3 Ways to Avoid a Student Loan Debt Crisis
In my opinion, the best way to avoid student loan debt is to not take any. It can be done! I did it. Here is how:
- When I first started I attended community colleges and took as many classes I possibly could in this setting. I was even ridiculed saying that nobody would take me seriously because I attend community college. I beg to differ! While attending community college my actual books were more expensive than tuition and being a non-traditional student it was a friendly setting for me. I don't feel like I received any less of an education because I took my basic classes there.
- Speaking of books, instead of paying for the obscene prices at the book store I purchased my books from a website call bigwords.com. This site would scour the web and find the sites where the book was being sold and listed them from cheapest to most expensive. I probably saved hundreds of dollars using this site. Also, I would re-sell them after the semesters on Amazon and get premium dollar. There was more than one occasion where I made money!
- Once I utilized all options at the community college level, I transferred to a university. I picked a university not because of it's name or prestige, but one that was affordable and offered me what I needed. I could have went to the more prestigious university on the other side of the street but I would have paid triple the costs and their business program didn't even have the high accreditation as the one I chose.
- I also took advantage of the school's payment plan. For a very small fee it allowed me to make my tuition payments on a monthly basis during that semester.
- If I had a semester where I could only pay for 4 classes instead of 5, that is what I did. Yes, it took me a little longer to complete my degree but I have no regrets.
- Once I was at the university level I was more active in pursuing scholarships and grants. There were two grants I found that applied to me and helped immensely! In fact, one of my semesters was free.
- Lastly, when I needed help instead of walking into the financial aid office I got a job. One time I worked in a shoe store (not fun!) and then I worked on campus. Would it have been much easier on myself to just take a loan? Sure! But I just kicked in my time management skills.
I do know for many, student loans are inevitable and are a great resource for getting an education. But I do see too many instances where students walk away with an exuberant amount of loans and got a degree that does not compensate for it. This was addressed in the article.
I am working full-time and come January, I will start my graduate program. Looking ahead, I should be able to pay for schooling without going into debt. I will be attending the same university as I can not beat the price and the graduate program I will be studying in is ranked very highly and has the coveted accreditation I look for.
