I'm a third-year student at a public university. My parents pay for tuition only, and all other expenses (car, housing, food) are on me. I took out one student loan for less than $3,000 my first semester as a freshman and haven't taken one out since. I work almost full time but still manage to go to class and make good grades.
However, it's been increasingly stressful and difficult to do well in my classes because of my workload. I've had to take a lighter course load as a result. It would be easier to take out another loan to supplement my costs and reduce my working hours, but I'm hesitant to get deeper in debt.
I have no credit card balances and have been paying the interest (plus some principal) on the loan, which I've whittled down to about $2,500. Should I keep working hard and graduate with little or no debt, or is it time to throw in the towel and be able to work less and study more?
As someone who also worked nearly full time while attending college, let me offer this advice: Strongly consider taking out another loan.
You clearly don't want to be one of those poor saps who drowns himself in student loan debt he can't repay. And you've been smart to avoid credit card debt. But you don't want to drive yourself nuts trying to avoid a small amount of low-rate, potentially tax-deductible debt that could help you graduate earlier -- or at least enjoy the college experience a bit more.
A Stafford student loan of $5,500 (the current limit for college seniors) would cost you about $63 a month to repay over 10 years, assuming the current fixed 6.8 percent interest rate. Add in your current debt and you'd still be paying less than $90 a month.
In debt, as in many areas of life, the key is moderation. Avoiding debt entirely can be just as shortsighted as overdosing on it. But ultimately, you're the one paying the bills, so you'll have to decide for yourself.
Source:
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/
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Bad credit student loan
