Student Loans: The Unforeseen Long-Term Issues

As college students, we’re certainly thinking about the future — graduating, getting a job, living on our own — but we aren’t thinking ahead as far as we should. And no, I’m not talking about getting married and having a family, I’m referring to the one thing most of us have never even thought about yet: retiring.

While retiring may be farther away than imaginable, the future of our retirement has already started. A U.S. News & World Report article says there’s an increasing number of Americans trying to retire, only to be hindered by student loans they have yet to pay off. It’s important that young people realize how far back certain decisions can go in our lives. Retirement is the last big part of our life, and we don’t want the first part of life to impact that. Problem is, we’re facing an upsurge of the issues regarding student loans.

In 2013, a U.S. News & World Report report found that the average student loan debt was at $30,000. With the rising costs of college — due to receiving less financial support from states, while colleges continue to build their campuses — loans are only going to get worse.

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It’s astounding that student loans are viewed as the norm today. The whole problem started when banks originally lent students money, but it soon became a much less desirable method, as banks expected everyone to pay off their loans as soon as possible. When the federal government started giving loans instead, the whole system’s popularity rose, since students could rely more on the Federal Government for loans. Inflation occurred, since students were spending more in college. Because colleges were making more, they could pay their faculty more. Of course, the faculty had no problem with this, so they started preaching to students that student loans were a good system.

Obviously the system was recognized as a drawback, because today over 40 percent of students in debt aren’t paying it off, according to a Wall Street Journal report on American Graduates. It’s important to find out what causes the deferral of paying off loans, and furthermore, what drives each of us to accept when we’re going to be in debt? It could be anything from buying our first car, investing in a nice house, to getting a job or moving. But no matter how driven we are in school, it’s not worth having a huge pile of debt. We could have the nicest car in the world, but it can’t drive away from the five figure payment we owe.

Instead of expecting that you might have to deal with a student loan, many factors actually come into play that can greatly lower the chances of tremendous debt, or as perceived today, ‘normal college debt.’ There’s a lot more to student debt than we think, and while schools offer financial aid, without tips on how to avoid needing it, we have to take the action ourselves. Below are some tips to help guide anyone who wishes to only graduate with a degree, not a degree and debt.

Choose your school wisely.

First and foremost, the difference in cost between a smaller school, and a big, popular school, is tremendous. For students who have struggled to pay for college on their own, going to a junior college for two years, then finishing at another college for the rest, can save a big pile of money. In fact, many big schools can cost as much as five times more than smaller universities; for instance Harvard University’s tuition is now $59,000, while the University of Central Florida’s is $6,000.

A degree doesn’t have to cost a few sports cars to be a good one. The cost doesn’t determine the quality either; the enjoyment of a school is what we make out if it. I go to a small school with a tuition of $6,000, and I think I am having as much fun at it than I would have at a bigger and more expensive school. College certainly comes with a price, but that price can vary for our convenience.

Majors are of great financial importance.

Choosing the right major is always a stressful situation, as people worry about whether it’s the right fit for them. Few realize how costly an impulsive, or not thought out choice of major can be. I unfortunately didn’t find my true interest until later in college, all while continuously being told to stick with my original major, and now I might be in some debt.

It’s essential to have something that will leave you passionate enough to finish sooner rather than later. If you have any doubts about your current major, it is crucial to do something about that as soon as you can.

Keep track of it as if it’s your grades.

Some students are optimistic about debt, and don’t keep track of how much they are getting into. I have friends that have made this mistake, convincing themselves that the debt wasn’t going to be that bad. Schools advertise financial aid more than enough, but do not provide strategies of how to keep prices manageable, and make the best decisions based on our circumstances.

Debt can build up in the blink of an eye, and with the costs of college today, along with the repercussions of not keeping track of how much we owe, while being careless about it — can lead to all sorts of problems.

Be wary of the build-up.

If you’re going to be in debt, don’t make it worse by buying alcohol constantly, eating out too often, or buying too much stuff you don’t need — it is possible to have fun without spending much money. I struggled with this very issue my first year of college, but I realized a lot of good memories I had didn’t cost a penny. Being with friends, going to on-campus or local events, going on hikes, and joining clubs is all priceless. Aim to spend money on needs over wants, and figure out what a reasonable amount of spending money is per week.

Stressing out about the real world is bad enough without having to worry about how much of your paycheck you have to give up. As someone who anticipates being in debt myself, I hate to think that it’s accepted, as a normal part of life people should deal with. We worked hard in school, and we shouldn’t have to pay the price for it.

President Obama said this year, “We have to make college affordable for every American, because no hardworking student should be stuck in the red,” and I truly hope one day students can make decisions without having to worry about how much of their future paychecks will suffer. The challenges that come with leaving with an enormous debt to pay isn’t the only issue — not being able to invest that money in the long run is something we won’t realize the dreadful cost of until much later in life.