grads (BSN only, of course) because they could pay them less.

If you graduate with 200-250k in student loan debt I seriously hope you have a masters at the very least. That's worse than out of state tuition at a state university.

Where is up here? I know that in Northwest PA a private school with a BSN program will cost you about 100k in tuition but I haven't heard of any that cost over 200k and would wonder how that could possibly be worth it.

KelRN215, BSN, RN · Nov 18, 2013

If you graduate with 200-250k in student loan debt I seriously hope you have a masters at the very least. That's worse than out of state tuition at a state university.
Where is up here? I know that in Northwest PA a private school with a BSN program will cost you about 100k in tuition but I haven't heard of any that cost over 200k and would wonder how that could possibly be worth it.

Boston. And of course it's worse than out of state tuition at a state university- private costs more than public any day of the week. After this topic started, I checked out my alma mater's tuition and fees for this year and the total cost would be over $60K once you factor in things like books and other expenses. Same with other schools in the area. Taken from their websites, this is how much some of the more well known schools in the area cost for this academic year (and this is just tuition and fees):

MIT- $54,238

Northeastern University- $55,296

Boston University- $58,530

Boston College- $56,122

Brandeis University- $57,856

Harvard- $56,407

Tufts University- $58,780

Now, not all of these universities have nursing but this is how much a 4 year degree costs up here and nursing is no exception.

As far as Pennsylvania goes, a quick Google search tells me that Carnegie Mellon's total cost for this year is $62,032 and that UPenn's advertised cost for the year is $61,800. Those are arguably two of the better known private universities in Pennsylvania. UPenn has nursing so a nursing education there would cost close to $250K. Villanova University, another well known university in PA with nursing, has an annual cost of $56,286 for incoming freshmen. Keep in mind costs also go up every year.

manusko · Nov 18, 2013

Boston. And of course it's worse than out of state tuition at a state university- private costs more than public any day of the week. After this topic started, I checked out my alma mater's tuition and fees for this year and the total cost would be over $60K once you factor in things like books and other expenses. Same with other schools in the area. Taken from their websites, this is how much some of the more well known schools in the area cost (and this is just tuition and fees):
MIT- $54,238
Northeastern University- $55,296
Boston University- $58,530
Boston College- $56,122
Brandeis University- $57,856
Harvard- $56,407
Tufts University- $58,780
Now, not all of these universities have nursing but this is how much a 4 year degree costs up here and nursing is no exception.
As far as Pennsylvania goes, a quick Google search tells me that Carnegie Mellon's total cost for this year is $62,032 and that UPenn's advertised cost for the year is $61,800. Those are arguably two of the better known private universities in Pennsylvania. UPenn has nursing so a nursing education there would cost close to $250K. Villanova University, another well known university in PA with nursing, has an annual cost of $56,286 for incoming freshmen. Keep in mind costs also go up every year.

That's just ridiculous. I paid less than that for 28 months of anesthesia tuition and i went to a private school. I turned down an interview in Massachusetts. I just knew the taxes and cost of living would be way too much for me.

wirehead · Nov 18, 2013

Again KelRN215, you graduated at better times then the OP is facing. If he will live home with his parents and be fortunate enough to get a job, sure he wont die from his debt, but he will feel significant pain in his wallet for awhile. As another poster mentioned, it's just not a good return on investment. I want all those in our profession to succeed, but the simple truth is, he will struggle for quite some time to pay back his debt. I'm sure you had to make some adjustments in your life to pay back your loans, for example, maybe you had to refinance your mortgage on the home you keep mentioning you own? One day, I hope he owns his own home, drives a new car, and travels outside of the country several times a year, but one step at a time, he needs to graduate and get a job first.

I'm sure we can agree that these universities have some nerve charging the tuition they do, take those schools in Boston you mentioned, not 1 of them rank in the top 20 undergrad nursing programs in the US. They are all name brands, and that's wonderful, but as I mentioned you get out of your program what you put into it, it's not all about the name.

Nursing will rebound, but it will be some time before that happens, the economy has led to older nurses staying on the job longer, and retired nurses coming back to the work force placing obstacles in the new grads way.

I'm from NJ, and the picture here is the same as pretty much everywhere in the country, if you're looking to work in a hospital as a new grad, good luck, not likely to happen. You have a shot at home care, or a nursing home, but they too prefer experience. I realize the following article is older than the 2 years or so you left your hospital, but sadly, the overall attitude towards new grads hasn't changed much.

New nursing graduates north of Boston confront weak job market - The Boston Globe

KelRN215, BSN, RN · Nov 18, 2013

FTR, only two of the schools I named in Boston even have nursing programs so obviously most of them are not on the list of the top nursing programs- I wasn't listing them to show how much nursing school costs but how much COLLEGE costs in this part of the country. The two nursing programs tied for #1 according to US News and World Report (Johns Hopkins and UPenn) both have annual costs over $60K. I pay little attention to what US News and World Report says, though, since I spent many years at a hospital that was consistently ranked #1 or #2 and found it to be lacking in many ways.

