WELP.

[Stralem]

Just submitted the final loan application of my undergrad career a few minutes ago. This year I'm looking at $12,000 in federal loans (both subsidized and unsubsidized), for a grand total of... $40,000. That's how much I'll be in the red come graduation. Ugh.

I have to keep telling myself that I'm completing a STEM degree with high earning potential to keep myself from puking. Oh, and that they're all federal and not private. Of course there's that to help keep the bile down.

So anyway, if all goes according to schedule, my first payment will be due in 18 months. I can hardly wait!

[Luscher]

I'm negative 80k and haven't started paying yet. wanna switch?

[Stralem]

Nah, I'm good. I'm looking to pay off this debt sometime before the Apocalypse.

[alyssamarie]

Hopefully I'll be taking my last loan out this fall as well, putting me close to $50k in federal student loans as well! I'm not happy about it, and I wish I could go back and redo a few (lot) things, but it is what it is and it's the only reason I was able to even get a degree so I can't complain too much. 

My husband has close to $50k in loans as well. He's in engineering and I'm in finance so I'm hoping we will be able to support that amount of debt without too much issue and have them paid off within 10 years.

[Anonymous]

I graduated with $73k in debt 4 years ago. With diligence and living like a pauper on a nice combined income with the wife, I am left only $8k left on the loans. It can be done!!!

[smith5879]

I'm here to offer some hope as well. I graduated last year with a degree in chemistry along with $75k in debt, about $40,000 in federal loans and the rest in private loans. After having a 3 month "hold over" job, I found the job I'm currently at, making a decent amount of money. I pay around $515 a month in student loans and have a car payment as well, but still managed to be able to close on a house last week. There is hope, even with a large amount of debt.

[grinlikechelsea]

What makes me sad is that even though my undergraduate debt isn't awful, I still have to take out loans for law school. 

[xXIDaShizIXx]

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@grinlikechelsea wrote:

What makes me sad is that even though my undergraduate debt isn't awful, I still have to take out loans for law school. 

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I have to take it out for my doctorate as well. blah.

[Stralem]

Hah, lots of responses.

It seems student loan debt has joined nationality and culture as one of the things that binds us all together.

Yeah, I'm not looking forward to when that $40K+ bill becomes due, but at least I'm working towards a degree with high earning potential.

And I've already resigned myself to living like a poor college student for many years to come in order to pay it all off post-haste. It is what it is.