It's that time of year again! Back to school! Get ready for pens, papers, late night study sessions, and... DEBT.
If you are a college student present or past, you know that this time will be super stressful for us. Another year, another FAFSA application and another loan taken out and maybe some invisible (or very visible) tears that comes along with that process.
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As an independent 22-year-old, I am headed back to college to further my education and make something out of myself! I'm currently working in the medical field and I am pursing a medical degree. Sounds all sophisticated and prestigious and I am happy that I have chosen this path, but I don't have tens of thousands of dollars to pay for college. Maybe a lot of you are thinking, "Well, don't complain! People have done this for years, and continue to do it. You'll be alright, it will be totally be worth it once you get your degree!" I'm sure I'll be beaming the day I stand up on that stage and officially graduate; in fact I can't wait.
Something looms behind that glorious moment, something that will be with me forever no matter what (almost like that annoying friend who steals your clothes and then loves having YOU pay for all the drinks.) It is a sad moment when you get a nice paycheck and finally think you can get your hair done, or go buy those shoes you have been eye balling all summer, but then you have to pay rent, car notes, insurance, utilities, gas, credit cards, phone bills, and your student loan debt. That is a lot to pay for on a small salary. I have been doing that on my own for a couple years now. It is hard! Then you are expected to do all that and then go back to college to finally get a degree to make more money so maybe you'll have some extra funds for those shoes. LIFE IS TOUGH.
I've been going back and forth between really wanting a great job when I'm in my late twenties, wanting to set myself and my future family up for success to college is so expensive, I don't even know if I could pay those loans off in my lifetime while living comfortably. The system is broken, and sadly, the repair seems unlikely. College is a business and money is power. For those of us who don't have the cash to be handing out to these universities/colleges, it's hard to finish school or even start!
For those of us who have had a tough time figuring out college, how to pay for it and trying to keep track of the money we owe, it's not simple. The equation goes something like this: You have no money or you're working a less than promising job and they say a degree will help you get paid better so you set out for a degree and realize when you're done that you probably owe more than you make a year to the college. Then you struggle to pay all your bills and now you wonder if you were better off without a degree because of the massive amounts of debt you're in. Its a vicious circle and we all just want to get out alive.
To end on a more positive note than to be all sad about the inevitable debt we will be paying back in a few years, I do want to say that in college I have learned a lot about myself, and what I want to do. I have met some really great friends and I wouldn't change that for a thing. Education is powerful and a privilege! If you're going to college and you know you'll soon be getting those invoices, just have fun while you're in school. Make the best of it and hopefully we hit the lotto and never have to worry about money again!
