Are Student Loans as Bad as They Seem?

[britt1110]

Hamelia

britt1110

I never hear anything good about. I always hear about how they end up doing more harm than good in the end. There's always that story about someone not being able to pay them back and constant debt. I want to avoid loans as much as possible because I don't want to end up in a worse situation, but it's looking like my only option right now.

What I want to know is, are they really that bad? Is there any way around them?

The issue is that student loans are some of the most common bad loans - i.e., they're some of the most common loans that have severe adverse effects on the people who have them. Student loans in and of themselves aren't awful - in fact, the government is probably one of the most forgiving organizations you could take a loan out from. Student loans can be forgiven through various means (e.g. teaching in poor areas, or in much needed subjects), the interest rate is pretty damn good compared to loans you could get from elsewhere.

The issue is that student loans can't simply be gotten rid of. Declaring bankruptcy won't get rid of student loan debt. The people who get student loans often end up getting a lot of student loans. Those same people also very rarely have sufficient means to start whittling down those loans - straight out of college, it's rare to get a good, well paying job. That takes time.

In short, the reason why student loan debts are such a huge issue is that they're more common than many other loans, the people who get them are more adversely affected than the people who get most other kinds of loans, and you can't get rid of them through bankruptcy. But the loans in and of themselves are not bad, especially because the government is forgiving and has a rather low interest rate.

That's another one of my concerns, I'm not going to get a decent job straight out of college with just a BA in psych. I'm going to need yet more school and therefore more money in order to actually do something worthwhile.

As for the whole bankruptcy thing, I thought about just paying for everything with credit cards instead since [student] loans aren't forgiven and then claiming bankruptcy then, but I'm not sure how well of a plan that really is or if I'd run into legal issues.

[britt1110]

Silentmarie

britt1110

Silentmarie

britt1110

sparklebuttz

I guess you should try to avoid them if you can - but if you can't I feel like it's still worth it, because I rather have a career that I will love, rather than not going to school but working some rando job that I probably wouldn't like at all lol

That's another thing. The world is making it seem like the chances of you finding a job that has anything to do with major are slim, and that a lot of graduates still end up in that situation of having some random job they hate.

This comes from people going into useless fields where there is no job market. Choose your major wisely, and you will do well. If you pick a STEM field, you're guaranteed a job. Science, Technology, Engineering, and Medical. Btw, medical doesn't have to mean doctor or nurse. I'm going into Medical Laboratory Science and I only need a bachelor's.

Well, I'm going to school for psychology, clinical to be specific, and I just see a bunch of people who have a degree in psych sitting around doing nothing with it.

EDIT: I know I gonna need hella schooling which is why I don't want to get chocked up with loans right from the start.

Ah, you might have a bit of an issue with Psychology.
The problem with Psychology is that more people go into the field than there is demand for it.

I feel like the thing with psychology though is that some people get a degree just because without any further schooling, while the rest dive into a bunch of different sub-fields, but I understand that the demand isn't necessiarly booming like being a computer engineer (or any type of engineer stare )

[Silentmarie]

britt1110

Silentmarie

britt1110

Silentmarie

britt1110

sparklebuttz

I guess you should try to avoid them if you can - but if you can't I feel like it's still worth it, because I rather have a career that I will love, rather than not going to school but working some rando job that I probably wouldn't like at all lol

That's another thing. The world is making it seem like the chances of you finding a job that has anything to do with major are slim, and that a lot of graduates still end up in that situation of having some random job they hate.

This comes from people going into useless fields where there is no job market. Choose your major wisely, and you will do well. If you pick a STEM field, you're guaranteed a job. Science, Technology, Engineering, and Medical. Btw, medical doesn't have to mean doctor or nurse. I'm going into Medical Laboratory Science and I only need a bachelor's.

Well, I'm going to school for psychology, clinical to be specific, and I just see a bunch of people who have a degree in psych sitting around doing nothing with it.

EDIT: I know I gonna need hella schooling which is why I don't want to get chocked up with loans right from the start.

Ah, you might have a bit of an issue with Psychology.
The problem with Psychology is that more people go into the field than there is demand for it.

I feel like the thing with psychology though is that some people get a degree just because without any further schooling, while the rest dive into a bunch of different sub-fields, but I understand that the demand isn't necessiarly booming like being a computer engineer (or any type of engineer stare )

Well, good luck with it! You'll need it. Work hard. smile

[The Forbidden Soul]

Ive been told by teachers that you should take out the biggest loan you could and set up to pay the smallest amount back. By the time you die you should still owe half and once you are dead theres nothing to collect from you. One teacher told me he pays 200 a month after schooling and claims hardship every now and then to skip a payment year.

