debt

My student loan story

I travelled to the United States about two years ago with many serious plans and a very positive attitude. I have always dreamed about studying in the United States but I didn’t really think about finances. That was the topic that never crossed my mind. Thus, I just decided to look for a personal loan since my financial situation wasn’t very colourful. I recognised that college was expensive and I just guessed, that everybody took out student loans and that’s just how you did it ( unless you have very rich parents). When I was signing for my student loan, I had absolutely no clue what that would mean to me in my current life. To cover the University finances I’ve had to take on a gigantic amount of debt.

As a Polish woman in America today, with 90 000 USD of debt, I have a tiny margin of error. I try to be twice as good as everyone else around me. I work two jobs, and my father helps me a lot by sending me almost half of his salary every month. But even with his help and my businesses, the loan drags me down more and more. I have to worry every day, and these problems may present difficulties for me being successful. Growing up in Poland, I grew up with my mother. My parents got divorced when I was pretty young.

Right now, I live in an urban area community, definitely not the safest one. I rent a little bedroom, and I barely have savings in general. My monthly income only helps me to cover my bills and is hardly enough for the living. I’m a musician, and for me, music is everything. It feeds my artistic soul. I regularly earn some extra money by playing in the streets, and that saves my life sometimes. Despite my problems, I’m always going to continue to climb higher and be successful. Also, I have the opportunity to consult some critical issues with a professional immigration lawyer in NYC, who has helped me many times so far.

Students financial dilemmas

Student debt is a headache worth a trillion dollars for the US economy. The whole problem is vast and complicated. The students of the United States who attend some degree in an academic institution can access financial assistance to pay for their education. Each student is responsible for paying the interest for each period, but if they are not paid on time, they are accumulated and added to the amount of the loan capital. The borrowers can face dire consequences. They can’t obtain a mortgage or a loan for a car. Also, their credit capacity can be ruined, which can affect their ability to rent a flat or even get a job.

As the costs of going to university grow and the number of students increases, the US has accumulated a university debt over a billion dollars! The traditional American belief is that investing tens of thousands of dollars (and taking a debt almost for life) to study career is worth starting to falter. A university career costs an average of $ 32,405 per year in a private university or $ 9,410 in a public one. These ‘average’ figures pale in comparison to the costs of some of the most expensive careers in the US, such as law at Trinity College of Connecticut ($ 308,000) or Columbia in New York (a master’s degree in business can cost $ 317,000 ). But, in general, more than 50 universities in the US  charge above $ 60,000 a year.

Is it a problem?

Apart from the personal and individual drama of each debtor, the student’s loan issue will have long-term economic and demographic effects: young people are leaving to buy houses or consider having children because of the huge backpack of debt that they carry. The long-term impact of heavy indebtedness on young people is unfortunate and overwhelming.

Are more qualified jobs being created that need high education?

The answer is: No! Why do so many people think that studying is necessary to live successfully? Many companies run selection tests that discriminated candidates such as immigrants, women and people of colour. When these illegal tests were done, the companies started asking for another requirement to measure the “soft skills”: if you are able to study for years and commit to pay a large debt for it, surely you are a good worker. Moreover, such a dramatic situation forces you not to abandon your position. For this reason, higher demand for degrees exists.