What's your advice on student loans? I'm out of cash, and have 4 semesters left of my undergraduate. I'm gonna go ahead and finish it up, what should I expect thereafter. I ultimately want to pursue higher education after said degree, and I am assuming that will continue to drive my debt up.
Any and all advice will help.
You're in a rough position because you're asking this question at the most inopportune time. It should have been asked two years ago. Then my advice would have been to start at a community college, save as much money as possible and push for scholarships and budget-friendly transfers before heading into a 4-year university. That way you keep the debt burden as low as possible.
But now you really don't have a choice. What will do you do if you don't take out the loans, quit? You keep the credit for courses you took but they give you no value without the degree. That all but wastes the money you spent on them.
The best I can say now is to work as much as you can during and between semesters to get ahead of the eventual payments.
>>16607007
I'd go with this. Take out the loans if you have no other choice, but spend absolutely as little of the loan money as possible. Only spend it on school stuff - if there is money left over, put it in the bank, do not blow it. Work as much as you can without impacting your grades and save every penny. Consider taking an extra semester to graduate if possible, to give yourself a better money in-money out ratio.
>>16607007
Yeah, I dropped out last year when I found out just how much more school I had left before graduation, and the lack of money I had.
I'm back now because I'm not where I want to be professionally speaking, and I ultimately want to pursue law.
The problem being, that no one will hire some fag with a philosophy degree.
>>16607028
Before you quit entirely, try to schedule some time with one or more academic advisers at your school. Have a frank talk with them about where your academic career is heading, what the prospects are and what alternatives can be salvaged from the courses you've already completed. This will also require some preliminary research on your end regarding those topics.
Law is cited as a heavily saturated field and for good reason. I'm not saying you can't make the cut, but I'm looking through the lens of your primary concern regarding student loans. As it stands, it would be difficult for you to land a suitable job which provides for both basic living expenses and the service of your student loans. You'd have to live extraordinarily tightly to make it happen. Other majors aren't terribly better but any advantage you can get is a good one, unless you plan on paying forever. Mind you, student loans are not forgiven during bankruptcy either.
It sounds like you were let down by the counseling and guidance which you desperately needed at the start of your studies. This isn't something that's best played by ear. Please try to avail yourself to experts and professionals as soon as possible.
>>16607038
My academic advisor gives little to no shits about me; I've been two different ones, and they both give no shits. Also, I've already completed several upper-level courses in my major.
I have done the research, and, have also concluded that law is over-saturated right now. However, I have a particular propensity towards the subject, and as such, choose to pursue it.
I'm currently trying to discern just how I will provide for myself during my academic career, and I feel as thought waiting tables will be my only avail.
A little backstory:
My father set up a college fund for me upon birth. I subsequently dicked around most of my college career and my father pulled the plug. I've told him I've decided to go back, and I think he sees that I'm serious about it this time. He has the money to take care of the bill, but is trying to teach me a lesson that I'm currently unsure of.
