Student Loan Pain Story 2

I am currently studying Advertising and Graphic Design in hopes to either work for a company doing creative work or working at an advertising agency. Learning and expanding my knowledge is something that I love and I am so thankful for, but it has not been easy for me or my family.

I am the first person in my family to go to college. This alone, has been an obstacle for me because I haven’t had someone there with prior knowledge to tell me what to do or when to do it. I have pushed myself to make a better life for myself and to hopefully give back to my family one day. As well as this, my dad got hurt when I was really young so he is on retirement and cannot work to his full ability which also puts a strain on my family.

Every year I have to take out a lot of student loans. I am so excited to be done with college and to be out on my own doing something I love, but thinking about paying all of my loans back stresses me out and can discourage me sometimes. I want to be able to be successful and I’m afraid that paying my loans back is going to set me back right out of college. I truly think a lot of students in my same situation can relate to my feelings. Instead of college students feeling discouraged and stressed out, these students should be confident and excited to get out and find their dream job.

I definitely feel like college should come with a price tag but the college I am attending is currently $38,000 a year. This can cause some major damage in someone’s pocket, especially for students who unfortunately have families that can not help them at all. I wish there was someway to make college more affordable for children who did not have the best upbringing and don’t have funds to help them get their education that they deserve. I do think there is more that our government can do to help fund the education of the future, and it is something that America should be proud and willing to accomplish. Education is a vital piece to growth and will decide the future of our youth.

I think the government should really utilize the stage of high school and reward students for working hard throughout their high school experience. Students that excel in high school should be rewarded with more help in college especially based on financial need. Every year students have to fill out paperwork for free lunches, so they have paperwork knowing which students really need the help and who doesn’t. Regardless of financial need I think high school performance should decide a portion of what aid a student receives right out of high school. This will not only help students further their education, but knowing this information would push them to really work hard in high school to get offered the aid.

I personally know so many kids from my high school that were top 20, top 10 in our class and didn’t have the opportunity to further their learnings and go to college. I know college isn’t for everybody, but I wish everyone at least had a fair opportunity to choose this path if they wish. Being one of the students that obviously did choose the college path, I feel some stress and regret. I am confident with my education and all of the opportunities that I have endured. But looking around at some of my friends that didn’t choose this step is kind of shocking. I see people who didn’t go to college and are making great money, bought a house and are starting their lives—that easy. For me, I am stressed. It is my last year of college, I am still figuring out what I want to do with my life, and I keep thinking about all of my student debt that I have been pilling up.

For my future, I want to advertise and help to spread amazing companies and products that I believe in. I also plan on helping my aunt with her children’s bible book by helping her with the illustrations and make it come to life. Entrepreneurship is also something that I am leaning towards in life. I have a lot of ideas and products in my head that I think can really help America progress and overall make every day life a little bit easier. I am very confident in my education and in my skills that I have learned along my educational career.

My hope, is that every single student that has dreams about going to college gets to go. Even though education is not a privilege, it is a right and I think the most important and powerful skill in this world. I hope our government can lean towards making this possible for every student and especially help the ones that obviously need help at home. Like my story, I am the very first person in my family to go to college. I will also be the very first person in my family to finish college and have a college degree. I want to make them proud and I want to give back to them for all they have done for me. I only hope that this story can become a reality for other students out there. And hopefully, their college experience will not come packed with stress and college debt like mine has.