$140,000 in student loans?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - Berkeley
1

<p>Cal has always been my dream school, therefore when I was accepted to Berkeley from the waiting list about 2 weeks ago, I was absolutely thrilled. However when looking at my financial aid package I noticed I would receive about $18,000 in grants and would have to take almost $35,000 in loans to pay out of state tuition. My parents make about $50,000 a year, less than Cal's tuition, so they would not be able to help me much. I don't know what to do because although I want to go to Berkeley, I am not sure whether I will be able to pay off $140,000 in loans, especially with a political science degree. </p>

<p>My other college option is attending University of Richmond, which is close to my home. I have a 4.2 GPA and I was offered a full-tuition scholarship by them. Therefore i would only have to pay for my living expenses or about $8000. I visited UR and I absolutely loved it and I certainly would not mind attending there. However, I feel like I would be turning down a once in a lifetime opportunity by not choosing Berkeley. Everyone I have consulted so far has told me that the decision must be made by my, but I am not sure what the best choice is, especially in terms of finances. Since deposits have to be sent in by May 1st, any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. </p>

<p>Thank you</p>

2

<p>Do NOT go $140K into debt. There will be many other "once in a lifetime "opportunities that you will ahve to pass on later because you won’t be able to afford them. Congrats on both schools. Go to U of R</p>

3

<p>Go to UR no questions asked unless somehow you can contact Berkeley to adjust your financial aid policy which can be done. </p>

<p>But as of now, don’t come here.</p>

4

<p>Dear OP:</p>

<p>I vote for the University of Richmond - take the full-tuition scholarship! You can go to Berkeley for law or graduate school :-)</p>

<p>I am suggesting UR because it’s not advisable to graduate with a boatload of student debt, especially if it is quite possible that you could not pay off the loans of $140k quickly on a meager salary. There are many, many sad stories in the New York Times about college graduates who cannot pay off their loans.</p>

<p><a href=“College Loans Weigh Heavier on Graduates - The New York Times”>College Loans Weigh Heavier on Graduates - The New York Times;

<p>Save the acceptance letter from Cal and put it in your scrapbook. Use that to help you toward of a goal where you can attend Cal for grad school and hopefully with a stellar college resume, THEY will cover your grad school tuition.</p>

5

<p>Debt that large will hang around so long after college and you will put off other dreams. Such as owning a home, getting married, having a family. </p>

<p>Richmond is a wonderful school! A full scholarship is really quite something at Richmond.</p>

<p>You will receive a top notch education at either school. Good luck!</p>

6

<p>You musn’t be afraid to dream a little bigger darling. </p>

<p>AKA don’t go over 100k in debt unless you want to pay off student loans and interest for the rest of your life.</p>

7

<p>Berkeley, while a fine school, is not worth that debt load.</p>

8

<p>Thank you everyone! I know it may seem unbelievable that I even asked this question, but none of the adults in my life have been as honest to me as you all have, and therefore I was extremely lost. I realize that $140,000 in debt is absolutely absurd and unsustainable and am grateful that I will be attending UR with such a generous scholarship next year! Thank you all for your help.</p>

9

<p>To put it bluntly: you would be moronic to choose Berkeley. Don’t ruin your life!</p>

10

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<p>Definitely this. Few things in life are worth that debt.</p>

11

<p>Don’t come here if it means getting into large amounts of debt. I know Berkeley is a fantastic school, but when looking for a job or applying for grad school, the undergrad school you came from won’t have a large effect - at least not $140K’s worth. Especially if you plan on working afterward, your experience will speak more than a degree.</p>

12

<p>Berkeley is a wonderful university, but not even Harvard is worth this debt-load for an undergraduate degree.</p>

<p>I’m happy you have another very good option.</p>

13

<p>Richmond in a second.</p>

14

<p>If you want to go to Berkeley and chase your dreams all hope is not lost. There are quite a few things you can do…

  1. appeal your financial aid package - I’m not exactly sure how the appeals process works, but if you want something you’re going to have to go after it yourself. Explain your situation, what you plan to do while at Berkeley, and what your career goals are. and if they don’t appeal your financial aid package, then keep appealing. This will show them how much you want to go to Berkeley and how much you really need the money.
  2. Work part-time during school and maybe during summer to help decrease your debt
  3. If your appeals for the financial aid package doesn’t go through, there are tons and I mean tons (doesn’t matter what grade you are in because there are PLENTY) of scholarships you can apply for from now until your senior year. Even if you’ve started school at Berkeley and taken some debt, just keep applying for scholarships. If you want it badly you will get it.</p>
15

<p>You are giving very bad advice. Appealing will do nothing. She’s an out-of-state student and Berkeley (like most publics) gives very, very little aid to OOS students. Working part-time will not come remotely close to paying the freight.</p>

<p>The OP cannot afford Berkeley, and no, just because she “wants it badly” doesn’t in the least mean she ever could.</p>

16

<p>polarscribe is right, working part time and summer job can not reduce the debt much. If you make $10 per hour to make $10,000, then you would work about 38 hours per week. Do you have time to study if you work that many hours?</p>