I disagree that the picture is the same everywhere in the country. There are parts of the country where nursing jobs abound because these are parts of the country where people don't want to live. It is more difficult in urban areas and at academic medical centers but, like I said, even there I've seen an improvement in the past 2 years. The article from 2010 was relevant in, well, 2010. We weren't hiring at all then. By 2011, my hospital was exclusively hiring new grads and that remains true today. Every time I talk to someone from my old floor, a new new grad is orienting.

OP is already enrolled in a program that's going to leave him with much debt. He can't go back in time and change the way he did things. He asked if it will be possible to not kill himself paying it off and- with smart money management- I believe it will be. Also, no I didn't necessarily make any changes to my life because of my student loans. I NEVER lived at home after graduation (I choose sanity over saving money on rent) and I bought my house on my own after working full-time for 4 years. I have friends who graduated with no student loans who couldn't do that. When I refinanced earlier this year, it had nothing to do with my student loans and everything to do with the fact that rates had gone down a ridiculous amount and I could save myself several hundred dollars a month.

LadyFree28, BSN, LPN, RN · Nov 18, 2013

You literally should have a life insurance policy on yourself large enough to pay off the loan if you have anyone cosigning on your private loans for their sake!

I actually do. :blink:

Until then, I have a home, a timeshare, plus still qualify to get a low interest car loan.

The government has actually made strides to make it possible to have student loan payments more affordable; there are certain parts of the government that did want to do loan forgiveness, and student loan reform-a lot of those loans were made by the "BIG banks" that got bailed out, so the bubble has already started to deflate. There is also a grass roots org that is still pushing for student loan forgiveness; until then, I am taking advantage of the many opportunities to bring down my student loan balance....if I don't I have enough life insurance policy to keep my generations comfortable and my debts paid. :yes:

wirehead · Nov 18, 2013

What a lively debate, love it! First, I realize not all of those schools in Boston offer nursing undergrad degrees, but I think you well knew, I meant the ones that do are not in the top 20. The bigger point I was making is that all of those schools plus the one's you mentioned, UPenn & Johns Hopkins are insanely overpriced as well. It just doesn't make sense to take on that much debt at a time you may not even be able to get a job! You keep citing 1 hospital in Boston that is hiring new grads, do you really believe this is more common than not??? The article was from 2010, and is still relevant today! See the link at the bottom.

As for the poor OP who probably didn't realize what a lively debate his question would've started, he has to graduate, and get a job to be able to smartly manage his money. You're assuming he will have one when his time to repay his loans comes, I'm assuming he's not, but hoping he will. I'm only following the current proven trends of our profession.

You've done well for yourself, and I think that's wonderful, I don't feel I need to point out how well I've done for myself to make my points, but you could've had a bigger house sooner, and a more expensive car if you went to one of those public universities for free as you mentioned earlier, now that's smart money management!!

For nursing jobs, new grads need not apply - Jan. 14, 2013

KelRN215, BSN, RN · Nov 18, 2013

Or maybe I wouldn't have found the same job that I did right out of school since the same clinical opportunities wouldn't have necessarily been available to me at another school and maybe I wouldn't be where I am now. No one knows. I don't necessarily want a bigger house or more expensive car. According to your link, the MAJORITY of nursing new grads are working. 36% not working as nurses means 64% are- so nearly 2/3 of new grads are finding employment. I'm not sure why we would then assume that the OP would fall into the 1/3 that is not. OP came on here looking for people who've been in a similar situation and are managing- I have been and am which is the only reason I even responded to this thread in the first place. I'm not sure why you're so intent on telling him that he will definitely struggle. He might, but he might not.

wirehead · Nov 18, 2013

You're right, maybe you wouldn't have found the same job, maybe you would've, you took a gamble it cost you a fortune, you've done well, and I'm happy for you. I stand by the fact that the profession is not doing well overall, and it's getting worse, look at all the people who are now getting pay cuts, losing jobs, that's the other end of this issue that you have to consider.

As for the article, like I mentioned it's not a complete picture, it doesn't say that 64% are getting jobs, maybe some graduated but didn't pass the NCLEX, maybe some gave up and took other jobs, it's not definitive enough to say what the other percentage is doing, but I'd bet they're not all working!!

I think his chances based on where the OP lives, he will have a tougher time finding a job as a new grad, but maybe you can provide that 1 hospital's information in Boston that you know is hiring new grads and help him out? I know none of the hospitals near me would hire a new grad without experience, they advertise experience as a must.