Whether you are black or white, democrat or republican… I think there is one thing we all can agree on. Student loans are the devil! I’ve really been doing more research on my loans because like many others, I feel like they aren’t going down as quickly as I would like them to.
$9,377.33 is how much I’ve paid in interest alone. Do you know what I can do with $9,377.33…. A LOT! If you live in a small town, that’s close to a down payment on a house! The bad part is that that amount is only for 4 years. Did you know the average loan term is 25 years? So imagine if I waited that long to pay them off, which is what most people do.
I recently was on my loan providers website just reading through information. I think it’s important to know and understand your student loans. Most of us just pay the minimum balance and never look at our account. It’s like we are okay with taking 25 years to pay them and pay more in interest than the actual loan. Well, I’m not okay with throwing away money.
I called customer service and asked a million questions. The representative was super nice and answered everything for me, but she was surprised with my questions. She was also surprised at how much extra I have been paying every month. That let’s me know, not many people are doing the same. That makes me sad. We all should be trying to figure out where our money is going, how much total interest we have paid or will be paying over the life of our loan.
Let’s get to the bigger issues
I hear a lot of people bragging that they defer their loans so they don’t have to pay them right now. Even worse, some people continue to get meaningless degrees so they can hold out on paying. Let’s address the first statement. Did you know some loans still accrue interest while in deferment? If you had a legit reason to defer your loans, I’m not talking to you. I’m talking to the people that can pay and think they are getting over when they are really burying themselves in a deeper hole.
Now on to the second statement. Hopefully you didn’t get your panties in a wad about me saying meaningless degrees. If you did, I don’t care. If you are getting a degree that you know will further your career, again I’m not talking to you. I’m talking to the people that literally think it’s a sport to get degrees they will never use. At the end of the day, it’s your business. I’m simply saying it’s not a good idea to keep going to school to avoid paying loans or to decorate your walls.
I wanted to get a MBA after college. I started my career and moved up quickly without it, so I changed my mind. Would a MBA be nice? Of course. Would it help me climb the corporate ladder quicker? I do not believe so. The experience I have gained is what has gotten me multiple promotions. This obviously will be different for everybody. A degree might make a difference in your field. You have to decide.
Research, research, research!
Please do your research. Before making the decision not to pursue my MBA, I did A LOT of research. I talked to people in the positions I want to be in. Of the people I spoke to, very few had master’s. I looked through job postings of positions higher than mine. Most of them listed experience OR education in the requirements.
This can always change. In a few years, I might decide to pursue my MBA. Whenever I do decide, I will do everything in my power to pay out of pocket. I know you should never say never but I really can’t see myself taking out anymore student loans.
It’s time to take action
When was the last time you checked your student loan account? Like actually logged in on the website for more than 5 minutes. Do you know how much interest you’ve paid? What’s your goal for paying off your loans? Comment below and let me know what you think.
