Are you going to let your kids take student loans for college? (1 Viewer)

[ghostguy123]

This question isn't for the rich folks (so that may not include 97% of the FFA community).

For those of us who can't afford to just send our kid/s to the school of their choice, are you going to do everything in your power to keep them from taking out student loans?

I certainly am. My daughter is 11, smart, should get excellent grades in high school, and decent test scores. She will get accepted to most schools, but probably won't get any sort of huge scholarship anywhere.

I am going to do everything I can to convince her to go to community college (for at least two years), work part time, and maybe even SAVE a few bucks during that time.

These kids coming out of college with huge student loan debt is just sickening.

I never took any student loans because I got some sign on bonuses for the hospital I work at, got help from my dad for a while, and then maxed out a few credit cards to finish things up my last year or so (worse debt than student loans, but not a huge amount). I thank my lucky star every day I am not saddled with huge student loan debt. My wife has about 20 grand, but that is at least manageable with two incomes.

I have failed as a father if she either ends up dancing on the pole or graduates with some half-assed degree with huge student loan debt.

 

[Wooderson]

Sure why not. They just better stick with it and be smart enough to pick a career with job opportunities.

It's ok not to be rolling in money in your 20s. Put your time in pay off the loan. It's an investment in your future.

I had loans and grants and worked in college. Did just fine.

Now I will be trying my best to make it easier on my kids if I can.

 

[Short Corner]

Free uni here.

 

[ghostguy123]

Sure why not. They just better stick with it and be smart enough to pick a career with job opportunities.

It's ok not to be rolling in money in your 20s. Put your time in pay off the loan. It's an investment in your future.

I had loans and grants and worked in college. Did just fine.

Now I will be trying my best to make it easier on my kids if I can.

20s?? These kids are coming out of college with 75-100 grand in student loan debt. They will be paying that off into their 40s and 50s, and that is assuming they get at least a "decent" job.

It's not the same these days. College costs a LOT more, living expenses are higher, and working through college isn't helping nearly as much as it used to when you compare wages and the cost of everything.

Personally, I don't see the problem at all with 2 years of community college. The math, english, fine arts, and some other core classes people do in their first two years are the same for the bulk of the majors available and will transfer to a state school just fine, and also to a lot of private schools (my sister did this one).

If they are able to go to community college for two years while working part time a bit and come out of that with good grades, that probably shows they are responsible enough to transfer and finish up at a state or private school (maybe ever getting a scholarship along the way if they do very well at the community college, again, what my sister did). If they have to take some student loans at that point, then I could get on board. I would feel much more confident that they would end up with some sort of viable major and would be able to get a decent job, plus not be in the same huge debt as if they had started there year 1.

 

[DaVinci]

I came out of college with about $50k in loans. It took over 15 years to pay off. I'm going to encourage my kids not to make the same mistake.

 

[ghostguy123]

I came out of college with about $50k in loans. It took over 15 years to pay off. I'm going to encourage my kids not to make the same mistake.

Or at least minimize the damage.

I am sure when the time comes my daughter (and probably my wife) will be guilt tripping the ever loving #### out of me about going to some big school for the "college experience" or some crap. For one, zero chance I am co-signing anything. Zero. None.

College experience. What is that, pissing away a year of tuition on booze and regretful acts? You don't need to go to a big school to party. Visit your friend's big school and party there

I will encourage the heck out of her getting a nice college education, but there simply HAS to be a way to get that done without racking up a gazillion dollars in debt. I also need to figure out a way to make her think it is HER plan and not MY plan, or at least make her think the choice is hers, and somehow Jedi mind trick her into the choice I prefer.

 

[Dentist]

My dad picked up 90 percent of my education tab and I intend to pay it forward.

I agree with your entire idea except about community college.

I feel like anecdotally at the office I hear about kids intending to do community then real college and the community colleges are so weak that nearly none of them complete their idea. It's like planning to fail in advance.

You've got to get to that real college, immerse with smart like minded students and advance. That may cost more but ultimately finishing with a quality degree is the most important thing

 

[ghostguy123]

My dad picked up 90 percent of my education tab and I intend to pay it forward.

I agree with your entire idea except about community college.

I feel like anecdotally at the office I hear about kids intending to do community then real college and the community colleges are so weak that nearly none of them complete their idea. It's like planning to fail in advance.

You've got to get to that real college, immerse with smart like minded students and advance. That may cost more but ultimately finishing with a quality degree is the most important thing

Those kids you hear about would probably fail to complete college anyway. Generally their only choice is community college because they weren't accepted into the "real" colleges in the first place.

