Students, graduates worry about finances after college

By Donald Whitesall

Statistics for student debt in 2016 are grim as college students prepare to graduate in the upcoming year.

As the student loan debt rises in the country, many people are scared of the unforeseeable future. KU students are concerned about what steps they will take.

KU rests at $19,055 for a full year of college on campus, and it is around $30,000 for an out-of-state student. While manageable for some people, most students rely on financial aid and loans to make ends meet. Some students don’t have the benefit of receiving financial aid at all, so they count solely on loans.

Michael Bosetti, a sophomore at KU, has about $1,000 in debt at the moment. He states that it is not a lot, but he does have qualms.

“It’s always a fear, in terms of not being able to pay it off,” Bosetti said. “As for others that I know, there are people having a hard time keeping up with it.”

While Bosetti is just one of few students with minimal debt, not many are as lucky. According to Student Loan Hero, a website dedicated to collecting information on college debt, the class of 2016 will owe $37,172. That is 6 percent higher than last year’s statistics.

Another KU student reflects this gargantuan number. Brooke Metzker, a junior at KU, is on the opposite side of the spectrum of Bosetti. With $30,000 dollars of debt, she feels the approaching burn.

“Last time I checked, it was around $30,000. I don’t like checking the number because it bums me out,” says Metzker.

The amount of debt for the entirety of the U.S. is not looking too great. $1.26 trillion in total loans is the looming number that is making a lot of prospective graduates

nervous.

Even more concerning is the percentage of students who are taking loans in order to meet financial ends. According to U.S News, 70 percent of graduates have loans, and 59 percent of these graduates are unsure of when they will pay off all of their debt.

However, not all is lost. According to a forbes.com article, “How to Manage Student Loan Debt,” keeping a checklist of the loans you owe and their details will help in the long run. There are many ways to manage student loans, like consolidation or researching borrower’s benefits.

Metzker reflects a sense of confidence. She believes that she will get through this predicament.

“I’ll manage somehow. I’m working on getting a good job out of college,” she said.