<p>Cavity, it will depend on how quickly you find a job that pays enough for your expenses and repayment of the loan. It also depends on how much help your parents can be. When you graduate, it’s rare to have a job sitting right there for you to start the next week. So unless you find one in Troy so that you can stay right where you are, with minimal disruption and cost. </p>
<p>My son just graduated. He does not have the job he wants, and his temporary job is near where we live,not his college, so he had to pack up and bring all of his stuff home. We paid for those expenses so cost was not an issue to him. Nor did he have to worry about 3 squares and cot when he got home, and he started his summer job, which pays well, to start accumulating cash. He wants to go on a world trek at the end of the summer which will deplete his stash and start serious job hunting when he gets back. He has our home as a springboard to do all of this. No rental payments, nothing as of yet.When he gets a job offer, unless he is lucky enough to get one within commuting distance from here, he will have to move and find a place to live, which will mean more expenses, including rent, deposits, utilities, all before he gets his first paycheck. If he is very lucky, maybe, maybe his company will reimburse him for some of that. Or we help him out again. Clothing, apartment supplies and furniture, all of that stuff he may need. And he is better off than most graduates with that summer job he has, remember. Student loans payments start coming due before the end of the year, remember, with the debt increasing everyday with interest.</p>
<p>In the best scenario, he gets a job that can cover his monthly expenses and some. So do the numbers for yourself. What is the monthly loan amount that you will be expected to pay 6 months after graduation, and what do you expect to make per month? Do you have “seed” money to find a job and get settled somewhere, or parents who can help fill that gap? </p>
<p>My son has a roommate who was on a generous financial aid package at his school, and his parents live in an area where there are simply no jobs out there. So after graduation, this young man has no job, no money and his “home” has little or no potential in giving him either, as his parents have very little, if any extra. He has loans coming due in, now 4 months to add to the problem. He has no car, no savings and has to job search long distance. DS has asked if he can stay here for a few months, looking for a job since NYC has more to offer. He will have to pay his way to get here, however, and getting around in this area is not cheap either. A train ticket to Manhattan is more than $8 one way, off peak, for example and that does not include bus and subway fare once you are in the city. </p>
<p>So, how screwed are you? What are your plans in finding a job and your prospects and your resources to help you until you get that first paycheck? If you have a job awaiting you upon graduation, it would be very helpful. You would then just need the money to make the transition from school to where your job is. If you have parents or savings to fund that transition, and your job pays enough so that you can make your expenses and pay that monthly loan amount, you are in good shape. Otherwise you are going to have some problems.</p>