[central_va]

The only way not working while being an undergraduate makes sense is if you are studying the hard sciences, engineering or pre-med. Every free minute should be spent studying. Working in this case does lower your grad point average and initial hiring prospects. So the part time job is not worth it in that scenario.

I know this form experience, I studied Electrical Engineering and stopped working for a semester, my life was so much better and my grades went from B's to A's. Alas I could only afford that for 1 semester.

[goodwithagun]

I completely agree with you. There is a certain tradeoff for debt vs. degree. An education degree is not worth the tradeoff though. For just under $22K (I did receive a partial athletic scholarship) I graduated from U of Akron with the same education degree my brother-in-law has. His Hiram degree set him and my in-laws back thousands. He still owes money on his bachelor’s degree and he graduated (I think) in 1997. I graduated debt free.