Posted on 02/12/2008 5:09:19 AM PST by rightwingintelligentsia
In the same soft-spoken manner that she uses to counsel patients and families facing end-of-life decisions, social worker Elana Gonzalez presents a fact of her own future.
"Two-hundred seventy-three dollars and sixty-one cents a month for 30 years," she said, describing her student loan payment. "It is disgusting."
Ms. Gonzalez, 25, knows that she would never have been able to secure the job that she loves as a clinical crisis coordinator at UPMC Shadyside without having her bachelor's and master's degrees.
But for the generation that includes Ms. Gonzalez, those educational achievements have come at a price: Nearly two-thirds of graduates of four-year colleges have student loans.
And with college costs rising faster than inflation, the average cumulative debt for graduating seniors is approaching $20,000, more than double that of 14 years ago.
In ways large and small, those loans are changing the way that this generation lives. Even in the best of circumstances -- in which education does help land the job of the student's choice -- the monthly payments are often accompanied by dread, anxiety and uncertainty.
"It's hard to come to terms with; you're just going to pay it forever," said Ms. Gonzalez, who has about $52,000 in loans from her Chatham University undergraduate degree and University of Pittsburgh master's degree.
(Excerpt) Read more at post-gazette.com ...
I worked during college...no parties, frats, etc. Came out debt free.
Ms. Gonzalez, welcome to the REAL WORLD. You’re going to have large monthly debts for the rest of your life.
for later
Social worker? Clinical crisis co-ordinator?
Here’s a thought—Get a job for which there is a real market demand.
Colleges and universities are complicit in this, raising their tuition and board fees with imounity knowing that students would take out even more student loans to get through the full four years.
Sure, I’ve got a student loan payment, but the career advancement I’ve had as a result of getting that first degree (like being hired by an employer who paid for my graduate degree), allow me to easily afford my $190.00 monthly student loan payment.
I’ll never whine about it. I consider it money well spent (low interest money at that).
“educational achievements” don’t mean “financial achievements”.
If the system isn’t working, find the ones that are. Go to college, get a nice degree or three, and you’ll be set no longer works. Sorry. Keep teaching your kids this plan and you’ll continue to doom them to a “lifetime of debt.”
Me, too, but as a bartender, so I enjoyed plenty of partying.
“I worked during college...no parties, frats, etc. Came out debt free.”
Same here.........I think we’re on to something!
Still, working can defray the cost immensely. I also commuted to school, didn’t live on campus. I was fortunate to get a job in my field of study through the career center. While I was there, they offered me a full time job so my studies switched to part time. It took me 6 years to graduate, but I worked my tail off both at my job and in school, and came out debt free. It can be done.
What? She thought it was agoing to be free?
I saved and paid my student loan(s) off early.
They thought I was crazy when I showed up at the student loan office to write check, even saying “most just don’t pay it back at all”.
$52,000....and she’s a social worker??
Bingo. College tuition has been increasing faster than the rate of inflation for many years now. Not only do most schools fail to give students enough financial aid to meet their financial need, they charge students for every little thing, from parking to laundry. Of course, the more money the student earns, the less financial aid he is eligible to receive.
Finally, let’s not forget that there is a big difference between subsidized student loans, which do not accrue interest until the student graduates, and unsubsidized loans, which start accruing interest immediately. A student who graduates with $20,000 in subsidized loans will pay back much less than one who graduates with $20,000 in unsubsidized loans. The latter will have to pay back twice the amount that he borrowed.
Another generation programmed to want something for nothing.
I came out of College and Professional school debt free save one. I owed the USAF four years. Very good trade off for 8 years of paid education.
I work a third shift job to put my kids thru school. My direct deposit goes straight to my kids accounts at their schools. I keep $75 per week. Borrowed money is no way to attend college.
My daughter is a grief and crisis counselor ... she got the job by volunteering during high school and after - showing that she was reliable and competent - and was offered a paying position after graduation ... that was 8 years ago.
Hey, she's making a difference and changing the world, OK?
/sarc
If someone knows how to post a graphic, please do.
"Student Loans" are a sacred cow. One mayst naught QUESTION their inherent goodness. R-i-i-i-ght.
Congrats on doing it the old-fashioned way!
It sounds like it never occured to her that she could double her payments and get rid of them sooner.
Sounds better than inflation to me. When the true cost of college is about $60k per year it almost sounds like welfare.
