Posts Tagged ‘student loans’
I am a senior in the criminology program and an aspiring law school candidate. My education would not have been possible without taking on a substantial amount of student loan debt. I am frightened when it comes to paying back my loans.
My loans cover tuition costs, and that’s it. I have to pay for cost-of-living expense such as rent, food, and transportation out of pocket. I participate in the work-study program and am enrolled in the Equal Opportunity Program (EOP). Investing in higher education will allow students like me the opportunity to grow as individuals, and ultimately positively affect the great state of New York.
I am a senior at SUNY Cortland, majoring in fitness development and hoping to open my own gym one day. Attending Cortland has been the greatest decision I’ve ever made. I wouldn’t have been able to go to school without taking on a massive amount of student debt. With increased tuition and academic costs, my family has felt the financial burden associated with a college education.
Both myself and my brother attended Cortland simultaneously for two years, making it even more difficult for my family to afford. New Yorkers should have access to higher education at an affordable rate. Invest in higher education to help CUNY and SUNY students make an impact.
As an out-of-state student, I’m one of the few and far between at SUNY Cortland. I’m a student-athlete and attend Cortland with my brother, effectually doubling the financial burden on our family. Going to school with my brother has been a great experience, however it has definitely been harder for my family to get by. I know the importance of a college degree and have worked countless hours over the summer and winter breaks to save enough money to cover the cost-of-living expenses as an off-campus resident. On top of working long hours, my brother and I have taken on a substantial amount of student loans to cover the sky-rocketing tuition and related academic costs at SUNY Cortland.
I currently am an intern with the Marketing Department on-campus, an All-American Red Dragon football player, and a full-time student with the accompanying course load. Should I also have the added worry about covering the costs of higher education? Most would agree that I shouldn’t. I have had such a great experience here at Cortland as a student-athlete and a communications major. I would hate to see this opportunity that I’ve been given made more exclusive through increasing tuition and costs. That would be a shame.
I am a senior economics major heading towards graduation, and am pleased with the opportunities and experiences I’ve had during my four years at SUNY Cortland. I’ve made friends for the rest of my life. While I have had this positive experience, I also took on on multiple student loans. My family felt the financial burden of increased tuition and related expenses as they put both my sister and myself through college.
The value of a higher education is important to me and my family, so I resorted to a handful of student loans to cover a portion of my tuition and textbooks. Aside the student loan debt that I’ve taken on, I also work part-time during the semesters to cover living expenses and the rest of my tuition. On top of working, I have a maxed-out course load, I participate in intramural sports, and have an internship on-campus. My schedule is busy, and worrying about how to afford the rising costs of SUNY Cortland’s tuition and costs has no place in it.
My first two semesters at Bronx Community College, I didn’t qualify for financial aid, even though my family lives on only my mother’s income and there are five of us at home with two of my siblings away for college. But, then I enrolled in the Accelerated Study in Associate Programs (ASAP), which has been a blessing for me. The cost of textbooks and a MetroCard is just too much, especially when multiple people are in college at the same time. I remember I was on my way to the financial aid office with the loan application form for Spring 2017 filled out, when I stopped to ask my ASAP advisor a question. I brought up taking out a loan, but she told me that because I qualified for partial Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) funding, ASAP would cover the rest. I texted my mom in the office that I had great news. After I spoke to her I felt like I was going to burst out in tears because I was so relieved and blessed, like I had been stopped on my way to making a deal with the devil.
College is a time to be challenged but paying for it shouldn’t be the main stressor. At times, it consumes my thoughts and leaves with me with an anxiety about my education and future, when I want to focus on the hope and excitement of earning a degree. There needs to be a change so that the burden of student debt can be lifted from students. We’re the future, after all.
I am a first generation college student who started my academic journey at Hostos Community College. I am a bit older and have established a fairly decent job to pay my current bills, but not enough to pay for school. I filled out my FAFSA and sent it in but New York State did not offer me a Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) award, because of my current pay so I have to take out federal loans. I found this to be extremely challenging considering I was struggling to make ends meet with my current expenses. I currently have my associates, which I am very proud of, but continuing my journey to achieve my bachelors has been a struggle. My current student loans exceed the 20 thousand dollar range. I would have loved for tuition cost to be much less or if New York State offered grants to help pay for even just textbooks.
