I'm a graduate student who has been in school continuously in Canada for 10 years now. Now the student loan people want to make me pay. What can I do? [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Nov 25, 2009 - 6 answers

Liberal-arts-grad-filter: How can I parlay my existing skills (qualitative, creative, communication-oriented, artistic, empathetic) and experience (tutoring, writing/editing, activism) into something with a sustainable income and job security? [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Sep 12, 2009 - 13 answers

FinancialAidFilter: How do I decide whether to fill out the FAFSA (for law school) with or without parental info when some schools require and some don't? [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Jan 25, 2009 - 6 answers

Due to a breakdown in negotiations, I have $30,000 more student debt than I thought, leaving me with $35k. I live very, very simply, and after college I wanted to go travel the world for a few years and not worry about a career or marriage or consumer debt. Am I totally, completely screwed into a life of mediocrity? [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Oct 28, 2008 - 58 answers

What is the best financial/tax situation for us? Kid on way, financial aid eligibility concerns. [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Jul 2, 2008 - 4 answers

My partner and I need to acquire a loan for her grad school. The catch(es): She's not a citizen. We're gay. We don't have the first clue how to go about doing this. Help! [more inside]
posted by anonymous on May 15, 2008 - 12 answers

I've been accepted to a Classics PhD program, and I can't decide whether to go or not. [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Apr 8, 2008 - 48 answers

Am I being stupid about money? [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Jul 25, 2007 - 22 answers

So this idiot "friend" of mine defaulted on his student loans, and the collection agency in charge of, well, collecting them has tacked on about $5000 worth of fees. Now that he's paying them back and rehabilitating his loan, is there any way he can get those fees eliminated? The collections agency says the best they'll do is deduct about $1000 after rehabilitation, but I'm convinced there must be something more he can do. Thanks, as always!
posted by anonymous on Jul 2, 2005 - 7 answers

I'm a full-time college sophomore. I'm working full time, 35 hours a week, to try and make ends meet but I'm having a hard time. I know there was another thread on loans earlier, but my situation is different.

The disbursement I get from the federal student loan programs is not enough to cover my tuition itself, and the extra cost of room, board, books and other necessities is eating in and I'm beginning to run up serious credit card debt. My parents make enough money to keep me from getting grants or financial need scholarships, but they will not help me with school, nor will they co-sign a 3rd party loan. I live in a very cheap apartment and take the bus to school, and I've cut food and entertainment expenses to the minimums. I talked to the financial aid office and they said that there was nothing they could do except offer me a position on campus (for less hours and the same money as my current job) or give me a list of 3rd party loan providers. I called the providers, but they all rejected me because I'm too young (21), single and don't have a cosigner.

What do I do? I feel like I'm being punished for trying to go to school.
posted by anonymous on Jan 27, 2005 - 59 answers

I'm in college in the U.S., and have a few state student loans. They were under a forebearance that I once requested, which ended four months ago. I didn't realize this, and ignored the mail that was sent about it because I thought it was the usual mail they send me about how I have a loan and ads for consolidation. I just recently got this fixed and the forebearance backdated so it will have another year from when it ended. But I now have two 60-day late marks on my otherwise good credit report. Anything I can do to get rid of them?
posted by anonymous on Jan 8, 2005 - 5 answers

How risky is it to default on your student loans?
I have a friend/in-law who has been living abroad (England) for the last 10 or so years. They never repaid their student loans before moving but do visit the U.S. fairly frequently. Is there any risk of them being caught entering or leaving the country?
posted by anonymous on Dec 31, 2004 - 10 answers

Four credit cards. Two owned by the same company. Total debt about 70,000. No mortgage. No student loans. No job. No car. No kids. No rent for the next few months. I I could work for seven+ years to pay it off. I could quit paying. Interest is more than $300 a month. I have been paying one card with another for a year or two when I was out of work. Bankruptcy isn't something I wanted. Interest rates going up. My question is 'what happens'? Collections, harassment, embarrassment, garnishment? What's that like? Is that a fair price to pay for a fresh start? I get lost wanting to understand the spiritual significance of fractional reserve lending systems. If you have any perspective/experience on what its like to quit paying, this would help me see more clearly what I think I'm headed for. I guess my big concerns are collections people. How long does it take before my bank account gets seized? Can I still use it? Will they call my parents? Call me at work? Visit me? My bills go to a pobox and I my phone is a voicemail box. I just thought I could do something better with my life than give up another eight years to this. Don't ask where the money went. It's all been used wisely and judiciously.
posted by anonymous on Dec 28, 2004 - 32 answers