So Should We Still Take Out a Student Loan?
A student loan is the best financial aid for students. It practically allows anyone to pursue their dreams of getting higher education. It is unlike a scholarship for which you would have to be qualified by some exceptional ability a student loan is there for anyone who is financially incapable of funding their way through college. That is why millions have taken advantage of the benefits of this loan and millions more will continue to do so in the future.
The sad thing is that there are so many people who are having a hard time with their student loans today. The number of those who are defaulting on their student loans is on the increase and student loans unlike others cannot be discharged even when one files for bankruptcy. That means one is going to be stuck with it no matter what he does.
Another source of problem for those who have taken out student loans is that they are having a hard time finding the right kind of jobs. One of the aims of getting a college education is to increase one’s value in the job market, but a college diploma is no longer a protection against being unemployed. There are so many people without work who are college graduates. Then there are the cases of those who are unemployed, those who are working in jobs that would not have required them a college education in the first place. Needless to say these jobs are paying way below what they are expecting.
It is possible to come up with a better arrangement in regards with you student loan if you are having some problems with it but that would still require some form of payment. What happens when the job that you have is barely enough for your living expenses? You miss out on payments. When you miss out on payments continuously you eventually default and that is never a good thing.
So should a student stop considering a student loan as an option to pay for his schooling? No, because a student loan is a very useful instrument if you use it the right way. The smart move is to use a loan only as a means of supporting what you can come up with for your education. Do not rely on it solely because if you do then you might end up borrowing more than what you can pay. Use the money from loans only in the most necessary things. Do not spend it on things that are not directly connected with your education. Using it to pay for your apartment or you Spring break vacation is never going to work out in your favour.
Just because you can borrow some money does not mean that you have to take out a loan and spend it without thinking heavily about it. Like I said student loan can be a very useful instrument just as long as you stay smart about the way that you will be using it.