Going into $100k in debt as an Econ major at Columbia GS? Worth it?

Colleges & Universities A-Z Columbia University
1

<p>Hi guys,</p>

<p>I'm about to start my second semester at Columbia General Studies. I transferred in from Duke last year, after taking more than a year off college. After a semester at GS, I wanted to see how my finances would go and realized I will be about $80-100k in debt. My chosen major is Econ and I plan to go into non-academic fields in finance. My GPA is off to a good start.</p>

<p>Duke will not let me transfer back so easily, but I could transfer to a much cheaper state school where my tuition is all covered.</p>

<p>Anyway, is this worth it? Should I stay or quit?</p>

2

<p>$100k is a lot. I think you should consider transferring to a cheaper school.</p>

3

<p>Dude, this is nuts.</p>

4

<p>100k debt is a lot of burden, but depending on how frugally you live after college and supposing you work in the finance world, you could certainly pay it off in a few years. if you live like a rockstar, you might find it hard to pay off your debt and live the lifestyle.</p>

<p>the bigger question is if you have any thought toward going to b-school in the future which would be a bigger loan burden. if that is the case, then having less of a debt burden now might make it easier for you. (though this is the catch-22 effect, in many cases to get into the b-school you want you would have to stay within the elite world that a duke or a columbia offer). so though it is nice to be able to take things one step at a time, in reality you really have to take the long picture into consideration. for some folks not going to b-school acts like a ceiling in your earnings potential even in finance firms (you can ask around to figure out what that ceiling looks like) so long term you might find it harder to make the big big bucks, though certainly you could live comfortably. hopefully you figure something out that works well for you.</p>

5

<p>It’s especially tough to break into finance right now. With failures and changes in regulation, there’s a surplus of displaced, experienced talent on the job market. Of course, this situation will hopefully have improved by the time that you graduate. But, in your scenario, you can’t really look at $100k as a capital investment; you’re gambling.</p>

<p>[Debt</a> / salary wizard](<a href=“Mapping Your Future: Page not found”>Mapping Your Future: Debt / salary wizard)</p>