How to Reduce College Loans Borrowing
A large number of students still depends on college loans to finance their education through colleges and universities. It is true that college loans can actually be a leverage for people who would have been unable to attend higher institution of their choice as a result of lack of fund. But it is important for students to know that getting college loans is not the only option available to them to finance their education. There are other options they can explore before considering going for college loans. In fact, college loans should be considered as the last resort. After all other options have been explored and you still feel that you need to collect student loans, the amount of the loan you will need will not be too much. It will be an amount which you can easily managed and that will not be difficult for you to repay. So, let’s look at the steps you can take to reduce the college loans that will stand against your name by the time you graduate from college or university.
- Apply for scholarship: There are good number of organizations that give scholarships to students. Even if you are an international student, you can still find organizations that target students from developing countries and international students. One good thing about scholarships is that you don’t need to repay any money released to you. The only thing there is that you need to meet the requirements for the scholarships. Some scholarships may even mention specifically the course of study that any student that wants to apply for their scholarship must enroll in. If you like to apply, there are websites that publish available scholarships programs. Among such websites are Scholarship Portal, US College International and Scholarships for Development.
Read Also: Why Student Loan Debts Are on the Increase
- Enroll in community college: In my previous article on why the student loans debts keep increasing, I mentioned that rising cost of college tuition fees is one of the reasons for this. However, there are still community colleges with tuition fees that are reasonable and affordable. Instead of enrolling in a private college or university that you can’t afford to pay their tuition fee, you can do yourself favour by cutting your coat according to your size. Even if you are keen at attending a private institution, you can enroll in community college first and later switch to private school. Somebody once mentioned that no interviewer will ask you about the institution where you first enrolled. The question they may ask you is where did you graduate from. So, spending the first two years in a community college and then change to private college in the third year will save you some costs. You may even realise that taking student loans may not be necessary again.
- Work part time: There are jobs that allow you to combine work with your education programme. That means you can be working and still be able to advance your career by enrolling in a college that is close to where you work. The money you earn from the job will allow you meet some expenses if not all your entire college expenses. However, you still need to bear in mind that you are a student. Therefore, it will not be okay to take a job that will not allow you to put enough hours into your studies. You need enough time to read so that you can come out with a good grade. Labour market is becoming more competitive. Therefore you need to be among the best so that you can easily scale your career ladder.
- Don’t borrow excessively: Over borrowing has been the undoing of many students. Even though student loans are made available to you, it does not mean that you have to take the loans. Stay within your limits. You should assess your financial needs before you apply for student loans. Don’t allow the money to get into your hand before you start thinking about what to do with it. If you have excess cash with you, your needs will suddenly rise to the level of the amount you are having. You must have finished spending the money before you start asking yourself where did the money go? You should know the amount that you actually need to take care of your educational expenses. This is not the time to spend money on frivolous things. You should learn to say no to certain things for now. The fact that you can’t buy some things now does not mean you can’t buy them in the future. Let delay gratification be your watchword. After all, delay is not denial.
- Ask for assistance: If you look around, you will see some people that have what you need. It can be money or other material things. It is possible that you have brothers, sisters, uncles, aunties or even friends who are well to do that can give or borrow you money. Asking for help does not turn you into a beggar. You should only know who and when to ask for help or assistance that you need. Borrowing from relations may be less expensive than taking student loans. Also, instead of using cash gifts to buy things that will just make you feel good, you can channel it towards paying your school fees.
- Borrow or buy used textbooks: New books are more expensive than used ones. What you need is not how beautiful your books are. What is important to you is the contents of the book. If there are used books that you can buy either from online stores or from other senior students, don’t hesitate to take this advantage. If they are not willing to sell the books, you can actually borrow from them.
Read Also: Questions to Ask About Private Student Loans
- Try staying off campus: At times, staying off campus can be less expensive especially when where you will be staying is not too far from your college. You need to consider the proximity of where you plan to stay to the school. If the place is too far from the school, it can turn out to be more expensive as a result of the money you will be paying on transport fare every day.
It is not actually good for student to graduate with loads of college loans. Bear in mind that job may not come immediately after graduation. If you don’t get employment immediately, you will not be under too much stress to start paying your college loans.