Taking a full load of 15 credits or about 5 classes can be extremely difficult with a full time work schedule. My biggest fear is when I finally get my degree and enter loan repayment, my salary will not match what is needed to pay back the loans. Being a part time student during some semesters means taking much longer to graduate, but the financial burden increases since it is the same cost of a full time student taking 12 credits to 18 credits.
In the beginning of August, me and my mom started talking about the fall semester of college and how to pay for it. We looked at the cost and my mom was worried because it was over $8,000. I told her that the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) would cover the costs associated with college, but not everything.
Then we drove to the college and we spoke with one of the representatives at the financial aid office. She told us “The financial aid would not cover everything”. My mom then asked “How am I supposed to pay it” and the lady said “I don’t know.” When I got home that day, my mom and I had a talk about what to do and we decided to take out loans. The problem about that is I won’t be able to work on my career because I have to find a job ASAP and work for who knows how long to pay off the loans. My career will be on hold for weeks, months, or even years.
As an Environmental Studies major, I’m happy to have the experience of pursuing my passion and learning about what I love. Paying for college is my biggest hassle. My parents “make too much” for me to be able to get financial aid so I’ve been forced to take out private and unsubsidized loans to pay my tuition. Because of the ridiculous interest rates of the private loans, I watch my balance increase every month. With each increase, I wonder how I will be able to pay these loans off and how long it will take me. As someone who wants to pursue a graduate degree, I also wonder if my current debt will affect my ability to do so and how I will pay for it. I had to take a semester off 2 years ago because of a hold on my account due to unpaid fees that I was not able to resolve in time.
Like many other students, I’ve had to get a job on campus to earn money to pay for tuition, textbooks, a monthly metrocard, buy food, and pay bills. Despite what FAFSA has determined about my family’s financial standing, depending on them to provide me with money for all these expenses is not possible, especially considering the fact that I’m one of two children currently in college. While I feel that learning to manage time is an important skill to have in college, I don’t believe that struggling to stay financially afloat is a struggle that college students should have to face. I hope to see a change in what is considered low-income and a greater and more comprehensive approach to helping students pay for education as it should be a right and not a privilege.
I was born and raised in New York City where I have seen violence firsthand as a teen, and soon figured out that higher education was my ticket to success. During my senior year in high school, my mother was laid-off from her job and my hopes for affording a college degree became a bit dimmer. I chose to attend Tompkins County Community College because of its affordability, and then transferred to SUNY Cortland. The financial aid package I receive for SUNY Cortland covers a majority of tuition. However the additional costs force me to work two jobs, one at a local grocery store and the other as a tour guide on-campus. The additional costs such as transportation, housing and food would have to be satisfied by my long working days, and two separate student loans. I accept little financial help from my parents to lessen the burden on their shoulders.
I am a psychology major and will be a first-generation graduate in my family. My post-graduation goal is to start a non-profit organization in New York City dedicated to adolescent outreach and empowerment. I believe that if you’re lucky enough to be in college, you should never take it for granted and make use of the opportunity. I am from a troubled area and would like to incite a college culture within youth from my community, and enlighten them to the opportunities that set me on a path to success.
I pay for school personally. I actually get short term loans to try to help my credit. So there’s interest, which is currently at 11%, that I’m paying through VISA, and this is at a monthly rate. I take out over $5000 a year, and I pay that off monthly.
I work anywhere from 32-42 hours a week. I drive back and forth and my money is going to gas. I’m paying for textbooks on top of paying for loans. I also pay rent, and my cellphone bill. In order for me to have a car, because we just can’t afford cars like that, I had to take out another loan and buy a car, a used car and I pay that off monthly too. Everything just kind of adds up to a point where I’m literally just working check to check at this point.