And keep in mind, some community colleges are one HELL of a lot better than others. I can't stress this enough. My sister went to the community college in my county (after nothing but terrible grades in high school. Smart girl, just didn't give a damn in high school), got a 4.0 for two years, and transferred to a nice private school to finish up her degree in finance. She even received a scholarship in the process. I don't remember the amount though.

I am certainly not paying 90% (probably none) of her tuition, or my son's when the time comes.

So Dentist, if you don't agree with the community college part, what DO you agree with, and what would be your suggestion to keep my kids from swimming in ridiculous student loan debt? Assuming no major scholarships or anything of that sort.

 

[FUBAR]

We'll encourage the community college route if they don't get good grants and scholarships. It's looking like our oldest won't be in line for scholarships but #2 and #3 have a fair chance of getting some money (#4 turns 5 on Sunday so I won't even guess there).

We have saved enough for one year at a private school or two years at a decent state school (most, not Michigan or Virginia) and they each have 25% of my 911 GI bill which I won't let them use their first year. Our hope is to match the money they get in scholarships or pay out of pocket but not any loan they take.

Ideally, they will go to a cheaper school (community college, a cheap but decent state school, scholarships or whatever) for their first two years, maybe transfer to a top state school for the last two when they can use their GI bill. If they did that, we'd have almost the whole bill covered. If they want to attend some small private school, we'll do what we can but they'll go into it knowing they'll be in debt.

Eta: to actually answer the question, yes we'll let them, but have planned to provide better options.

 

[ghostguy123]

A huge thing also is their major.

For myself as a nurse it didn't matter AT ALL where I graduated from. Many community colleges have RN programs, and once you get a job you can go back to school part time to get the bachelors (and the hospital you work for will pay the tuition).

If for some reason either kid wants to be a nurse, then SCORE for me. And for them, since it will cost peanuts to go to school, and then zilch to get the bachelors.

Hell, the hospital I work at now will pay your full tuition at a state school if you work full time at the hospital while you are going to school. Any job in the hospital, as long as you are full time.

Now if they are going into engineering or something, different story.

 

[avoiding injuries]

immerse with smart like minded students and advance.

One of, if not the most important things about college. IMO

 

[MAC_32]

I work at a college in part so hopefully this is a non issue. It provides an option. If any of them choose a specialized route then they will need loans. I assume if they're going specialized that the loans will be worth it.

From my experience, those coming out of school with unmanageable amounts of debt made several poor decisions to get to that point.

 

[gianmarco]

I like the part about how you know your 11 year old will get accepted to most schools. That's cute.

 

[Craig_MiamiFL]

No I wouldn't.

Community college route is good one if taking courses that transfer directly.

Saddening the # of college students doing GoFundMe's because they're 6 figures deep in student loans before they graduate with a 4 year degree in psychology from "the school of their dreams".

 

[eoMMan]

It's not as simple as yes or no.

You should start saving for their education when they are young.

You should encourage them to apply for various scholarships.

You should encourage them to major in something that will make them happy in life AND provide a decent paying job.

You should encourage them to find a reasonable affordable college. If that means staying in state, fine.

If all of the above are done and the kid still has a little bit of student loans, it's not the end of the world.

 

[avoiding injuries]

Unless you are going to a very specialized school, I don't see the benefits of going to an out of state school and paying nearly twice as much.

 

[snogger]

I think in order for kids to be truly invested in their education they need to have something "in the game"..

I've personally witnessed kids who had a "free" ride waste it away..

So yes, we will probably have her take out some amount of loans.. Not talking 10's of thousands..

We've been putting money away for her college since she was 5.. If she goes to University we probably have enough saved to pay for 2 1/2 years of tuition..

She is a Junior now and luckily for us she is leaning towards going into Marketing/advertising..

After reviewing what Technical Colleges offer, including one that offers a 3 year bachelor degree, and her having no interest at all in the general classes they force you to take at Universities, she is leaning towards the Technical colleges..

Between scholarships( National Honor society, our bank, etc.), and the money we have already put aside, the amount she'll have to take out will be small, below 5k.. But enough so she feels "invested" in it.

 

[James Daulton]

For those saying, just go to community college for two years, that's way easier said than done. When the time comes, your kids friends will mostly be going to 4 year colleges and parents often get swept up in how much colleges have to offer their babies these days. In fact, even applying for colleges has become a kind of competition in the crowd my kids run in. At get togethers with these parents, inevitably folks will start saying their kid applied to 8 schools while another applies to 12, it's stupid.

