By Linh Ta, Sarah Rochford; Danielle Ferguson | |
Proquest LLC |
The
He will bring
"I don't come from a family full of money, and I work a lot of jobs," said Bemis, 23, explaining how he accumulated his debt, "but it's all for'in-the-now.'"
Plenty of pending graduates on
Problem is, many are not ready to pay.
"I've had students (say),'I didn't know I had any loans,'" said
Her usual response: "Well, yes you do, and here they are, and we will probably need to meet individually to talk about your situation so that you fully understand."
Last year, 287 of
That is on par with the state's small colleges and universities. Three of every four students graduating from a not-for-profit private college in
The averages ranged from
Six of every 10 students graduating from
Ashe, carrying debt of
"A lot of employers, you know, when they're looking for people to hire, they're just kind of like,'You know, we need you here this date. " When can you start?'" said Ashe, 22, originally from
An April IowaWatch survey of 671 students at the state's three public universities showed the students evenly split when it comes to worrying about their job prospects after graduation. The margin of error for that specific question was 4.2 percentage points.
The biggest concern of those worried about getting work after graduation was finding a job in their field of study. Students were less worried about finding a job with good pay, but few thought they could get a job in less than one month.
The common theme among students who said they were not worried about their job prospects is that they already have lined up a job.
DEBT GROWS FOR SOME DESPITE HELP
College debt has accumulated even for students who work and get financial help from their families, interviews at selected campuses in the state revealed.
Bemis has worked three part-time jobs while in college, and his parents helped pay his tuition. It wasn't enough. A fifth-year senior, he has taken loans for about
For now, he's planning on setting budgets and diving into the search for a full-time job. It's a process that, at the end of his college studies, has him wondering.
"I appreciate the five years I've had here, but I feel like what a lot of employers look for are skills that you don't really learn in college," Bemis said.
The
The median weekly income for U.S. workers with a bachelor's degree was
Moreover, the labor statistics show, the unemployment rate in 2013 diminished greatly with each increasing level of education, from 7 percent for U.S. workers with some college to 4 percent for those with a bachelor's degree.
"I wouldn't have gotten that position without Lytle, and that's what's really kind of helped me," said Wachtel, 22.
MANAGING THE DEBT
Loans are not bad, university and college financial aid advisers say, but students should be deliberate about what they borrow and plan ways to pay it off.
"They should try to only borrow for educational costs such as tuition, room and board or books," said
"Once I start getting bills, I know how to pay a bill," said Gossen, a public relations and media studies major from
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