Personal college money advice?

I don't want an answer here per se, but I want to know what YOU would do in this situation.





It seems I have two choices for college.





1: Take a year off and work my butt off saving up money for the next year when I finally do go to college,





2: Take out 13,000 loans every year for 4 years of college.





I am majoring in Graphic Design which brings in a fair amount of money which could be used to pay off the loans.... What would YOU do in this situation?Personal college money advice?
I would not wait and ';work a year';. These are famous last words for a lot of folks who never go back. Or when they do, have a harder time at it because life happens. Before you know it you will have a car payment, kids, a mortgage and a life. College students do better when they have no life prior to enrolling in school.





I would not resort to private student loans (because you can't borrow this much in federal loans. the government puts a limit on the to protect you) totaling 13,000 a year and CERTAINLY not your first two years.





What would I do?





Attend a cheaper school your first two years to take your general education requirements. You can attend a community college for sometimes less than 2,000 a YEAR depending on your location in the country.





Then transfer to that 13K a year graphic design school. Many, many things can happen your first two years of college. It is a bad idea to borrow that much money for your first two years... if you are going to drop out, or decide college isn't for you, then it will usually happen your first two years.





Many of my peers went back home after a year... through no fault of their own. Diagnosed with brain cancer, mom would not get approved for a private student loan for the excessive out of state tuition, diagnosed with severe mental illness, got married, one got pregnant the second she left the sheltered life of her parents grip....





My point is this: ANYTHING can happen. Be sure you don't become a college dropout with no degree and tons of student loans to repay anyway. Your plan, although not impossible... is VERY risky. Too risky if it were me.





Never borrow more total (all four years worth) in student loans than you expect to earn your first year out of college at an entry level position. So if you were to borrow 13K for 4 years, you would need to be able to earn 13 X 4= $52,000 your first year out of college.





Good luck,Personal college money advice?
Don't wait. Too many people get trapped in that way of life and find it hard to get back into the swing of things with college. Go to college and, once your comfortable and know how to balance your courseload, get a part time job. Also apply to lots of scholarships and see if the college gives any scholarships for incoming freshmen and if you apply.

stella mccartney