Are loans (for college tuition) THAT bad?

Question:I want to hear the facts about loans. So far I have only assumed that it's just setting yourself up for debt since afterall, you're not guaranteed a good paying job after college, if any at all. I've only heard negative things from the few people I've talked to them about, but what are the actual facts?

I think I need to take out loans if I don't get enough scholarhips under my tuition, but what I'm afraid of is what I mentioned above. I'm not guaranteed a job after college, even more so since I'm an artist. So is it all that bad? Will I get harassed by the collectors if I don't pay it off immediately after college? I recently heard that I can pay it off in VERY SMALL sections (as in below 500$ a month), which would be great. Is that true?

I'm just trying to look at my options. I don't wanna work to save money until I'm 30 and attend school then.



Answers:
loans are bad especially Sallie Mae.
College loans are an investment in yourself...if you think it is a bad investment than you might want to look into a tradeschool instead of college.
they are bad cause you will be paying over 1000 dolarrs more then the actual loan
My brother is a 34 year old environmental engineer. He has 6+ years of college. This year, he paid it off. He has made payments for about 10 years. Now he will go for his PhD. He says he would do it again in a heartbeat. His advice to my son was if your gonna do college do it with all of your strength; you get what you pay for.
Educational loan debt is NOT bad debt to have.

1. The interest on the loans is tax deductible.
2. You don't have to repay until you graduate (or drop out).
3. If you do graduate, you will hopefully be making more money and therefore will be able to afford some student loan payments.

The HUGE downside to loans is that even if you file for bankruptcy, student loan debt still has to be repaid. It is a type of debt which does not go away.
Going to school for art is tough. Art school can be expensive, the competition can be hectic and you probably don't want to work because that will take away from your time to do your art.

When deciding on a school, choose something like a State school because they're a fraction of the price of private schools. As an artist, you won't be pumping out work to pay back loans when you're done, so you might want to do your best to keep costs down, ie: tuition, vacations and booze.

Get a job working a couple days a week at Starbucks, where you'll get healthcare and spend the rest of the time working on your art/ school and try to pay all school with gov loans 'cause the interest is lower than bank loans.

Look for internships at art galleries and anywhere else that's geared toward your interest, that way you have an inside track when you graduate.
Student loans allowed me to get my degree and post-graduate work, however, it was a costly means of doing so.
Everyone is in debt, whether it be credit cards or whatever, so I figure, why not keep piling it on :)
There are two sides to every stone... Student loans are an investment in your future. That being said, however, try to borrow ONLY from the government's direct lending program if at all possible. The private student loan industry is a corrupt mess. If I would have known what I know now I never would have taken out loans from private banks (Sallie Mae, Wells Fargo... you get the drill.)

A few things to consider:

1) Take out only what you absolutely need.
2) Read ALL the fine print. Know what the interest rates and terms will be. If your college has "preferred lenders" tell them too bad, and you only want to deal with the government's direct lending program. They cannot deny you that.
3) STAY AWAY from private lenders if at all possible. Upon graduation they will be breathing down your neck before you even have a job. Not only that, but they will tack on interest, origination fees, and anything else that will allow them to make money off of you. They also have extremely limited repayment options. My private loans from my undergraduate degree actually went into repayment while I was still getting my Masters Degree. This is because they do not have to adhere to the same rules and regulations as the Stafford Loans (about not having to pay while still in school...ironically they are guranteed by the federal government... go figure) Private lenders will also screw up your credit report by making unnecessary inquiries to check your FICO score. If it falls at all they will automatically jack up your interest rates...
4) Know what you want to go to school for, and get in and out. Don't linger in school forever, or else you'll just rack up more debt.

Higher education is great, and I'm a better person because of it. However, be an advocate for yourself! If you are you'll be just fine as you navigate the world of financial aid. Good luck!
I have almost $60,000 in loans- private and government combined. That's what I get for being from a poor family and attending a private school!!
Well, after answering this question for 23 years and having paid off my own student loans for graduate school, no, they aren't the horror they are made out to be. The minority of borrowers with complaints are generally those who either failed to realize they were borrowing and defaulted, or chose not to make their payments for other reasons.

It would also be in your best interests to be a good educational consumer, looking at alternatives to reduce your college costs by looking into a community college where you might get a graphics art degree with full transfer capabilities to a four year school. That alone can reduce your college costs by tens of thousands of dollars, especially if you can live at home and work part-time while in school there. You could also consider attending school part time as well. It takes longer, but if you can work and pay for it as you go (check into your college's payment plans, too) it can significantly reduce borrowing, as can living locally.

Repayment terms and amounts are set by regulation. Yes, you can make payments of only $50/mo, but only if you have borrowed minimally. Repayment for larger amounts is pro-rated by the amount over 10 years. Some students may also qualify for income contingent, graduated repayments when they leave school. These are all things you can read about on the government education websites.

Consider this, you wouldn't walk to work for 10 years if you needed a car to get a better job would you? Probably not, you'd take a car loan and buy a used car. Well, it's the same thing with student loans. A loan can help you get the job a lot sooner than if you don't go to school at all.

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