Why Graduate?

When I talk to older students on the verge of graduation from college, or even those who have recently graduated, it seems the only advice I get from these people are to stay in school as long as possible. The real world sucks, and given the current state of the economy, there is no hurry to be looking for a professional job. So it gets me thinking, why try and push through all these classes in four years just to get screwed in the real world. I have seriously thought spending an extra year or so in college, that is until I look at the type of debt I would be left with.

On average, students will be graduating with an average of $20,000 in debt, which will ultimately establish that oh so important "credit history".

As a student at Santa Clara University, where tuition alone costs about $45,000, debt is something that I am going to have live with. So much for the dream of staying safe in college for an additional year.

Profiles in Debt

Name: Eric
Major: Mechanical Engineering
Year: Senior - 2009
Debt: $15,000
Deep Thoughts on Debt: "I'm not really worried about it because I already have a job. It's like $15,000 but it's not as bad as a lot of other people's debt. I think that it was definitely worth it because I couldn't go to SCU without it. It's all as a result of student loans but it was more than worth it. It's definitely like an investment because it's going to pay itself 25 times over."