20k in loans exactly -- worth it?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Many people seem to be advertising "more than 20k" as the boundary for what constitutes "too much debt", so I'm wondering how wise it would be to take on that exact amount after graduation. I'm in the classic private school with loans vs. full-ride at local state school double-bind. A couple of factors make my situation unique, and somewhat difficult to analyze without much background in college education.</p>

<p>My decision between schools isn't nearly as drastic as the situations that other people are in on this forum, which might affect my decision on the matter. The state school that I've gotten a full-ride to is one of the universities ranked 91st in the USNWR rankings (if it's necessary to specify, I will), and the private school that I'm considering is St. Olaf in Minnesota. I want to go to graduate school after college, so taking on any form of debt worries me -- especially 20k overall. On the other hand, I'm equally worried that going to the state university will not offer me the same opportunities as an undergraduate that attending St. Olaf would. At either school, I'd be planning on majoring in math and physics, with a concentration or minor in environmental science. Would the investment be worth it?</p>

<p>If it means anything, I'm not particularly hedonistic when it comes to money, and would not be concerned about not living the typical middle-class lifestyle. What I am concerned about is being unable to pay off the loans for a considerable amount of time, or not being able to attend the graduate school I could potentially be accepted to due to finances.</p>

<p>Thanks in advance for responding!</p>

2

<p>hexagonsun -- post this question on the parent's forum... you'll get better advice there, I believe</p>

3

<p>I'm with Katliamom here. Re-post on the parent's forum (or read everything there) for more advice. And visit <a href="http://www.finaid.org%5B/url%5D"&gt;www.finaid.org&lt;/a> to run the calculators for what the monthly payments on that are going to look like when it is time to pay back the loans.</p>

<p>20K is the very limit of what I'd want my own kid to face. If that is absolutely exactly what you will have in total at the end of four years, and you want a smaller environment, St. O. may be the way to go.</p>

<p>On the other hand, you don't know what your aid package is going to be for the next three years, and the loan burden may end up being considerably higher. Find out what grad schools the math/physics/environmental science programs at your public university are sending their recent graduates to. You may be pleasantly surprised.</p>

<p>Wishing you all the best.</p>