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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I read that your salary first year out of college should be greater than your debt or it will take you 30 years to pay back.
 
[b]So if your first years salary is 40k, don't take on more than 40k debt.[/b]

DH had 85k and I had 0. It hasn't impacted our life at all. Still bought a 400k house 3 years after graduation. Aren't concerned about it. The debt is now down to 15k at 27.

[/quote]

Gad, I've heard this before, too, but that is much too rich for my blood. My personal rule of thumb is that I wouldn't borrow more than half that. The government limits subsidized student loans for 4 years of college to about $19k, and that seems a comfortable amount to me, whatever the expected career. That amount of debt could be managed even by someone waiting tables while they looked for a job. Of course, some students might HAVE to borrow more than this amount, but note that they won't be able to without a co-signer.

But like the PP above, this is based on my own personal experience. To go to college, I borrowed an amount that turned out to be about half my salary in my first job; and to go to grad school I borrowed again an amount that turned out to be about half my salary in my first job out of grad school. This amount of debt was completely manageable for me and in no way dictated my life choices, so it's a standard that guides me as I think about what my own children should do. I should also add that my teen isn't likely to pursue any of the higher-paying STEM careers, so that's something I keep in mind as well.[/quote]

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