Anyway, unless your kid's really really smart, and gets fantastic scholarships, 4 years at college will cost at least $80k. I don't want to strap my kids with tons of debt when they graduate, but I also don't feel like I have to fund 4 years of basically ultimate fun for them. Kids can get a subsidized loan for around $6k per year automatically if they want it. This is the nut my kids are going to have to pay, basically the amount of a decent car. We talk about it upfront so they know the deal. I'm still covering the vast majority of college but my kids are invested too so hopefully they don't #### around too much and are serious about choosing a marketable major.

 

[snogger]

My dad picked up 90 percent of my education tab and I intend to pay it forward.

I agree with your entire idea except about community college.

I feel like anecdotally at the office I hear about kids intending to do community then real college and the community colleges are so weak that nearly none of them complete their idea. It's like planning to fail in advance.

You've got to get to that real college, immerse with smart like minded students and advance. That may cost more but ultimately finishing with a quality degree is the most important thing

disagree.. Not all careers or people for that matter need the "real college" experience.. Technical college are "real" in that they prepare you for the real world..

As I mentioned above.. My daughter wants to go into Marketing/advertising.. why would she need to take Chemistry, history, etc.. to succeed in that?

I think the overall expense for, as you call it "real" college", is ridiculous if it doesn't fit your career plans.

 

[snogger]

A huge thing also is their major.

For myself as a nurse it didn't matter AT ALL where I graduated from. Many community colleges have RN programs, and once you get a job you can go back to school part time to get the bachelors (and the hospital you work for will pay the tuition).

If for some reason either kid wants to be a nurse, then SCORE for me. And for them, since it will cost peanuts to go to school, and then zilch to get the bachelors.

Hell, the hospital I work at now will pay your full tuition at a state school if you work full time at the hospital while you are going to school. Any job in the hospital, as long as you are full time.

Now if they are going into engineering or something, different story.

DING..DING..DING

We have to stop telling kids that the only way they can succeed is if they go to a University.. we have some friends that "forced" their kid to start a University this fall when all he wants to do is be a Computer Network administrator.. There is zero reason to get a 4 year degree to be a Network administrator..

By the time he graduates, others that went the "smart" rout of a 2 year technical college will already be in the work force for two years gaining experience. ..

He will always be behind in regards to experience, which anyone in the Computer world know trumps all.

 

[fruity pebbles]

Heres what we're doing cause im dealing with it now. Daughter just got accepted to Cornell. Her aid packagee has us paying around 30 grand a year. So we're splitting it 3 ways. My ex wife pays a third, i pay a third and my daughter is paying a third of her own education. 7500 of that a year will be loans for her so she'll likely come out with 30 grand or so of undergrad debt.

 

[fatguyinalittlecoat]

Heres what we're doing cause im dealing with it now. Daughter just got accepted to Cornell. Her aid packagee has us paying around 30 grand a year. So we're splitting it 3 ways. My ex wife pays a third, i pay a third and my daughter is paying a third of her own education. 7500 of that a year will be loans for her so she'll likely come out with 30 grand or so of undergrad debt.

Cornell really isn't any different from a community college, you're throwing your money away.

 

[Brony]

You seem very level headed and rationale. I'm sure everything will turn out great.

 

[Hoosier16]

immerse with smart like minded students and advance.

One of, if not the most important things about college. IMO

Completely agree. I don't think people realize how important this is. Being around smarter people leads to better opportunities.

 

[fruity pebbles]

Heres what we're doing cause im dealing with it now. Daughter just got accepted to Cornell. Her aid packagee has us paying around 30 grand a year. So we're splitting it 3 ways. My ex wife pays a third, i pay a third and my daughter is paying a third of her own education. 7500 of that a year will be loans for her so she'll likely come out with 30 grand or so of undergrad debt.

Cornell really isn't any different from a community college, you're throwing your money away.

Shes picked a good major. Only a couple dozen colleges offer it in the country.

 

[Jobber]

Do 4 year colleges allow easy credit transfers from community colleges? I'm asking because I read somewhere a while back that the universities were trying to discourage this practice.

 

[eoMMan]

Heres what we're doing cause im dealing with it now. Daughter just got accepted to Cornell. Her aid packagee has us paying around 30 grand a year. So we're splitting it 3 ways. My ex wife pays a third, i pay a third and my daughter is paying a third of her own education. 7500 of that a year will be loans for her so she'll likely come out with 30 grand or so of undergrad debt.

