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What is the best way to keep on track of student loans so you don't have a lot of debt?

When thinking of getting a higher education, the most thing that scares me is being in a lot of debt and not having received the education/standards needed. How can I be able to study worry-free knowing I have to pay off the student loans I will have sooner or later?

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Brandy’s Answer

I started a job before I began college. My employer offered tuition assistance which covered my classes and I was only responsible for books or any testing out fees, plus graduation processing fees. It took longer to complete my degrees but I was able to work while I went to school and finished two degrees and multiple IT certifications with absolutely no student debt. You can opt to take a bigger course load and pay the difference between what the employer covers by using grants, scholarships or standard payments which would speed up the time it takes to graduate but keep in mind it will increase stress due to trying to balance the two and you may add debt for yourself if you don't plan for the cost of additional classes in advance.
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Mariana’s Answer

Hi Adrianna! One of the most cost effective ways to obtain a college degree is to start at a community college, live at home, and then, after two years at a community college, transfer to a 4 year school for the last two years. This is state and degree specific, but many places offer a guaranteed transfer, meaning that as long as you complete certain courses in community college and satisfy GPA requirements, you will be admitted to an in-state school. Community colleges are usually covered by Pell Grants and state tuition assistance programs (if eligible), so there is a good chance that for those first two years you will only be paying for books and other supplies.

As far as the standards, concentrate your search on non-profit, accredited schools. Again, this varies depending on your desired degree, but your state college system is a good start.

Mariana recommends the following next steps:

Look into the A2B programs for UMass campuses https://www.mass.edu/masstransfer/
Look into Massachusetts guarantee for private colleges https://www.mass.edu/masstransfer/maguarantee/home.asp
Look into additional savings through ComCom program https://www.mass.edu/masstransfer/macomcom/home.asp
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Kristy’s Answer

Hi Adrianna! Brandy did a great job of answering this question, and yes you do not have to go into debt to go to college you can figure out a way not to if you are determined enough.

Look into scholarships. When I was in HS and people told me that I blew the idea off but it an real option.

What gave me a lot of peace of mind about going into debt/college for a career was:
- I choose a career that I actually enjoyed the activity of doing it AND it interested me (which seems like common sense).
- I went on my state's careers website (through the DOL) and looked up the job I would have when graduated, and the projected growth of the industry was high (IT), so I knew the investment in that career was worth what you would spend it to get it.

I am currently free of student loan debt, but I took a long time of working full-time to get there so you have the right mindset about going into debt.

Best of luck on your journey,
Kristy

Kristy recommends the following next steps:

Look into available scholarships through reputable site.
Research careers you are interested in through your state's DOL website, to know the career path's growth potential.
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