I served my country and went to college (GI Bill)
Some think college is a right, but no one should get a free ride. Funny how these idiots today have no plan of action and think everything should be free. Oh wait, their mindset is for we tax payers to fund their education.
Liberals have no concept of responsibility, only the entitlement syndrome.(From the womb to the tomb)
Respectfully,
NSNR
Yes, but then she couldn’t afford the Escalade payments, dummy! :)
Choices have consequences. If you didn't want the debt - don't take out the loan. You knew what you were doing when you took out the loan - same as me. No one likes having to have a monthly payment and wouldn't mind having it disappear, but that's not reality. Work hard and show your degrees actually have benefit to you and it will pay for itself...but with this poor attitude, it won't.
Or, she could live in a crummy apartment, cut her expenses, and scrimp on everything and plunk down $981 a month and be out from under in five years.
Or, if that is too severe, she could just cut out the Starbucks, and plunk down $552 a month and be done in ten years.
Look at the price of tuition....why has it gone through the roof? Its because we’ve altered the natural market with the billions of dollars in govt aid. Schools have jacked up tuition because of the quantity of public scholarships and those that don”t qualify pay through the wazoo. Liberals did this and now they want more govt intervention.....jsut like health care.
Two years of grad school at Virginia Tech cost me another $12,000. But I did get a decent paying professional job through my hard work, so no regrets, even though I had to finance most of this through student loans.
My son made the decision not to pursue his Masters and took a great job. At age 25, he was flown on a Lear jet to Alabama for missle testing....One of those "Hey Mom, guess what I did this weekend".
He's now married, has three children and a wife AND he'ssupporting them on one check.
Tell the Social Worker that she's supporting no one except herself...and get over it!! She made the choices!!
Silly me, you’re right! LOL!
I'm seriously thinking about borrowing now at today's extremely low rates, buying the tuition credits at todays guaranteed-to-be-lower cost, and writing off the interest on my taxes.
I'm struggling to see the downside.
Look at the price of tuition....why has it gone through the roof? Its because we’ve altered the natural market with the billions of dollars in govt aid. Schools have jacked up tuition because of the quantity of public scholarships and those that don”t qualify pay through the wazoo. Liberals did this and now they want more govt intervention.....jsut like health care.
Yes, the market distortions are huge. First, society and gov’t damn near force people to get degrees these days (when I worked for Price Waterhouse, 4 yr. degrees were mandatory for all secretaries) and then the G. comes along with 1,000,000 different ways to ensure that those in college really don’t have to pay for it all.
And, those would be.....?
Perhaps colleges should cut costs by eliminating programs such as queer studies and "critical race theory."
What percentage of students can do it this way? Could all? I doubt it.
The blame for this lies squarely with the feds. It's common knowledge that anything they subsidize goes up in cost. The more the feds subsidize colleges the higher the tuiton goes.
Who’s holding a gun to the heads of these students and forcing them to stay away from inexpensive state colleges and universities? If you can’t afford a private college or university and you don’t want to incur eternal debt, go to state. That’s what it’s there for.
Ms. Gonzalez, welcome to adulthood.
It sounds like a great program and I commend you for wanting to help pay for your children’s college.
I struggle to see why parents put everything in hoc because they feel like they should pay for their children’s college. :)
It's not like $273.61 is going to break her. But I suppose being a social worker, she does have problems being in touch with reality. I wouldn't be surprised that her car payment is more than that, and she spends that much on clothes and going out a month.
At that kind of pay rate for a single person, she ought to be able to pay it off ahead of time easily.
The article says she’s married.
In a lot of places, the state run universities can be more expensive than their private counterparts because state run universities typically don't have (or don't use for scholarships) endowments like private schools.
Even some private schools with huge endowments don't use them to reduce the cost of tuition, and that's definitely a tragedy. As of 2006, my state university had a $1.3 billion endowment--up from $941 million in 2003. Over that same period, in-state tuition has gone from $4,756 to $7,837.
Why isn't that endowment being used to reduce tuition? Of course, I still get requests for money every year....
All the better — two people living together have less expenses than one person times 2.
I have a suggestion for Ms.Gonzolas:
When I graduated, I owed what it would cost to buy a townhouse. My husband also had education debt. Within 10 years of graduating, my husband and I were completely debt free, and we **owned** our home.
How did we do this?
Answer: We continued the same frugal living practices that we used to survive undergrad and grad school.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.