Cornell really isn't any different from a community college, you're throwing your money away.

Shes picked a good major. Only a couple dozen colleges offer it in the country.

He was being sarcastic.

How much did you save for her college costs, if you don't me asking? Do all of you live in state (NY, right?)?

 

[eoMMan]

Do 4 year colleges allow easy credit transfers from community colleges? I'm asking because I read somewhere a while back that the universities were trying to discourage this practice.

It's been well over a decade since I graduating but back then it depends. Some 4 year colleges took certain credits and some didn't. IMO, it should be researched thoroughly if that that is the route you want to take.

 

[NutterButter]

Definitely will be taking the stafford and perkins loans which will amount to around 7k/year. A part of reason I'd encourage my kids to go to college is the experience of it. After being in the rat race for a few decades, that was without a doubt an awesome 4 years of my life. So many great memories. I wish I would've gotten even more out of it, but I didn't realize how good I had it at the time.

 

[James Daulton]

Heres what we're doing cause im dealing with it now. Daughter just got accepted to Cornell. Her aid packagee has us paying around 30 grand a year. So we're splitting it 3 ways. My ex wife pays a third, i pay a third and my daughter is paying a third of her own education. 7500 of that a year will be loans for her so she'll likely come out with 30 grand or so of undergrad debt.

Cornell really isn't any different from a community college, you're throwing your money away.

Shes picked a good major. Only a couple dozen colleges offer it in the country.

Hmmm...What's this major only a few colleges offer?

 

[Insein]

My dad picked up 90 percent of my education tab and I intend to pay it forward.

I agree with your entire idea except about community college.

I feel like anecdotally at the office I hear about kids intending to do community then real college and the community colleges are so weak that nearly none of them complete their idea. It's like planning to fail in advance.

You've got to get to that real college, immerse with smart like minded students and advance. That may cost more but ultimately finishing with a quality degree is the most important thing

Completely disagree. There is no such thing as a quality degree. No matter how prestigious the university of faculty, people do not truly understand a job until they do it and gain experience in it. You can be told how to do things until your head xplodes from knowledge. It means nothing if you can't apply it and I don't mean 2 or 3 months internship while still attending school for your other classes.

A college degree is the piece paper that gets you in the door for an interview. From there its all on you to a) get the job and b) learn what hell to do. No matter how much you know, you'll always have to learn and adapt to the job you take.

And I get specialties like dentistry and doctors need tons of schooling to learn the extra stuff but even then, you don't really get it till you do it.

 

[3C's]

Daughter went to a "real" college for her first semester and hated it there. I had her take out a small loan which covered about 25% and paid the rest. After that first semester she came home and went to the local CC. Got straight A's and I've paid for all of it. She then transferred to a local university (a "real" college) and is about finished with her junior year. She's getting about a 3.3 GPA there so it hasn't been a night and day "I'm so dumb compared to all these 4 year students" experience. Again I've paid for all of it. She's also working full time so when she asked if I was going to pay for grad school I

 

[bagger]

It will be a major factor in deciding.

If one gets into Harvard then yes, if it is a school that has other options for cheaper or free then no.

Student debt is a brutal burden that kids should avoid at all costs unless it is a special circumstance.

 

[NajehHejan]

My parents paid 80% (mostly via loans) and they had me pay 20% via loans. Sucked paying that off over ten years but in hindsight I'm glad, for their well being, they didn't saddle themselves with all 100%. I envision the same 80/20 split for my kids however hoping to have my portion covered mostly through savings. I am totally onboard with two years at a CC first. You just need the piece of paper and then connections/luck/effort from there.

 

[NewlyRetired]

We have been saving for our daughter since before she was born so even if she goes to a $350k for 4 years type school, we should be ok with the loan issue.

Any shortfall after non loan financial aid we can cover but I am very scared about a major. She is a junior now and I keep harping that we can't spend 300+k on an education that won't produce at least a decent job. My wife is stuck on the issue that if we force her into something she won't like it will be a disaster.

I am not looking forward to the next year and just pray she finds a decent field to major in.

 

[NutterButter]

Might be hard to look this far ahead, but if you're thinking in terms of a masters degree as well, schools have a program where you can take masters courses your senior year and then have just one additional year to get your masters instead of the typical two. It was a lot easier finding a good first job having that masters degree as well. Unlike graduating undergrad where you had to hunt down a job, big companies literally hunted you down.

