<p>i'm going to UNC and i have to take 5,000 loans this first year. assuming it's the same every year, that'd be 20,000. is it too much debt for undergrad if i plan to go on med school</p>
<p>You will be fine with that amount of debt, it’s not too much</p>
<p>i think it’s too much debt. try to lower it if at all possible.</p>
<p>You’ll be fine,20k is not terrible</p>
<p>If you will be adding a bunch of med school debt on top of that, do your best to not go over this. In an ideal world, you would find a way to finish your undergrad degree with no debt.</p>
<p>What is your future career? </p>
<p>How much do you think you’ll be earning upon graduation?</p>
<p>Will you have grad school/med school debt?</p>
<p>Can you earn money over the summer to reduce the need for some of this debt?</p>
<p>I don’t think that $20k in debt over the fours is bad. The way things are looking for me, I’ll be lucky to graduate after four years with only that amount to pay back. I’m looking at $30k a year, in total $120k if I don’t get the school to give me more aid.</p>
<p>Conventional wisdom says that the maximum a kid should take, and CAN take on his own is what is offered to him and him alone. Those loans are the Staffords and sometimes the Perkins. Anything else, you gotta involve a creditworthy adult and if your parents are not able or willing to take on loans, they should not. </p>
<p>Still that is the maximum and it’s one thing for a kid whose parents make six figures and can help him out when times are lean after college, to take out those loans, and a whole other for a kid with a zero or low EFC to do so. Repayment is painful and the vast majority of kids barely make a living wage for the first few years out of college. </p>
<p>If the plans are for further education, it can become an issue of the limits that one can take and also that the debt becomes phenomonal. As much or more than many mortgages. My generation had folks paying school loans even after they started families, and it really hurts. We barely got our paid before starting to pay for preschool/nursery school for our oldest. I’ve been paying for school since I was 18 and am pushing 60. As of now, I see at very least 10 more years of paying school loans, maybe even more. I just might take them to my grave.</p>
<p>Franck, let me ask you this: Do you think cpt meant for the following to happen?</p>
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<p>You should do everything within your power to stay out of debt. Student loan debt cannot be discharged in bankruptcy. Work two summer jobs if you have to. Just stay out of debt.</p>
<p>$20,000 for four years is do-able. Make sure that your undergrad degree is marketable if you don’t get into med school. My sister advises students that don’t get into med school, and most have degrees with the word bio in them…Good luck!</p>
<p>The concern that I have is that you will not have 20k of debt because you won’t have the same amount of loans each year. You were given 5k in loans because the max you can borrow on your own as a freshman is $5500. This amount will increase each year because you will be able to borrow more each year. In addition to the cost of attendance (tuition) will increase each year.</p>
<p>Its better than my 120k if that makes you feel better…</p>
<p>This is a current and informative book that may help you with your decision. $20,000 (plus interest) is a serious amount of debt. Don’t let anyone tell you its not. </p>
<p>[Amazon.com:</a> Debt-Free U: How I Paid for an Outstanding College Education Without Loans, Scholarships, or Mooching off My Parents (9781591842989): Zac Bissonnette, Andrew Tobias: Books](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Debt-Free-Outstanding-Education-Scholarships-Mooching/dp/1591842980/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1305717675&sr=8-1]Amazon.com:”>http://www.amazon.com/Debt-Free-Outstanding-Education-Scholarships-Mooching/dp/1591842980/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1305717675&sr=8-1)</p>