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<p>Well said. </p>
<p>I think it’s worth adding “I choose not to take out loans” in that category, if you’re talking about Harvard and other top schools. I think the loan amount would have to be pretty excessive to deter one from going to Harvard or any top school. Loans are essentially leverage. You go into debt by X in order to increase your employment prospects, and ultimately your career salary by Y. Harvard is a place where even the dreaded “liberal arts majors” are regularly employed and well-compensated, so I can’t think of a better place to maximize your Y.</p>
<p>Not to sound elitist (no way to avoid that in this forum!), but loans only become a problem if you are taking on a lot of X and don’t have a strong likelihood of making a high Y. Certain programs at certain schools are not worth loans. I believe Harvard is.</p>