 

[SHIZNITTTT]

Well she could join the military and get the G.I. bill to pay for college.

Medical field is a great way to always have employment, and having your employeer foot the bill is also very nice.

http://www.payscale.com/college-roi

I have heard a lot of talk at work from parents with college bound kids about ROI's.

 

[jandyt]

Do 4 year colleges allow easy credit transfers from community colleges? I'm asking because I read somewhere a while back that the universities were trying to discourage this practice.

This really varies and you just need to really look at it before you take the classes. When I went back to school I went to a community college and the majority of the classes transferred easily but there were a few weird cases where they would not of. In one case a professor taught a class at the CC and had taught the same class using the same book at a local 4 year college but the college wouldn't of transferred that class. Typically CC's have worked with surrounding 4 year colleges so they can pretty quickly tell people exactly what classes will transfer.

 

[avoiding injuries]

immerse with smart like minded students and advance.

One of, if not the most important things about college. IMO

Completely agree. I don't think people realize how important this is. Being around smarter people leads to better opportunities.

Also, escaping my high school friends who were going down some bad paths and the hometown lifestyle that never seemed to allow anyone to advance. Maybe it was different from where I came from.

 

[NutterButter]

immerse with smart like minded students and advance.

One of, if not the most important things about college. IMO

Completely agree. I don't think people realize how important this is. Being around smarter people leads to better opportunities.

Also, escaping my high school friends who were going down some bad paths and the hometown lifestyle that never seemed to allow anyone to advance.Maybe it was different from where I came from.

Everyone is different, but that certainly isn't going to help. Most likely the only friends still around will be the one's that don't have much going for them and that's who your kid is most likely going to be hanging around with for 2 years.

 

[mr roboto]

Some debt, sure. But...

1. I won't help at all beyond 4 years (unless there's an incredibly compelling reason).

2. I must see a plan, including career trajectory and entry level job description, for whatever major they want

3. MUST intern and/or work every summer they have IN THEIR FIELD OF STUDY. So many kids graduate with a finance, marketing degree (my background) and have 0 experience, connections etc.

 

[mr roboto]

Also, I'm entirely convinced that the 'college bubble' will burst in the next 10 years and costs will plummet.

It's going to be fascinating to see how wide the industry spreads honestly. I can see a student getting a 4-year degree from a Tier 1 state school only stepping on campus 2x/semester for example.

 

[HaywoodSM]

My daughter goes out of state, but I had her take 2 classes the summer before and after her freshman year, at the local community college. Her university on their website, has a list of community colleges and what classes transfer, which made it easy.

Also all four of her cc classes were on-line, so she never had to go to the cc other than to register initially. Taking these four classes along with some AP credits she had from high school will let her graduate in 3.5 years and lowered the total 4 year cost by a good amount.

She will still have loans to repay, but the amount will be manageable and I will help out. I had my college fully paid for, so want to help her as much as I can.

 

[Hoosier16]

My dad picked up 90 percent of my education tab and I intend to pay it forward.

I agree with your entire idea except about community college.

I feel like anecdotally at the office I hear about kids intending to do community then real college and the community colleges are so weak that nearly none of them complete their idea. It's like planning to fail in advance.

You've got to get to that real college, immerse with smart like minded students and advance. That may cost more but ultimately finishing with a quality degree is the most important thing

Completely disagree. There is no such thing as a quality degree. No matter how prestigious the university of faculty, people do not truly understand a job until they do it and gain experience in it. You can be told how to do things until your head xplodes from knowledge. It means nothing if you can't apply it and I don't mean 2 or 3 months internship while still attending school for your other classes.

A college degree is the piece paper that gets you in the door for an interview. From there its all on you to a) get the job and b) learn what hell to do. No matter how much you know, you'll always have to learn and adapt to the job you take.

And I get specialties like dentistry and doctors need tons of schooling to learn the extra stuff but even then, you don't really get it till you do it.

I think you're completely wrong on this. There is no doubt that a person can succeed without it or even without a college degree. And, what you eventually do in your job will have a lot to do with your success. But, you can't minimize the opportunities that prestigious degree provides both initially and throughout your career. All other things being nearly equal, the Harvard grad will always get more opportunity than the state school grad.

 

[mr roboto]

My daughter goes out of state, but I had her take 2 classes the summer before and after her freshman year, at the local community college. Her university on their website, has a list of community colleges and what classes transfer, which made it easy.

Also all four of her cc classes were on-line, so she never had to go to the cc other than to register initially. Taking these four classes along with some AP credits she had from high school will let her graduate in 3.5 years and lowered the total 4 year cost by a good amount.

