Kill my old debt and start fresh, or keep the debt and use my ed award?

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Business, Finance, and Careers > Kill my old debt and start fresh, or keep the debt and use my ed award?

Starter Wiggin: Feb 1, 2009; Screw the enemy's gate man, I've got a fucking TAIL!
Do you know how crazy the ladies go for those?

Hello BFC,
tl,dr; do I pay off my school loans and get new ones, or keep the old ones and use my new money to start new school.

Long:
I have 11k in loans for school. I have 11k in Segel Ed awards that could either kill this debt, or go towards new school.

I went to college fresh from HS, like lots of kids. Dropped after 3 semesters because of sadbrains. I've been slowly paying the debt down from that, and am currently left with 11k. I have also done two full AmeriCorps terms, and as such, now have 11k available to me to pay off old debts or to return to school.

I have applied to Oregon State (waiting to see if I have been accepted) and recently submitted a FAFSA (as an independent, yay being 24).

My question is, do I kill my old debt and start fresh? I'm more savvy now than I was when I first started college, and as such, am looking more into aid that doesn't need to be paid back (scholarships for non-trad students [suggestions welcomed], grants, etc). I'd ideally love to do this with no (new) debt and that doesn't seem impossible.

Other relevant info:
Age: 24
State: OR
Rent an apartment, have a bunch of roommates.
Rent is $400 (that includes utilities including internet, no cable).
Income is $900 (my AmeriCorps term ends this month, I'm applying all over for jobs so I can continue to not be homeless).
I get SSI ~$600/month.
I have ~$50k in medical debt (kidney failure mostly). (?is medical bankruptcy a thing/worth it before I have to have a transplant?)
Other than medical debt and school loans, I have no debt. No credit cards, no car loans, no anything.
Assets: I have a truck. Bought it off craigslist, owe nothing on it. That's it.

I think that's everything. Please help, BFC.

# ¿ Jan 8, 2015 07:23

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# ¿ May 21, 2024 13:58

Starter Wiggin: Feb 1, 2009; Screw the enemy's gate man, I've got a fucking TAIL!
Do you know how crazy the ladies go for those?

My old loans are federal, with an interest rate like 9.6%. New loans that it seems like I qualify for (FAFSA isn't approved or anything yet, I just submitted yesterday) are a Pell Grant for $5730 and a direct Stafford loan for $9500 (interest rate unclear because of unapproved FAFSA).

E: also since cost of college may be relevant. I'm seeking in-state tuition from OSU (have lived here for a year without attending school and primary purpose for move was work, so it should be granted). I'm old enough to not need to live in a dorm (thank gently caress). So tuition and fees in $9123. Then there's obviously books and all that jazz and other random fees but no room and board, which cuts costs down significantly.

E2: while I'm in AmeriCorps, my loans are on deferment. So starting next month or March, they're back on again.

Starter Wiggin fucked around with this message at 18:42 on Jan 8, 2015

# ¿ Jan 8, 2015 18:35

Starter Wiggin: Feb 1, 2009; Screw the enemy's gate man, I've got a fucking TAIL!
Do you know how crazy the ladies go for those?

CuddleChunks: zoology. Hopefully to continue on in school doing research, but as a fallback it's pre-vet. Double fallback: getting a teaching cert.

:/

# ¿ Jan 10, 2015 00:11

Starter Wiggin: Feb 1, 2009; Screw the enemy's gate man, I've got a fucking TAIL!
Do you know how crazy the ladies go for those?

I have a background in disaster management, and that combined with zoology would make me a decent candidate for the Peace Corps, which could translate to government work fairly "smoothly", which is a financially sound career end goal.

I hope.

# ¿ Jan 10, 2015 02:48

Starter Wiggin: Feb 1, 2009; Screw the enemy's gate man, I've got a fucking TAIL!
Do you know how crazy the ladies go for those?

I appreciate the input. I am qualified for the jobs in aiming at in the government, what's holding me back is not having a degree. Any science degree will satisfy them. I worked for the government for a year, and have some solid connections, certifications, and that sort of thing. And having done two years of AmeriCorps, I really do want to do Peace Corps. I've wanted to do PC since I was 8. If that's not possible (probable kidney transplant in the next 8 years), I'll be pretty pissed. But I still have a decent chance at a government job.

We could probably argue the merits of whatever degree I pursue, and I am aware that it is not the most financially secure and sound degree to go for. If it helps, it will probably say Intergrative Biology on the degree itself. I would really just appreciate input on how to proceed with loans. If it helps you, imagine I'm going for whatever degree you think is wise.

# ¿ Jan 10, 2015 18:22

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# ¿ May 21, 2024 13:58

Starter Wiggin: Feb 1, 2009; Screw the enemy's gate man, I've got a fucking TAIL!
Do you know how crazy the ladies go for those?

My Rhythmic Crotch posted:

Two things strike me as eye-bulgingly ponderous:
- you have a $50k medical bill and seem disinterested in settling it
- you want to spend a bunch more money to get a degree that is quite frankly worthless

I have never had to deal with medical debt, but I have read the way to do it is to go in with a check for, let's say $5k, tell them that's all you have, and don't leave until they settle it for that much.

