The Average Student - Free Essay Example

Do you want to spend 20 years of your life paying off your student loans? If you could have a chance to pay for college with cash, would you take it? If you save up the money throughout your life, you can be debt free and making profit after you graduate from college. Its the perfect alternative due to the fact that you wont be in debt, and youll have money to use for important events and even the small things that you want in life. The average student loan debt for the class of 2017 is $39,000. There are endless reasons as to why student loans can hinder your life goals. For example, are you thinking about going to graduate school? The average undergraduate accumulates over $30,000 in student loans, therefore not being able to take out another large loan for the next step in their education. This debt will be following you around like a cloud above your head if you dont pay it off. It doesnt just disappear from your life, itll stay there until youve paid every single dollar off. One of the most important reasons to think about not taking out student loans is the fact that interest rates may be extremely high. Interest rates on student loans are much higher than most other types of loans. Most of the interest rates vary between 5 and 6%, with private loans ranging from 2.5%-12%. Thats three times the rate of the average mortgage, and close to the average credit card. According to Nikelle Murphy, Federal student loans are now capped with fixed rates, which takes some of the guesswork out of how much youll actually be paying. However, the annual percentage can still change from year to year. What this means is that the loans you take out during your senior year of college could still have a higher interest rate than the money you borrowed freshman year. (Murphy). As a college student, its hard to find a well paying job while trying to study and get an education, so it is very unlikely that youll be able to pay off the loan before the interest rates start rising. Although, it can be threatening to your financial situation, many believe that student loan debt is a good type of debt. Because of the fact that you are using the money wisely to acquire an education, most people who side with this aspect find the money worth it. You also learn how to pay off loans, which should be a good skill to have, just in case you ever have a situation in life when you need to. Being able to pay off your student loans on time can actually raise your credit score as well, therefore making you look like a responsible borrower according to the lenders. In conclusion, debt is never a way to have money disappear. Itll stay with you until you pay it off. College loans are one of the biggest loans that youll have to pay off throughout your lifetime if you choose to go down that path. By saving up for college with cash, youll have more freedom in your financial situations because there wont be any debt hanging over your shoulder.  Work Cited Debt.com Contributors. 2 Good Reasons Why Student Loans Are Good Debt. Debt.com, Debt.com, LLC, 4 June 2018, www.debt.com/edu/why-student-loans-are-good/. Murphy, Nikelle. 5 Reasons Why You Should Not Take Out Student Loans. The Cheat Sheet, The Cheat Sheet, 22 May 2017, www.cheatsheet.com/money-career/5-reasons-why-student-loans-are-the-worst.html/.