<p>How much debt is too much to go to a top public school, such as the University of Michigan? The non repayable (scholarships, grants, workstudy) aid that they gave me is just under half of the in-state Cost of Attendance. After what my parents can afford to pay for my education and me working over the summer, I would have about $15-$20,000 of subsidized debt after four years. Is this too much debt? I'm an engineering major, if that makes any difference.</p>
<p>Thanks
-Ben</p>
<p>Ben, I typically advise against loading up on debt, but in the case of an engineering major graduating from the Univ of MI, I do not think 15-20K total debt is too much. By subsidized, I assume you mean interest is not accumulating until you graduate. (If the debt is accruing interest while you are in school, it would be a good idea to try to pay some of it down while you are a student.)</p>
<p>Work hard, be a top graduate, and I think your employment prospects will be good enough to pay off that level of debt in a reasonable amount of time, with minimal pain.</p>
<p>20K is reasonable</p>
<p>That's basically a car. I HATE debt, but I think 15-20K is certainly reasonable. </p>
<p>Good luck, do well, be happy!</p>
<p>"By subsidized, I assume you mean interest is not accumulating until you graduate."</p>
<p>That is correct.</p>
<p>ben, you are obviously smart, so you are probably more knowledgeable about the subject of outside scholarships than I am. However, I will mention that when my son was considering colleges (he is computer science major), I took a look at a couple of books listing various engineering scholarships. There was essentially nothing at all for incoming freshman that were not URM or female, but there seemed to be a lot of scholarships for several thousand dollars available for students who had already "proven" themselves as engineering students. In other words, start looking at outside scholarships toward the end of your freshman or sophomore year. Many are very specific for majors in particular sub-specialties. If you can bring in a few thousand the last couple years of schooling, that will make the debt pretty negligible.</p>
<p>Another note, if you don't mind: try very hard to finish in four years. Pay close attention to course requirements and sequence, go see your adviser (often) and sign up as soon as possible when registration opens. At many big schools, engineers end up needing an extra semester or two, and that can be very expensive.</p>
<p>As a parent I would feel comfortable iwth my child incurring 20K or less of debt for undergrad and that is it</p>
<p>I think $20k is reasonable for undergrad debt.</p>
<p>I agree that the amount of debt you indicated isn't generally too much - especially for an engineering major since the starting salaries are typically pretty good. When you figure the amount of debt you'll have, calculate it for up to 5 years in school though since it's not that difficult to end up at 5 years in an engineering major. Also keep in mind that there's a fair chance that you might decide to change majors into something less lucrative to start with than engineering or decide to go to grad school which affects the debt equation.</p>
<p>If it helps: my son graduated from the University of Michigan college of Engineering in four years with no problem. It's not as hard as they make it out to be.</p>
<p>It's usually the combo of certain minors that can cause an engineering major to go over 4 years.</p>
<p>^^ Or changing engineering disciplines along the way.</p>
<p>^^ Yes, and it can vary depending on the specific engineering major and the number and complexity of the required courses.</p>
<p>3bm103, what did your son major in?</p>
<p>$20k is not that big if you graduate from a good enginerring school. The start salary (around $40?) would allow you pay off easyly. ... I was told that although the first one or two years UMich may not provide any scholarship, but there are some 'merit-based' scholarship for upper classes. ... You are in state right? don't they give scholarship to newly admitted in state student at much high rate?</p>
<p>$20k is $236.16 per month for 10 years (at a 6.8% interest rate). Here's a place where you can plug in the numbers - FinAid</a> | Calculators | Loan Calculator</p>
<p>Finaid estimates you need a salary of $27,619 in order to pay it off comfortably (at 10% of your salary).</p>
<p>Computer Science</p>
<p>Given that it's UMich and you're contemplating a degree in engineering, I agree with the other posters that 20k in educational debt is reasonable.</p>
<p>My older son is at UM and he will come out with about 20k in debt (the unsubsidized stafford loan). We talked about this and he and I agreed that no matter where he ended up, he was going to take advantage of this loan in order to take on some personal responsibility toward his education (OOS tuition at UM is appalling) and to help build credit. </p>
<p>In an ideal world I will be able to help pay some of it off when the time comes. If not, he will not be devastated. </p>
<p>Younger son (who is going through the process now) will most likely end up with the same thing.</p>
<p>Kitkat,
That is our family's philosophy as well.
Rather than actually paying towards the loans, our older 2 have moved back home and are paying us a nominal rent. This allows them to save/double up on loan payments.</p>