She will still have loans to repay, but the amount will be manageable and I will help out. I had my college fully paid for, so want to help her as much as I can.

These types of things (AP, IB classes, PSEO, online etc etc) will continue to drive costs down and increase options.

 

[bigbottom]

Heres what we're doing cause im dealing with it now. Daughter just got accepted to Cornell. Her aid packagee has us paying around 30 grand a year. So we're splitting it 3 ways. My ex wife pays a third, i pay a third and my daughter is paying a third of her own education. 7500 of that a year will be loans for her so she'll likely come out with 30 grand or so of undergrad debt.

Cornell really isn't any different from a community college, you're throwing your money away.

Shes picked a good major. Only a couple dozen colleges offer it in the country.

Hmmm...What's this major only a few colleges offer?

I'm guessing hospitality perhaps? Best program in the country.

 

[FUBAR]

I think in order for kids to be truly invested in their education they need to have something "in the game"..

I've personally witnessed kids who had a "free" ride waste it away..

So yes, we will probably have her take out some amount of loans.. Not talking 10's of thousands..

We've been putting money away for her college since she was 5.. If she goes to University we probably have enough saved to pay for 2 1/2 years of tuition..

She is a Junior now and luckily for us she is leaning towards going into Marketing/advertising..

After reviewing what Technical Colleges offer, including one that offers a 3 year bachelor degree, and her having no interest at all in the general classes they force you to take at Universities, she is leaning towards the Technical colleges..

Between scholarships( National Honor society, our bank, etc.), and the money we have already put aside, the amount she'll have to take out will be small, below 5k.. But enough so she feels "invested" in it.

agreed. While I graduated undergrad with very little debt, I found my own path to pay for it and my parents paid only a portion of my freshman year. Other friends had their parents pay for everything. While I was slightly jealous at the time, I learned a lot by finding my way.

For those saying, just go to community college for two years, that's way easier said than done. When the time comes, your kids friends will mostly be going to 4 year colleges and parents often get swept up in how much colleges have to offer their babies these days. In fact, even applying for colleges has become a kind of competition in the crowd my kids run in. At get togethers with these parents, inevitably folks will start saying their kid applied to 8 schools while another applies to 12, it's stupid.

Anyway, unless your kid's really really smart, and gets fantastic scholarships, 4 years at college will cost at least $80k. I don't want to strap my kids with tons of debt when they graduate, but I also don't feel like I have to fund 4 years of basically ultimate fun for them. Kids can get a subsidized loan for around $6k per year automatically if they want it. This is the nut my kids are going to have to pay, basically the amount of a decent car. We talk about it upfront so they know the deal. I'm still covering the vast majority of college but my kids are invested too so hopefully they don't #### around too much and are serious about choosing a marketable major.

yikes. Let's take out loans to pay for applications!

We had the competition of the best school we got accepted into, but not the total #. I applied to 3 schools for undergrad, one for law school.

My parents paid 80% (mostly via loans) and they had me pay 20% via loans. Sucked paying that off over ten years but in hindsight I'm glad, for their well being, they didn't saddle themselves with all 100%. I envision the same 80/20 split for my kids however hoping to have my portion covered mostly through savings. I am totally onboard with two years at a CC first. You just need the piece of paper and then connections/luck/effort from there.

this seems like a horrible idea. Why should parents take a loan to pay for their kids college? Kids should take the loan and if parents feel compelled to do so, they can help pay it off after graduation or whenever.

 

[NutterButter]

My daughter goes out of state, but I had her take 2 classes the summer before and after her freshman year, at the local community college. Her university on their website, has a list of community colleges and what classes transfer, which made it easy.

Also all four of her cc classes were on-line, so she never had to go to the cc other than to register initially. Taking these four classes along with some AP credits she had from high school will let her graduate in 3.5 years and lowered the total 4 year cost by a good amount.

She will still have loans to repay, but the amount will be manageable and I will help out. I had my college fully paid for, so want to help her as much as I can.

That's what I have in mind as well when the time comes.

 

[Wooderson]

These students are 18 and adults. It's time to start making tough decisions and going to a school that is going to set you up for the future. To many are choosing ones their friends are going to or they think is cool.

 

[Rick James]

I do think something catastrophic is going to happen in the next 18 years, in terms of college tuitions. Either the Feds back out of the loan business and tuition costs plummet, or laws are changed that let bankruptcy dismiss student loans.