Student loans are both a blessing and a curse for college students in our country. On the one hand, student loans allow you to get the money you need in many cases to attend college. On the other hand, most college students, especially those entering college for the first time, have raised opinions about their starting salary upon graduation and the bills they face while living in the real world. In fact, most freshmen college students have no real concept of money limits to base their decisions on whether they can realistically repay those funds after graduate college.
The sad truth is that many college graduates find that for the first 10 to 15 years after graduate college, they are essentially indentured servants for their student loans and loans. There are many and different college graduates will find different things about their student loans when the opportune time comes. First, student loan borrowers need to understand that a college degree does not guarantee a high starting salary. Furthermore, a college degree is no guarantee that employers will stand in line to get your name and number upon graduation. The truth is that most college graduates take 6 months to a year to find a job in their field, and yet the starting salary is often much lower than expected.
Part of the blame for exorbitant expectations is at universities attempting to validate their high tuition rates by showing the average starting salary of those who make successful offers in the field of study immediately upon graduation (which usually a history of doing) as an apprentice prior to hiring the company or another company and not students who have no prior work experience in their chosen fields. Part of the expectations are students reading job ads for experienced workers in a field and believing that an education will provide the experience that employers need. Whatever the reason, most starting salary expectations are not realistic in light of the current market.
The problem is that a loan is the difference between getting a college education or not getting one. There is no alternative for these students. The price they will pay for taking out student loans to get through the educational process will pay itself off over the course of a lifetime if they are wise about making the necessary payments and stay on top of things like consolidation loans.
Student loans are a great tool for those who have no other option but to go and attend university. On the other hand, for people who don't have the absolute need of funds, student loans can prove problematic when trying to establish a career and lifestyle upon graduation. It is an adjunct to education that should be used very rarely.
Either or not you want to take out student loans for your college education, it's a good idea if you exhaust all other available resources first. Examine your options for Donation, scholarships, and work-study programs before putting in excess increases in student loans to pay for your education.
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