When you are in high school, you think about a lot of things. You think about finishing high school. You think about getting away from the drama. You think about getting away from the idiots, losers and the rest of the people you can't stand being around. You think about being done with teachers you don't like. You think about not having to be around people who are fake, lie and pretend to be everyone's friend. But you also think about missing friends you've grown to love. You think about not getting up at 7 a.m. anymore (or earlier) to go to school. You think about the people that you won't miss. You think about the principal that you couldn't stand. You think about a lot of things. But one thing you don't think about is what it's like to be in debt until you die.
People who don't go to college have no idea what it's like to see the dollars that it costs to buy books, pay for room and board, tuition, food and anything else you might need in college. They don't know how expensive it is to eat out, buy groceries to eat in or buy a textbook that may cost anywhere from $7 to $200. People who don't go to college don't realize that an Uber might cost you $20 to get across campus, back and forth to class because you don't have the time to ride the bus. They don't realize the stress, trauma and pain that people go through during college. But one thing that people who don't go to college don't have to think about is what it's like to be in debt until you die.
When a high school student is nearing graduation, they start researching colleges. They've already applied to where they want to go and initially, don't look at dollar signs. They don't look at the bills. They don't look at what their mom and dad might or might not be able to afford. They don't look at the cost of the dorms. They don't look at the cost of a bus pass. They don't think about how much food costs on campus. They don't think about living expenses involving a car or car insurance. They really don't think about anything. They "might" think about their mom and dad, and wonder if they can afford it. But in the end, the kids coming out of high school and excited to go to college don't think about one important thing: debt.
If you want to attend Michigan State University, you need to think about $10,000 for an apartment, sorority or a dorm for the school year. You need to think about $14,000 for tuition and expenses for that. That includes some other goodies like technology fees and class fees. Then you can add in another $5,000 or so for books, supplies and other odds and ends. Toss in some pencils here and there, and of course, you want to look nice, wear good clothes, maybe some cool looking shoes etc. When you add up the total cost, you want to shit yourself because you're looking somewhere in the range of $30,000 a year. And then you start thinking about going to a community college. You think about going to a public college that nobody heard of. Maybe you even think about not going to college at all. But the thought passes. You want to go to college. You need to go to college. But you don't want to know what it's like to be in debt until you die.
If you think about a community college, you're going to pay $7,500 or so a year. That might or might not include books. But if you figure two years, you already owe $15,000 or more by the time you go to a four year university. So let me say this: you would be amazed at how many people I know who are in debt that exceeds $100,000; that figure includes four-year universities and community colleges. One of my friends owes $170,000 in debt. He makes $42,000 a year teaching middle school kids. So if he lives at home with his parents, does nothing, never leaves the house and doesn't even buy Taco Bell, he could be debt free in about five years without interest. And if he doesn't do that, but decides to buy a house, own a nice car and make monthly payments on his student loans? With the average interest rate being just above six percent, that person is going to pay approximately $1,000 a month for the next 30 years. And if he's in his mid-20's when he gets out of college, that means he'll have his student loans paid off by the time he's on social security, if he doesn't die first.
That's what it's like to be in debt until you die. And that's what most people don't take into account. They want to go to college. They want to live in a dorm. They want to hang out with a fraternity. They want to join a sorority. They want to have friends. They want to do things with their buddies. They want to go out to dinner. They want to watch movies. They want to do things with their neighbors. But they don't know what it's like to be in debt until they die.
Go to college. Finish in four years. Get out of school. Accept your first job. And then wait for six months until after you've graduated. And don't go into full cardiac arrest when you see the tuition bill and the costs you're going to be paying for the next however many years. Don't think about it. Just go to college. Enjoy yourself. Have a great four years. But unfortunately, most people do that. And they don't think about the one important thing: what it's like to be in debt until you die.
Good luck. I hope the next four years are great. Or if you are reading this and you are already gone? God Bless you if you can pay off your student loans before you die. If you're lucky and don't have student loans? Consider yourself among the blessed in this world.
The most frustrating part about student loan debt is that colleges don't care. They know the government is going to guarantee that money. The schools know the government will harass you, threaten you, garnish your wages, attach your bank accounts, take your cars and bug the hell out of you until you pay. They'll make payment arrangements. They'll call you at all hours of the night. They will make you want to change your phone number and address, but it won't matter, because they will find you. They WILL find you. And the colleges don't care.
Michigan State University doesn't care. University of Michigan doesn't care. Siena Heights? They don't care. I attended Siena Heights, and within six months after graduation, they cut off access to my student email. They wouldn't return phone calls. They wouldn't allow access to discussion boards, employment boards or posting boards. And just disregard the fact that they took a lot of money from me so I could pursue a higher education, and never backed it up after promising "unlimited support." That's what colleges do.
Colleges don't care. Universities don't care. They understand that students are stuck. They know students take whatever money they can take to live on and that they won't realize the consequences until it's too late. I know a half dozen students who attended Siena Heights in Adrian, Michigan who weren't helped in their job hunt or given any amount of assistance once they graduated. Until six months later, the first bill showed up, and they called the college, utterly shocked at the debt. And they were told they were on their own, wished the best of luck, and then sent alumni information in the mail, hoping to get more money.
I know someone who graduated with a four-year degree in education, took a job as a first year teacher making $32,000 a year and nine years later, continues to pay $500 per month on a student loan that won't be paid off until he's almost 60. And nobody cares. They just keep handing out money. They don't think about the repercussions. They don't think about what happens if someone can't pay the bill.
I hope I die before my student loans are paid off. Because a little known fact is, student loan debt is non-transferrable, meaning that if someone owes money in student loans and can't pay them back before they die, the government swallows the money. I hope that happens when I die, so that the government gets boned in the end; they won't ever see a dime of that money and nobody gets paid. Because if colleges hand out money without caring? Why should anyone care about paying it back?
