My Student Loan Debt Battle

Tens-of-millions of Americans currently have some form of student debt. The national total is around $1.6 trillion! This crisis is all too real.

Even though I had some relief from FAFSA and some minor scholarships every semester, I still graduated with $60,000 of student loan debt. Once my payments officially started 6 months later, my required minimum monthly dues were $650/month. 4 years ago, one of my sisters informed me of a firm that helped to consolidate and refinance my remaining student loans. I received a lower interest rate and lower monthly payments (~ $370/month). My loans wound up with Firstmark Services. I would highly recommend them!

I continued to grow and develop my professional career. With continuing hard work and perseverance (and never missing a payment), I gradually started increasing my monthly payments to kill the loans faster...which brings us to this moment. After 10 years of paying student loans, I finally paid off that $60,000 (plus ~ $8,000 in interest)! WOOHOO!!!

So the question I have always asked myself.... "Was it worth it?"

Yes and no. College itself had many memories, most fun and good, some not so good, and some dramatic (I was a Theatre Major, so... #rimshot); however, the heap of debt that loomed over my head for a decade afterwards definitely slowed me down in areas from a financial standpoint. I do not take issue with my collegiate experiences, memories, or relationships; but with the worth of the education received compared to the cost.

{To elucidate, the below arguments are MY personal opinions based on my own experiences and discussions with others. Everyone has different experiences and perspectives, so I thought I would share mine.}

Argument: College prepares you for the real world.

My Answer: I highly disagree. College never taught me any of the following: job hunting, resume building, interview skills, taxes, anything related to the political system and how it affects me, financial advice, retirement planning (401k, stocks, assets, etc.), buying a house, etc etc etc. I learned these skills either from my parents, acquaintances, or other self-teaching means (YouTube, Wiki How-To's, etc.). I understand that some of these topics might be required based on your major, but I would argue to say that these skills should be required for everyone regardless of your major.

Argument: College helps you learn to learn.

My Answer: Not me. I learned to love learning at a young age from my dad. If you are able to get into college in the first place, then the experiences that allowed you to get into college (previous schools, family, etc.) should have instilled the importance (and dare I say passion) to learn. College may definitely fan the flames of learning, but I believe that those flames should already exist before starting college.

Argument: College is the logical next step after High School.

My Answer: Not as much anymore. I believe that times are changing. Most of the skillset and tools I have and utilize for my career are not due to college. My dad put me in a summer class to learn how to type before I was in high school. I type anywhere from 131wpm to 185wpm on a daily basis. My knowledge of Salesforce came from on-the-job experience and self teaching through Salesforce's self-serve education tool, Trailhead (which is free). Although there are still companies that look at higher education as a hiring factor; I am seeing that evolve. I believe that someone's work ethic and capability is not determined by how many years they went to college.

So do I think college is a waste of time?

No. There are definitely areas where a college education is important (medicine, law, business, etc.); but that does not mean that "everyone" needs to go to college in order to be successful. Tony Robbins, Steven Spielberg, Bill Gates, Ralph Lauren, Mark Zuckerberg, Steve Jobs, Michael Dell, Larry Ellison, John D. Rockefeller, Dave Thomas, Henry Ford, and many others never finished or went to college. Although those names are popular and well-known, that does not mean there are not others who are/were successful without having/completing a formal education.

Did I learn anything from college?

Yes of course...but it wasn't worth $68,000 and 10 years of the financial stress and setback. I think the prime benefit to having that much debt was that it was one of the major motivators that continually pushed me to professionally grow. That is NOT to say that I did not already have a drive to always improve myself, but when you have that much debt to pay (in addition to life's bills), it definitely pushes you harder.

So what is the solution? There have been many propositions thrown out there; but the best ones I have heard of are limited (e.g. University of Wyoming, Chadron State College, etc.) and not implemented nation-wide. For the record, I do not think forgiving all loans would be a good solution. I was raised that if you borrow money, you should pay it back as that is the responsible thing to do. Plus, how would that work for the families and individuals that worked hard to be able to pay off their loans? Would they get reimbursed? I also do not think free tuition is the right answer either. The money would need to come from somewhere, and I would suspect it would be in the form of taxes. I believe it to be unfair to make those who didn't/won't go to college pay for others to go to college. In addition, I do not want to pay for other people's tuition after just paying off my own. The student loan debt crisis is definitely a massive conundrum with many facets to consider, and I am not sure if there is a blanket solution.

For those that are currently struggling with student loan debt, know that you have the power to push through and conquer. It will not be easy, but to quote Theodore Roosevelt, "Nothing worth having comes easy." There was a time when I had less than $100 to my name. I also had to move back in with my parents for a few years shortly after graduation. Sacrifices had to be made. Do. Not. Give. Up.

For those who are determining whether college is a good fit or not, make sure to look at the bigger picture and see if there is true value to be obtained or if alternative means (community colleges, apprenticeships, trade schools, bootcamps, etc.) would be more fruitful.

Once again these are MY personal opinions. I hope you found this article incisive and thought-provoking.