Friday Favorites: Student Loan Edition

Today I declined to get started on a doctoral program due to concerns around taking on more student loan debt. I just don’t see myself being burdened with more loans than I am right now with no guarantee of a significant increase in salary.

I’ve added some articles here on student loans and others that caught my eye throughout the week. Let me know in the comments if you’re planning to go back to school. If so, are you taking out loans or paying your way through? My total cost would have been an extra $90,000. Call me gun shy but in this economy, I don’t know that it is worth it.

Check out this infographic from Mint.com:

Student Loan Debt Highlights

Should College Students Be Borrowing More?
Debt collectors an option to recover student loans The Government is investigating whether to use overseas debt collectors to chase student loan repayments. They are serious about their money.
Scapegoating For-Profit Colleges
What’s Worse Than Credit Card Debt? Student Loans | MintLife Blog

This Week’s Highlights

The Spending Habits of Wealthy Women vs. Wealthy Men (shhh: women are spending more) http://bit.ly/9ZZdlx
Is taking time off before your due date acceptable? How much time is too much. http://fb.me/EvJK7P2v
Would YOU move to one of the 10 Best Cities to Find a Job? –> http://bit.ly/bbdg9v
Common knowledge that “pretty girls” have a workplace advantage EXCEPT when it comes to manly jobs and jealous… http://fb.me/E4pLSeAI

Salary Negotiation Tip From The Experts

Ask For The Salary Upfront And Here’s Why

Additional Posts

About the Author

GingerGirls Just Wanna Have Funds is a personal finance website dedicated to educating and empowering women in the area of personal finance. Our articles center on money management: making it, saving it and growing it which supports our theme: Breaking Financial Ceilings One Stiletto At A Time. We have been featured in Business Insider (contributor), Lifehacker, Consumerist, MSNBC, Essence, Wall Street Journal, Good Morning America and MSN Project Engage Web Series. I believe in a future where women can have financial freedom and choose the life they want to live by taking control of their finances. You only need to want it hard enough while letting go of limiting beliefs around money. Join me as I share tips that will help you light up your financial life and take control.View all posts by Ginger →

http://www.moneymonk.net Moneymonk

I decline law school solely for money reason. I could not see myself in 6 figure debt upon graduating. To this day, I have no regrets. I make the same amount of income a lawyer would be making!

Gingerlatte

Uhmm what do you do? LOL!

missmajestic

I didn't do the doctoral program I really wanted to do because I didn't want to take on more student loans. The program I did chose, I still borrowed to pay about 3K in fees not covered by my assistantship but that was compared to 28K just for tuition at another school. I borrowed outright to pay for my entire master's and I do regret that. I will tell anyone I am glad that student loans are available, but I would advise against borrowing for a graduate degree (I'm not talking about professional programs like law, medicine, etc) And I would definitely avoid private loans. If I could go back I would have gone part time to a state school or just waited/searched for a program where I could do an assistantship. They are out there but rarely advertised. And now I'm still not sure it will be worth it salary wise because the positions I'm interested in, I don't have the experience. But I'm confident things will balance out for me in the next 5-10 years.
Tracy

I am just finishing up a master's degree, paid for by my employer. Granted, I took classes at a pace consistent with what my employer would pay each year, so it has been a 3.5 year endeavor – but I have only paid for books and a couple hundred dollars in tuition each year. I used financial aid to pay for my courses and paid the loan back when I got my reimbursement 8 weeks later. It has worked well for me. It is something to consider if you want to pursue more education.