Student Loan Series #4: The Real Math - Calculating True Costs of College

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In this student loan series, we do the Real Math and calculate just how much a student will have to work and how long it will take a to repay their loans into adulthood. We use a real life example and then offer some easy ways to hack the college system and save at least a third of the cost.

In this student loan series, we do the Real Math and calculate just how much a student will have to work and how long it will take a to repay their loans into adulthood. We use a real life example and then offer some easy ways to hack the college system and save at least a third of the cost.

In this episode:

  • What no one is talking about when it comes to calculating the true costs of college [1:00]

  • Case study: Chris’ college costs [2:30]

  • You’ll pay more in interest than on the principal unless you do this one thing [5:00]

  • How much you’ll have to earn to pay back your loan, taking taxes into account [6:45]

  • No one talks about how many hours you’ll have to work to pay back student loan debt [17:00]

  • Debt is not financial “aid” [22:00]

  • What our example Chris would have done differently [23:00]

  • The same professors often teach at both 4-year universities and junior colleges [24:00]

  • One major hack for cutting college costs [26:00]

  • Why higher education will never be free [28:00]

  • How student loan debt impedes long-term life goals [33:00]

  • The benefits of an Associate’s degree [37:30]

  • How four years living on campus is essentially like paying retail prices [39:00]

  • Parents’ job is to calculate the real math of university [43:00]

  • The student’s job is to apply for scholarships [48:00]

  • A degree is a degree is a degree [50:30]

resources:

Download this calculator and input your own loan amount, state taxes etc. to calculate how much you’ll have to work to pay off your student loan.

Real Math College Cost Calculator