I’m curious to see how much people were in debt getting out of college. I’m going to be graduating next year with a BS in Mechanical Engineering. I plan on paying this off 6K per year at the least. So I guess this question applies more to the older crowd, how much did you owe and what do you suggest for paying student loans? Advice appreciated!
Good lifting everyone!
30K…still paying it off, that was 6 years ago.
After I finish Med school —like 250K…
$20K after graduating with an engineering B.S.
I did not have any debt for any of my degrees, but that is most definitely not normal. I always recommend when taking out a loan for anything to think very carefully about it. This is not so much important for you since you are almost done and are getting a decent degree, but if someone is just going to college to get any degree, it is usually not worth it. Think about your earning potential with that degree compared to the amount of debt you will have. A literature degree is great and all, but is it really necessary for anything other then becoming an english teacher? No.
If money is important, then think about what kind of degree you want to get. You can always take literature or philosophy classes as electives or after you graduate or just study it on your own. It is harder to learn calculus on your own and even harder (read impossible) to get a job as an engineer or scientist with no degree.
I also usually give my freshmen students a speech about the importance of grades. Grades really are important. Even for fields like engineering you are not guaranteed a great salary. If you graduate at the bottom of your class, do not expect to make 50+k right out of school or to have a hundred job offers.
Now, about paying off debt. Pay it off as fast as you can. There is no need to keep student loan debt around, or much of any kind of debt IMO. The money you pay in interest is usually not worth it.
[quote]Dr.Matt581 wrote:
I also usually give my freshmen students a speech about the importance of grades. Grades really are important. Even for fields like engineering you are not guaranteed a great salary. If you graduate at the bottom of your class, do not expect to make 50+k right out of school or to have a hundred job offers.
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This is why I’m trying to make my skills base as large as possible during undergrad.
[quote]Dr.Matt581 wrote:
It is harder to learn calculus on your own and even harder (read impossible) to get a job as an engineer or scientist with no degree.
[/quote]
Bullshit. Their are plenty of engineers that work as contractors or in small companies with niche specialties, especially computer science related specialties. In fact for certain specializations, a BS is completely worthless.
[quote]spar4tee wrote:
[quote]Dr.Matt581 wrote:
I also usually give my freshmen students a speech about the importance of grades. Grades really are important. Even for fields like engineering you are not guaranteed a great salary. If you graduate at the bottom of your class, do not expect to make 50+k right out of school or to have a hundred job offers.
[/quote]
This is why I’m trying to make my skills base as large as possible during undergrad.[/quote]
I know, but you also should take into account the grades thing I mentioned especially since you want to go to grad school. Doing an engineering degree and the prereqs for graduate school in physics will most certainly affect your grades. Unemployment for people with graduate degrees in physics is virtually zero, just like aerospace engineering so you do not really need to worry about a wide skill base. The whole point of grad school is to develop your knowledge and skills in a very specific part of a wider field anyway. You will also never use your engineering skills as a physicist, experimental or theoretical.
Also, where you go to grad school matters a hell of a lot more then where you went to school for undergrad which is where grades come in. Learning graduate level physics and experimental techniques from top scientists is better then learning from second rate scientists at Podunk U and you won’t find many top scientists outside of the top 50 schools in the country.
I know I lecture you about this stuff a lot, but I genuinely do think you are a smart young man and will be successful in whatever field you choose as long as you do not overextend yourself doing too many things.
You got a BS in engineering with only 6K in debt. I think that’s a pretty good trade off. High earning degree / low amount of debt.
[quote]on edge wrote:
You got a BS in engineering with only 6K in debt. I think that’s a pretty good trade off. High earning degree / low amount of debt.[/quote]
I think he meant that he was planning on paying off his debt by 6K per year until it is paid off, which is still not bad considering the earning potential of engineering degrees.
[quote]Dr.Matt581 wrote:
[quote]on edge wrote:
You got a BS in engineering with only 6K in debt. I think that’s a pretty good trade off. High earning degree / low amount of debt.[/quote]
I think he meant that he was planning on paying off his debt by 6K per year until it is paid off, which is still not bad considering the earning potential of engineering degrees.[/quote]
Animal, how much total debt will you have at graduation?
With so many online calculators, I bet there’s one to determine how much debt is acceptable for an expected wage.
[quote]Dr.Matt581 wrote:
[quote]spar4tee wrote:
[quote]Dr.Matt581 wrote:
I also usually give my freshmen students a speech about the importance of grades. Grades really are important. Even for fields like engineering you are not guaranteed a great salary. If you graduate at the bottom of your class, do not expect to make 50+k right out of school or to have a hundred job offers.
[/quote]
This is why I’m trying to make my skills base as large as possible during undergrad.[/quote]
I know, but you also should take into account the grades thing I mentioned especially since you want to go to grad school. Doing an engineering degree and the prereqs for graduate school in physics will most certainly affect your grades. Unemployment for people with graduate degrees in physics is virtually zero, just like aerospace engineering so you do not really need to worry about a wide skill base. The whole point of grad school is to develop your knowledge and skills in a very specific part of a wider field anyway. You will also never use your engineering skills as a physicist, experimental or theoretical.