I know you don't want to hear it, but if you are going to spend the time, energy, and money on getting an undergraduate degree at a state school, you need to either: A) pick a major that is going to get you a job, or B) do something different like get an associate's degree in IT or whatever.

I would not put the Segal Ed money towards the $11k debt because the payments on that loan are probably, what, $100/mo? Presuming you get another job you should be able to afford that until you are in school and the loan goes on deferment again. So in other words, concentrate on settling that enormous medical debt and do something besides zoology. If you can use that Segal Ed money for whatever you want, try to use some of it to settle the medical debt would be my advice.

-I'm not disinterested in settling my medical debt. I am just aware that with my health, my medical debt is only going to increase. I am currently in kidney failure, and will require a transplant and probable dialysis over the next eight or so years. Going with the theme of the thread, I'm probably wrong, but it seems fruitless to settle it and then just go on to undoubtedly acquire more. Also, I wish I had a check for $5k to offer them.

-What majors get jobs now is going to be different than what majors get jobs by the time I graduate. What magical thread-approved degree is 100% guaranteed to net me this three figure job it seems is the only useful way to go through school and life?

-My loan payments were $350/month.

-Segal ED awards can not be used for any debt. They can be used towards new schooling or old school loans. I guess they can be cashed out, but the cash value is around $1k, so a pretty stupid move.

Droo posted:

I agree with this. OP, you really seem ambivalent about what degree you actually get because you just want "a degree" to qualify for government jobs. Why don't you find something that is a better compromise between what you are good at/can tolerate as a profession, and what kind of future career you can get? That way you can still pursue the peace corps and government work, but if something doesn't work out or you decide working for the government sucks, you have something more lucrative to fall back on.

As far as the loans, you probably need to figure out how badly the medical debt will screw up your borrowing opportunities and whether you need to address the debt or not. Then you should probably learn all about the financial aid process, fill out a mock FAFSA and see where you stand and what kind of subsidized loans you will qualify for. Then you should make a spreadsheet that estimates what your current net worth and post-college net worth will look like.

As an adult, you have a better opportunity than most to go into the whole deal with eyes wide open. You shouldn't be surprised when you graduate college at 31 years old with $75,000 in debt and qualifications that can barely land you a $35,000 salary.

-I did do a real FAFSA. I posted that earlier:

Starter Wiggin posted:

New loans that it seems like I qualify for (FAFSA isn't approved or anything yet, I just submitted yesterday) are a Pell Grant for $5730 and a direct Stafford loan for $9500 (interest rate unclear because of unapproved FAFSA).

-I can work up a spreadsheet tomorrow if that's really necessary. I'm not worth much, financially, at the moment.

-I'm wondering where you got this $75k in debt figure, unless maybe you're figuring the medical debt in that. Not counting medical debt, assuming no grants or scholarships (??), that's only maybe $40k. Also, I've been offered government jobs already. I really don't have the inclination to live in Kansas right now, even for $75k/year. I'm going back to school in an effort to qualify for government jobs that I find desirable, but in a life-or-death scenario, I can land a good one with my current qualifications.

Veskit posted:

I feel like the thread should just be "you're not going to want to hear this but...."

I don't think this forum should be about harm reduction and which is the lesser of bad paths to take, but instead should be focusing on what is the best direction to take, and objectively what makes sense. I've also noticed that you have bad decision making skills to begin with and suffer from that and you're about to fall into the same trap. I would ask "what degree will help me be eligible the most to both be in the Peace Core and good governmental work" rather than I want this specific specialized degree that won't do much for me. I don't know why it has to be Zoology that degree is terrible. Also it's fairly insulting to think nobody can go to google and write "integrative biology university of oregon" and with 3 clicks find out you mean zoology.

If your passion is the peace core why not have a backup plan with a good degree just in case it doesn't work out, when like, you have your kidney removed? Or if you can't get the governmental job.

You're puting yourself in a position to be 130k in debt while making 40k a year.

-By what metric do I have bad decision making skills? I haven't gone to this school yet. I don't have this "worst degree ever, even worse than English or Art History, trust me, stranger". I haven't done anything wrt my awards or really anything. I'm aiming to get advice and opinions before I make any final moves.

-Fine then. What degree would help me be most eligible for the Peace Corps and a government job?

-Why is zoology such a terrible undergraduate degree, just for my own information.

-(It's OSU, not UofO, not that that makes a difference since I'm throwing my life away either way by this thread's metrics.)

-How do you figure 130K in debt? Even if you're counting my medical debt, that's 50k, leaving an imagined 80k in school debt, and that's ludicrous.

I really do appreciate everyone who has weighed in here. No one in my family has ever gone to college, so trying to get information that's unbiased is not terribly accessible.

# ¿ Jan 12, 2015 07:45

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Business, Finance, and Careers > Kill my old debt and start fresh, or keep the debt and use my ed award?