O/T Confused on school, advice appreciated!!

[gnosis]

Hey Everyone,
I'm looking to go to school, preferably full time. I keep hearing different answers regarding if I'll be able to cover my living expenses with just my student loan. Some people are telling me yes, others no way. I'd just like to hear from guys on here that went to school full time. How they did it and especially if they took a government loan. I'm not talking about a student loan based on credit scores. I'm just looking to cover basics like rent, food, gas, books, etc.

Thanks!!!

 

[cal]

This is such a broad question that I don't think anyone can answer. State or private...what are you going for...undergrad? Lots of questions...will be hard getting living expense loans without a cosigner. I think private school unless getting alot of help and in a.field that will pay off is a waste in most cases. Depends alot on what you're going for. If.like many and have no direction it's a.waste...if engineering ...nursing etc...pays off. If you're going for social work plan on being poor

 

[cal]

Looking at your post.again...highly unlikely.

 

[cal]

The last part seems weird...you're just looking to cover rent gas food etc...well that's a lot for a government loan...there is no real reason one can't work in undergrad...I'm gonna guess your not going for.electrical engineering...to be a liberal arts major without a job means very easy schooling and plenty of time on your hands...though you'll have.a.tough time finding a job with a somewhat useless degree....

 

[readyset]

depends on the school, the amount you qualify for, etc. Generally, you're going to want your loan to cover your tuition and a job to cover everything else. I have friends who cashed their loan checks, and used it on various things, the interest rate is insane, you'd be better of going through a loan shark.

your best bet would be to schedule a meeting with a financial aid counselor at the school of your choice, and they can break it down for you.

 

[incbb]

what work field are you looking to get into?



incbb

 

[flexdurden]

Things to consider are the type of school (public versus private), whether you can get merit based aid (this could cover tuition, books, and education related expenses), whether the school offers a work/study program (you can get some aid and make some spending money), and the possibility of taking up a part time job.

I had an academic scholarship to cover a good chunk of tuition and worked as a personal trainer and athletic trainer for the school. As a junior I got my insurance and financial sales licenses and worked for an insurance company in the evenings to pay for housing and have money to spend and save.

Basically what I'm saying is, you'll have a lot more free time than you think so getting a side job is likely very doable.

 

[drflex]

join the military..active duty and the national guard have tuition assistance and gi bill. or get a job... unless you live with your momma or can dunk a basketball..very few people do full time school without full or part time employment.

 

[anarchocapitalist]

i work as an IT guy in a college so i get to interact with a lot of younger people. i think they make three big mistakes.

they don't look at their education as an investment.
they invest in a dumb degree
they get into too much debt.

hospitality and tourism are probably interesting fields but if you're only going to be working the midnight shift at a hotel check in then do you really need to go 20K in debt for a low wage service job? you'd make more money learning how to weld at a manufacturing joint.

nothing is worse then losing 4-5 years of potential income, losing 4-5 years of potential work experience, getting a worthless degree, and being 40K in the hole while being fresh outta college.

i know a heavy duty mechanic who makes 100k a year working for finning/caterpillar.

 

[gogotren]

my wife and I have 2 young kids (1,3) she just did 18 creidts, 3 science classes with labs, run the business, make the bills (barely). If you wanna do it make it happen. The road of someday leads to a place called nowheresville.

 

[MichiganHater]

i work as an IT guy in a college so i get to interact with a lot of younger people. i think they make three big mistakes.

they don't look at their education as an investment.
they invest in a dumb degree
they get into too much debt.

hospitality and tourism are probably interesting fields but if you're only going to be working the midnight shift at a hotel check in then do you really need to go 20K in debt for a low wage service job? you'd make more money learning how to weld at a manufacturing joint.

nothing is worse then losing 4-5 years of potential income, losing 4-5 years of potential work experience, getting a worthless degree, and being 40K in the hole while being fresh outta college.

i know a heavy duty mechanic who makes 100k a year working for finning/caterpillar.

Agreed with everything you just said. I am also an anarch caplitalist too. People are getting worthless degrees. I personally never took loans bc college is a scam into slaverly that is now backed by the government. I always said if your not going for a medical or science degree your wasting your time. But then again ive changed my mind recently. The monetary system we currently have is ending so debt gets erased or zeroed so take all the risk and loans you want.

