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Are there any of you on here that simply cannot afford college nor afford to take out a loan? I have a strong desire to complete college and have been accepted to a school that took 75 of my previous credits and offers me the option to complete my BA somewhat cheaply. Bargain price will be somewhere in the range of 4-9k and take me anywhere from 6-12 months depending on whether or not I choose an "easy" degree.
I feel pressured to finish my degree because all of the Executive Assistant/Executive Administrative Assistant positions that I am interested in generally require a degree. They almost literally don't care if your degree is in Music or Math, they just want to see a Bachelors slapped on your resume to even consider interviewing you.
However, I see SO many people with degrees that simply cannot land a job. I cannot afford to risk 4-8k right now and not even know if I'll have a way of paying it off or even be able to land a job. I guess I'm just frustrated and venting. You need a degree to get work, but need to work in order to pay for a degree and so forth. Rant done. Screw our country's education system.
Last edited by BingCherry; 06-11-2011 at 06:09 PM..
To some extent, it is a gamble to take on the debt of a student loan. More than the risk of not finding a job upon graduation (a real risk) is the risk of going into debt and not completing the program. If you do that, then you're really in a bind.
Think of it this way: College graduates are having difficulty finding jobs. However, they are finding them faster than those without the degree.
As they say, if you think the cost of a college degree is expensive, go measure the cost of not having one.
You hear it all the time: College is a scam, a rip-off, a con. It's not worth the money. Well, to be sure, 'education' is a business - but rarely is it better for one to pursue a career without a degree than with one.
Are there any of you on here that simply cannot afford college nor afford to take out a loan? I have a strong desire to complete college and have been accepted to a school that took 75 of my previous credits and offers me the option to complete my BA somewhat cheaply. Bargain price will be somewhere in the range of 4-9k and take me anywhere from 6-12 months depending on whether or not I choose an "easy" degree.
I feel pressured to finish my degree because all of the Executive Assistant/Executive Administrative Assistant positions that I am interested in generally require a degree. They almost literally don't care if your degree is in Music or Math, they just want to see a Bachelors slapped on your resume to even consider interviewing you.
However, I see SO many people with degrees that simply cannot land a job. I cannot afford to risk 4-8k right now and not even know if I'll have a way of paying it off or even be able to land a job. I guess I'm just frustrated and venting. You need a degree to get work, but need to work in order to pay for a degree and so forth. Rant done. Screw our country's education system.
Another added benefit to a college degree is the contribution to our society. I see it is a good thing to have informed and educated neighbors. Yet, shelling out a lot of money may not be worth the individual debt you would incur.
Are there any of you on here that simply cannot afford college nor afford to take out a loan? I have a strong desire to complete college and have been accepted to a school that took 75 of my previous credits and offers me the option to complete my BA somewhat cheaply. Bargain price will be somewhere in the range of 4-9k and take me anywhere from 6-12 months depending on whether or not I choose an "easy" degree.
I feel pressured to finish my degree because all of the Executive Assistant/Executive Administrative Assistant positions that I am interested in generally require a degree. They almost literally don't care if your degree is in Music or Math, they just want to see a Bachelors slapped on your resume to even consider interviewing you.
However, I see SO many people with degrees that simply cannot land a job. I cannot afford to risk 4-8k right now and not even know if I'll have a way of paying it off or even be able to land a job. I guess I'm just frustrated and venting. You need a degree to get work, but need to work in order to pay for a degree and so forth. Rant done. Screw our country's education system.
You make a very good point - the degree itself is completely worthless sometimes, and yet employers require it. I think the smart thing to do is to get a degree that is worth more than the stamp itself. Do you really want to be an administrative assistant? If you do want to do something in administration, think about some of the more specialized degrees, like human resources management or health care management. If you can do a degree in IT or something technical/computer-related, that will almost certainly pay for itself. Do some searching as if you are actually looking for a job and see what kinds of degrees are required for the jobs you would like to have, and what those jobs are paying.
I don't think you should spend the money on just any degree, although 4-8K isn't much. If you take out federal direct loans, and that's really all you need to borrow, then you will be able to get some very easy repayment plans that should make it possible for you to borrow and not have too hard a time paying it back.
I think if you can focus on a degree that will get you a job, then doing it all at once for such a small amount of money will pay off for you. You could also do it one class at a time, as you are able to pay for it. Slow, but lots of people do it.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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In our area the colleges are overcrowded and turning away more people than ever because many people out of work are taking the opportunity to get additional degrees to enhance their chances to land a good job. Now when someone competes for a job with an engineering degree, someone else might have that plus a business degree. Not having a BA at all really does limit the jobs you qualify for, regardless of whether it's fair or not.
I've said this before on another thread but we had 100 applicants for a $50k job, requiring only an AA and had CPAs and even lawyers apply.
Some reasons to take out that loan and finish your degree:
-The unemployment rate for those with no degree is 4 TIMES HIGHER than for those with a degree (16% vs 4%).
-30 years ago, people in mid-career with no degree were making roughly the same (within 10%) of their counterparts with degrees. Today, those with no degree are making about 50% of what degrees mid-career folks make....and the gap is widening every year.
It sounds like you've already completed most of your degree. Don't stop now! Get that degree you've worked for so in the long term (not in the current economic downturn which WILL eventually end) you're better positioned for financial success.
Are there any of you on here that simply cannot afford college nor afford to take out a loan? I have a strong desire to complete college and have been accepted to a school that took 75 of my previous credits and offers me the option to complete my BA somewhat cheaply. Bargain price will be somewhere in the range of 4-9k and take me anywhere from 6-12 months depending on whether or not I choose an "easy" degree.
I feel pressured to finish my degree because all of the Executive Assistant/Executive Administrative Assistant positions that I am interested in generally require a degree. They almost literally don't care if your degree is in Music or Math, they just want to see a Bachelors slapped on your resume to even consider interviewing you.
However, I see SO many people with degrees that simply cannot land a job. I cannot afford to risk 4-8k right now and not even know if I'll have a way of paying it off or even be able to land a job. I guess I'm just frustrated and venting. You need a degree to get work, but need to work in order to pay for a degree and so forth. Rant done. Screw our country's education system.
get it done now, your not gonna want to do it later in life, go part time and work
You really need to finish your degree now. I know it seems like a lot of money, but to be able tofinsh for $4,00.00 to $8,000.00 is a bargain. People with college degrees earn a lot more and find jobs more easily. Bite the bullet and just do it, you'll be glad you did long term. Best wishes.
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