[Adversative]

britt1110

Silentmarie

britt1110

Silentmarie

britt1110

sparklebuttz

I guess you should try to avoid them if you can - but if you can't I feel like it's still worth it, because I rather have a career that I will love, rather than not going to school but working some rando job that I probably wouldn't like at all lol

That's another thing. The world is making it seem like the chances of you finding a job that has anything to do with major are slim, and that a lot of graduates still end up in that situation of having some random job they hate.

This comes from people going into useless fields where there is no job market. Choose your major wisely, and you will do well. If you pick a STEM field, you're guaranteed a job. Science, Technology, Engineering, and Medical. Btw, medical doesn't have to mean doctor or nurse. I'm going into Medical Laboratory Science and I only need a bachelor's.

Well, I'm going to school for psychology, clinical to be specific, and I just see a bunch of people who have a degree in psych sitting around doing nothing with it.

EDIT: I know I gonna need hella schooling which is why I don't want to get chocked up with loans right from the start.

Ah, you might have a bit of an issue with Psychology.
The problem with Psychology is that more people go into the field than there is demand for it.

I feel like the thing with psychology though is that some people get a degree just because without any further schooling, while the rest dive into a bunch of different sub-fields, but I understand that the demand isn't necessiarly booming like being a computer engineer (or any type of engineer stare )

It really depends on how widely you're willing to look. If your plan is to be a therapist/psychologist/psych researcher, then yes, you will need extra schooling and there will be competition (although most of the people I know who've gotten an MS are employed as therapists now.) But there are a bunch of fields where a psychology background is extremely useful -- government stuff, HR, organizational psychology (helping companies figure out how to be more productive/efficient).

I don't think it's actually very difficult to get jobs with a Psych degree if you're a reasonably competent human being and you're willing to be creative. A psych BA gets you a $14-15/hour job doing some kind of direct care, like with developmentally disabled adults, inpatient clients, domestic violence survivors -- better than minimum wage, related to the field, not where you want to stay forever. Which is fine -- most people don't. They get promoted to manager level or they go back to school after a few years.

[Silentmarie]

The Forbidden Soul

Ive been told by teachers that you should take out the biggest loan you could and set up to pay the smallest amount back. By the time you die you should still owe half and once you are dead theres nothing to collect from you. One teacher told me he pays 200 a month after schooling and claims hardship every now and then to skip a payment year.

That just sounds dishonest and irresponsible.

[nitznitz]

I heard that over in the US they're a neccesary devil and create lifelong wage slaves more often than actually help someone get a better job.

Over here it's one of the many loans people live under, but usually goes around 30K and not 100K per degree, from what I heard.
I 'm lucky to have a saving pool from my parents so it's going to be less of an issue, but each to his own woes.

[britt1110]

Adversative

britt1110

Silentmarie

britt1110

Silentmarie

This comes from people going into useless fields where there is no job market. Choose your major wisely, and you will do well. If you pick a STEM field, you're guaranteed a job. Science, Technology, Engineering, and Medical. Btw, medical doesn't have to mean doctor or nurse. I'm going into Medical Laboratory Science and I only need a bachelor's.

Well, I'm going to school for psychology, clinical to be specific, and I just see a bunch of people who have a degree in psych sitting around doing nothing with it.

EDIT: I know I gonna need hella schooling which is why I don't want to get chocked up with loans right from the start.

Ah, you might have a bit of an issue with Psychology.
The problem with Psychology is that more people go into the field than there is demand for it.

I feel like the thing with psychology though is that some people get a degree just because without any further schooling, while the rest dive into a bunch of different sub-fields, but I understand that the demand isn't necessiarly booming like being a computer engineer (or any type of engineer stare )

It really depends on how widely you're willing to look. If your plan is to be a therapist/psychologist/psych researcher, then yes, you will need extra schooling and there will be competition (although most of the people I know who've gotten an MS are employed as therapists now.) But there are a bunch of fields where a psychology background is extremely useful -- government stuff, HR, organizational psychology (helping companies figure out how to be more productive/efficient).

I don't think it's actually very difficult to get jobs with a Psych degree if you're a reasonably competent human being and you're willing to be creative. A psych BA gets you a $14-15/hour job doing some kind of direct care, like with developmentally disabled adults, inpatient clients, domestic violence survivors -- better than minimum wage, related to the field, not where you want to stay forever. Which is fine -- most people don't. They get promoted to manager level or they go back to school after a few years.

Thanks for that, I never realized there was much you could do with a job related BA in psych. Everytime I look up something or talk to different people they make it seem like the best you can do is get a minimum wage job unrelated to the degree until you go back for more schooling.

[x--Mystica Elanae]

I'm looking at 120k+ loan when I graduate. Granted this is for professional school, and I actually got a full ride and then some as an undergrad so this is all I owe.

It depends on if you work smart enough. Like right now I'm trying to work for the military so they cn help pay off some of it.