 

[ErnieTaylor]

Unfortunately, most degrees are not worth the paper they are printed on with the exception of such fields as medicine, law, engineering, and other professional careers.

A degree in business? Marketing? English? ect.. complete waste of money.

Why incur such debt in life. It is a big scam.

Having said that....College is far from worthless. It has many many positive attributes, and is something you should experience if at all possible.

 

[PeterBobJohn]

Going to school full time will leave you with student loans when you graduate
Private schools average 30,000 in tuition so that's 90,000 in loans when you graduate
Which could be .500 a month
You can consolidate these loans as I did and pay them off in 30 years and the payments can be reduced by 60%
state schools are 10k so that's 40,000 in loans when you graduate
What do you want to do?
If you want to goto grad or law or medical school after then goto state school because these programs will be very expensive.
I went to state college paid my own way, full time student
Went to law school after and only had law school debt when I finished
Part time will take you much longer, ie. Double the time but your financial obligation will be significantly less

 

[PeterBobJohn]

Unfortunately, most degrees are not worth the paper they are printed on with the exception of such fields as medicine, law, engineering, and other professional careers.

A degree in business? Marketing? English? ect.. complete waste of money.

Why incur such debt in life. It is a big scam.

Having said that....College is far from worthless. It has many many positive attributes, and is something you should experience if at all possible.

He is right, but I will add that even a law degree isn't worth much due to the excess of lawyers out there. A JD, Juris Doctor, ie. Law degree is basically an MBA on steroids if you choose to work in private industry
Engineering is probably the most lucrative 4 year degree out there

 

[Krunkkid13]

Right now IMO engineering degrees are gold especially petroleum or anything energy related. Also Quality Assurance/occupational safety related degrees are good. Engineers are really hard to find. The company I work for is actually paying for me to go to school.

 

[PeterBobJohn]

Right now IMO engineering degrees are gold especially petroleum or anything energy related. Also Quality Assurance/occupational safety related degrees are good. Engineers are really hard to find. The company I work for is actually paying for me to go to school.

I agree 100%
In the legal field IP lawyers, ones who handle patent applications and infringement cases are usually engineers or chemists before they goto law school
They are well paid and busy, a company like Apple's total net worth is their intellectual property and they vigorously defend their rights.
Google them, there are always pending patent infringement suits and apple is typically the plaintiff

 

[raw33man]

First of all. I think its dumb when kids turn 18 they leave their parents
Stay with your parents till u get ur degree

Second, choose a good major. Art,music and blah blah are the shity degrees that wouldnt get you anywhere

 

[gnosis]

Hey thanks for all the responses everyone. I was watching this thread after I posted it and didn't expect too many lol.

I was hoping to do school in 2 phases. Get an associates in accounting and get employed. While employed, start working on a bachelors in Psychology.

I've heard people say anything less than a masters in Psych is a no go, so I don't really know much on that besides what I've read. Undergrad psych majors can get management positions etc etc.

I was just wondering how some of my friends work and some don't while going to school is all. I saw someone posted that Bus Admin is garbage, but I thought since it was so broad it's a good choice? I don't know lol, and btw my friend is an electrical engineer and he makes 80k right out of school. I'm happy for him.

Thanks everyone!

 

[Swaglantern]

Agreed with everything you just said. I am also an anarch caplitalist too. The monetary system we currently have is ending so debt gets erased or zeroed so take all the risk and loans you want.

huh??

 

[anarchocapitalist]

I would highly suggest you do not go tens of thousands of dollars in debt over a degree in psych.

The students I see with a degree in psych are not getting high paying jobs.

My wife went to school for psychology and unless you want to pursue the masters/phd route you're not going to make any returns on the investment of your time money etc. Most of her classmates who stopped at the degree are working lower incomes jobs managing group homes, working at a government licensing agency, etc. However as a psychologist or esp psychiatrist you could be making a decent living for yourself in the next decade or so. But then you have to think 10 years little working (40K/yr x 10 years = 400K) and then your tens of thousands in debt ... worth it when the next recession hits? Prob not.

Look at specific trades, designations, etc.

If you are interested in accounting go that route. Accounting can be what you make it from small business owner to working your way up in a safe reliable company.

Do not get into government jobs or jobs that depends on government money.