Student Loans: not the only option

In my last post I mainly talked about the educational debt we are carrying.  Obviously that's not all that we are responsible for but it's the largest portion and it's the debt that we thought was "smart".  I'm here to tell you that it wasn't smart.  At all.  Everyone knows that credit cards are a bad idea.  That's finance 101.  Car loans aren't that much better but when it comes to paying for your education, that's when it gets a little gray.

Greg and I didn't have any parental support.  Well not financial support, both of us have really great parents.  When it came to paying for school we assumed that the only way to do it was to just get a loan.  Before we were married Greg had tried paying for school as he went but it just wasn't working.  Then when real life (wife and later baby) showed up, he wanted to be able to take more than one class per semester.  That's why we turned to student loans.  We weren't willing to go to our parents to ask them to subsidize us, we didn't qualify for too much grant money, we didn't know that scholarships were an option for average people and we weren't smart enough with our money to just pay for it.  

So after signing up for classes we met with financial aid officers.  I don't blame them for not giving us all of the information that we needed to make an informed decision.  I don't think that they were fully aware of the implications of this debt.  I guess that everyone assumes that getting the degree will make it possible to easily pay back the loan.  I also think that the "get it now, pay later" myth has transferred into education.  Rather than making some serious cutbacks and sacrifices we just went the easy way.  So when the FAFSA came back telling us that we were eligible for X number of dollars, well we just went for it.  But a loan is a loan.  It's money that has to be paid back.  And just because they offer it to you does not mean that it's free money.  It's just a number that a computer somewhere has decided you need to pay for your education.

Most of the debt that I hear people are struggling with is student loans.  At the end of 2013 the average student leaving school was $29,400!!  That is an insane amount of money! That's just the regular bachelors degree student.  If you work for a graduate degree you can double and even triple that number without breaking a sweat.

So what do we do now?  Greg is done with his education but I'm still working on my degree. We have pinkie sworn and written in blood that we won't take out any loans for my education.  So the advice that follows is what we wish we would have known 10 years ago and what we are doing right now to pay for my schooling.

1. Be very selective about the school you attend.  Is it in-state?  Is it a public school? Are you stuck on going to that school because everyone in your family went there or is it really the best one for you?
2. Are you getting the right degree?  Don't choose a field without knowing what a career in that area looks like, you might be an excellent seamstress but you might not be able to support yourself and your family sewing (just an example, work with me). Little backstory:  Greg originally wanted to pursue graphic design but as he got into the program he realized that maybe it wasn't right for him and his goals.  Fortunately he realized that early on and was able to switch.  But on the flip side you also don't want to pursue a career just because it's known to have big money attached.  If you're not passionate about your job it will be a death sentence and you definitely won't be successful.  To sum it all up:  do some research, shadow a successful person, try not to be emotional about your choice of major.  Logic needs to take precedence. Because the absolute biggest waste of your money and time is a degree that's not useful in a field you hate.
3. Apply for every scholarship that could possibly fit your situation.  I just applied for one for left- handed people.  Seriously, google "scholarships" and you will get over 99 million results.  Ya, I'm pretty sure you'll find a few that will work for you.  Individually they might not be for much money but I'm here to tell you that every little bit makes a difference.
4. Work while you're in school.  Unless you're in a crazy demanding program you can fit work into your life.  Don't think that I'm trying to pat us on the back but Greg worked all through his schooling. Somehow he managed to hold down 2 jobs AND get his masters.  I go to school while working part time and being Mom.  It can be done.  
5. Have a serious, strict budget.  This was our biggest downfall.  I look back at the money we were making and it would have been easy for us to pay cash for school if we had been better about telling our money where to go before we spent it, rather then watching it walk away.  We've been on a detailed written plan for more than a year and it has made all the difference.

I just wish that someone, a parent, a friend, anyone would have taken the time to sit down and really talk to us about the choices we were making.  We were so young and stupid and now we're still young and probably stupid except now we are paying a high price for our choices.  You can't ever get away from student loans.  Well, you don't have to pay them if you're dead but since death is pretty final, let's not go down that road!  If you're in school or you're getting ready to go to school or you know someone headed to school please talk to them.  Be that voice of warning that we needed.  

Education is a really good thing.  It opens your horizons and gives you opportunities that you can only dream about but losing sleep over the money you owe?  There's no better way to suck the life out of your future.  Trust me on that one.