Also, where you go to grad school matters a hell of a lot more then where you went to school for undergrad which is where grades come in. Learning graduate level physics and experimental techniques from top scientists is better then learning from second rate scientists at Podunk U and you won’t find many top scientists outside of the top 50 schools in the country.
I know I lecture you about this stuff a lot, but I genuinely do think you are a smart young man and will be successful in whatever field you choose as long as you do not overextend yourself doing too many things.
[/quote]
I was referring more to technical training and work experience, but I get what you’re saying. Thanks doc!
After a quick look I found a rule of thumb. “Total debt shouldn’t exceed first years wage.”
BuildingUp, yer screwed. Lol Hopefully there’s a different rule of thumb for doctors.
[quote]on edge wrote:
After a quick look I found a rule of thumb. “Total debt shouldn’t exceed first years wage.”
BuildingUp, yer screwed. Lol Hopefully there’s a different rule of thumb for doctors.[/quote]
The rule of thumb is only go to med school if you want to be a doctor. There are easier and more effective ways to get rich…lol
[quote]on edge wrote:
After a quick look I found a rule of thumb. “Total debt shouldn’t exceed first years wage.”
BuildingUp, yer screwed. Lol Hopefully there’s a different rule of thumb for doctors.[/quote]
That seems like a good rule, but MDs generally wind up making very good money so I don’t think that have have much trouble paying off their debt, although I have heard that it is becoming more of a problem and is deterring some people from applying to med school.
If I were going to pay for grad school, it would have been for a trade like an MD, JD, DDS, or engineering. I wouldn’t pay for any other type of graduate degree. For pretty much all the other types of graduate degrees, the only ones really worth it will offer to waive tuition in exchange for you working as a TA or RA like I did.
[quote]Dr.Matt581 wrote:
[quote]on edge wrote:
After a quick look I found a rule of thumb. “Total debt shouldn’t exceed first years wage.”
BuildingUp, yer screwed. Lol Hopefully there’s a different rule of thumb for doctors.[/quote]
That seems like a good rule, but MDs generally wind up making very good money so I don’t think that have have much trouble paying off their debt, although I have heard that it is becoming more of a problem and is deterring some people from applying to med school.
If I were going to pay for grad school, it would have been for a trade like an MD, JD, DDS, or engineering. I wouldn’t pay for any other type of graduate degree. For pretty much all the other types of graduate degrees, the only ones really worth it will offer to waive tuition in exchange for you working as a TA or RA like I did.
[/quote]
So is a masters degree basically worthless? I’d like to have an advanced degree, as well.
CS
[quote]CSEagles1694 wrote:
[quote]Dr.Matt581 wrote:
[quote]on edge wrote:
After a quick look I found a rule of thumb. “Total debt shouldn’t exceed first years wage.”
BuildingUp, yer screwed. Lol Hopefully there’s a different rule of thumb for doctors.[/quote]
That seems like a good rule, but MDs generally wind up making very good money so I don’t think that have have much trouble paying off their debt, although I have heard that it is becoming more of a problem and is deterring some people from applying to med school.
If I were going to pay for grad school, it would have been for a trade like an MD, JD, DDS, or engineering. I wouldn’t pay for any other type of graduate degree. For pretty much all the other types of graduate degrees, the only ones really worth it will offer to waive tuition in exchange for you working as a TA or RA like I did.
[/quote]
So is a masters degree basically worthless? I’d like to have an advanced degree, as well.
CS
[/quote]
What field and what do you want to do career wise? For the most part, though, yes. A master’s degree in most fields is not going to be much better then a BS and not nearly as good as a PhD. In fact, in a lot of cases it may very well be harmful since many will see someone with a master’s as overqualified for a lot of positions and under qualified for the rest. Most of the people I know with a master’s in scientific fields either teach at the high school of community college level or got another graduate degree in a trade like medicine or business. Engineering and computer science tend to be the exceptions to this, but it is arguable as to whether the master’s degree has contributed to their getting their job or a higher salary.
EDIT: I forgot lab tech, that is the most popular job for people with a master’s in a scientific field, but you can do that job with a BS and get paid the same.
Hear some information I left out or wasn’t clear about. My grades are pretty good I have a 3.67 g p a average. I also fairly decent state school the university of mass. Doctor matthew, you offer some good advice and I appreciate that thank you.
P s. I responded to this using the voice recognition on my phone so please excuse my grammar and spelling haha
[quote]24Animal7 wrote:
Hear some information I left out or wasn’t clear about. My grades are pretty good I have a 3.67 g p a average. I also fairly decent state school the university of mass. Doctor matthew, you offer some good advice and I appreciate that thank you.[/quote]
You are going to have no problem getting a decent job and paying off your student loans then. Even if you paid 10K per year, you will have enough for a decent place to live, a good used or new vehicle and some left over for savings. Just don’t go crazy on getting into debt right out of school. You do not need credit cards, a brand new expensive car and whatnot.