Student Loans worth it ?

[Sociopath]

@(you need an account to see links) basically answered my question. NYU is one my dream schools but it's so expensive, but everyone tells me it would be a bad idea to do two years of community college and then go to nyu and try to get into med school. I don't know, I have the grades to get in but I have no clue if that's worth it

Apply to NYU and see what kind of money they give you...but also apply to some of the best state schools in your state. You might be surprised what kind of money they give you (I know I certainly was) but I've spent a lot of time on med/pharm school threads and it is generally not advised to do get your med prereqs at a community college.

Now if you wanted to major in something unrelated to science (such as music, political science, etc) where you could start that major at a CC then do your premed at a university and finish your major there. However, if you want to actually major in something science related the premed requirements will be the intro courses to your major so you can't really do that.

---------- Post added at 10:38 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:34 PM ----------

Really? Most of the people I've talked to who are in pretty legit grad school have done their prereqs at community colleges, due to costs and loans. And I went to my state's university for a semester, the classes hardness are pretty much the same as the community college's.

It's not a problem to go to a CC and get your gen eds done and go to grad school. Med school is kind of different though. It's very competitive and someone who got their reqs done at a top public university over someone that got them done at a CC would look better. If you can pull off an amazing MCAT score sure go to a CC.
It's certainly easier to get in the top 10% of your class at a CC than it is as a large public university.

However, if someone ultimately wants to get a PhD I don't believe it's really advised to go a CC either.

[osiyo]

@(you need an account to see links) basically answered my question. NYU is one my dream schools but it's so expensive, but everyone tells me it would be a bad idea to do two years of community college and then go to nyu and try to get into med school. I don't know, I have the grades to get in but I have no clue if that's worth it

Short answer - go cheap.

Long answer: Go to the cheaper college. Most med schools like to see your pre reqs taken at a 4 year school, ANY 4 year school. An A from rutgers is worth far more than a B from NYU. Furthermore, any loans you take out during undergrad will accumulate date through graduate school. If you plan to become a doctor, that is going to be 10 years of collecting interest (albeit at a low rate). By the time you graduate you will be ~750k in debt. That is 3/4 of a million dollars.

Save while you can. You will be paying it off the rest of your life, and if, god forbid, you don't do well in school and can't get a good job? YOU WILL NEVER GET RID OF THOSE BILLS. You can't declare bankruptcy on them. You can't make them disappear. You will have to pay them, even if you can't take care of yourself.

I've been making my loan payments with relative ease. I went to a top school, did great, graduated in a crap market and got screwed job wise, so my salary didn't really improve for two or three years. My loans are a relatively modest 85k (school cost ~65k per semester). I've made good headway and live comfortably most of the time, although some months are tight.

My sister graduated from NYU ~135k in debt. She can afford nothing besides surviving and paying her student loans. She put off getting a root canal for 8 months because she could not afford it.

We made the same salary and live in the same city. Our monthly expenses, except for student loan payments, are relatively equal.

Every bit you can save makes a difference. Your happiness is also important, but don't let the idea of a name on your diploma turn your head. An undergrad degree is an undergrad degree. Do well, and you can get into a great grad school program. You can intern in NYC over the summers, take courses over the summer at NYU, etc. There are lots of options besides selling yourself into indentured servitude for a diploma you can never pay off.

[Sociopath]

I just don't see the point of going to an expensive school for undergrad. Don't make stupid choices. Use the rule that you shouldn't get more than ~35k I think it is in debt for undergrad.

Now grad school....that's a different story. ESPECIALLY if you want a PhD - it reaches a point where if you don't get into a certain ranking you shouldn't even bother going.

[Blazingchampion]

I'm a pre-vet major, I plan to go to Texas A&M for veterinary school. It may not be my dream school, but it is ranked in the top 3 in the nation, very affordable (27K a year), and I have a good chance of being accepted.


My dream is to be a veterinarian. As far as going to a legendary school, well.. that has more to do with pride.
#veterinarian#Cornell#tears#bitter#sateschool#Beau tyschooldropout

[|2eap]

Student loans.
are worth it, to get an education. just remember its gonna be your money in the end. so dont waste it.

-JD out

[music_node]

Student loans are worth it, but make sure you don't go somewhere ridiculous. I went to a school that was 2500 per semester, and I make more than all of my friends that went to big name schools. Remember that a degree is a degree no matter where it's from.