Fin Aid landing in $30k+ debt. PLEASE HELP!!

Paying for College
1

<p>hello!</p>

<p>i am an international student from a low-income family and have been accepted in a college with quite good amt of aid. but they have given me a loan component of $7.5k per year. this in 4 years will turn out to be a debt of $30,000 ! i had spoken to them and they said that this is a compulsory part of their package.</p>

<p>is having a debt of such an amount normal among students? would the loan repayment be very difficult? </p>

<p>i really need your help and valuable advice here. i am very much interested in attending this college but i am not able to make up my mind whether i should accept the offer or not. the other colleges where i have been accepted are not offering any appreciable aid, so are out of my reach.</p>

<p>thank you</p>

2

<p>I would say that graduating with 30K in debt would be considered a bargain.</p>

3

<p>thank you sueinphilly for the reply. but i couldnt get you. is 30k considered fine or is it kind of bad?</p>

4

<p>I would consider that a good deal as well if the college you are going to is a known college for great academics.</p>

<p>If I had decided to go to Cornell or Dartmouth instead of UF, I would've ended up with over 100k in debt. Not pretty.</p>

<p>Which is why I chose to be a Gator!</p>

5

<p>I think $30K for 4 years is moderate. If you don't have a better alternative--and if you are getting a top-notch education mostly paid for by grants--I would definitely do it. Having a top-notch education with $30K debt is sure better than having no education with no debt. Many kids take on more debt than that--but I don't think they should in most circumstances. Also, as tuition rises each year--ask the school if they will be increasing the debt or grant component of aid. Good luck!</p>

6

<p>Most U.S. students graduate from college with about $20,000 in debt, which is considered reasonable, and not that difficult to pay back.</p>

<p>To figure out whether $30,000 in debt is reasonable for you, you need to consider the amount of income you're likely to make after graduation. It's hard for people here to give advice because we don't know enough about your country and major to be able to predict what your income will be after graduation.</p>

7

<p>one thing to consider -- you are an international student. Are you planning on returning to your country after college and working there? What is your salary potential in your country?</p>

<p>While $30,000 is no drop in the bucket -- it is a reasonable amount of debt for an excellent 4-year college education. Financial aid for international students is difficult to find and very competitive -- it sounds like an excellent package to me.</p>

<p>My concern would be whether you can pay it back if you work in your field in a country other than the US -- many countries in the world have a much lower pay rate for similiar jobs.</p>