By the time I wrap up my master’s degree, I’ll have around $130k in student loans, $15k in savings, and a bit in retirement. My car’s paid off, and outside of rent, food, and regular bills, I don’t have other expenses. So, am I in serious trouble? Anyone here dealing with something similar?
I’m aiming for a 6-figure salary once I’m done with school. Still, not sure if home-buying will be in the cards with all this debt.
Don’t count on that salary until you actually get a job offer! Honestly, you’re in a better spot than many, especially since you’ve avoided other big debts. But it’s gonna take hard work to dig out of the loan faster. Just don’t let interest add up too much—minimum payments aren’t enough for that.
You should aim to pay off as much as you can early on so you can enjoy life later. If you can, maybe only put 1% into retirement for now and use 30-40% of your income to tackle the loans. Assuming you make around $5k a month, live on $3.5k, and throw the rest at the debt. If you hit a tight month, avoid credit cards and adjust your loan payments to stay afloat. Consider picking up extra work if possible and putting that money towards the loans too.
@Vesper
Thanks a lot for the advice 
Hearing this is super motivating!
$130k is a lot, especially if you’re not in med or law. Where did you go for undergrad and grad school? Were they private schools?
Ollie said:
$130k is a lot, especially if you’re not in med or law. Where did you go for undergrad and grad school? Were they private schools?
Med and law school debts start around $250k without any scholarships or aid, my friend.
Ollie said:
$130k is a lot, especially if you’re not in med or law. Where did you go for undergrad and grad school? Were they private schools?
Pretty sure they mentioned LSAT before, so maybe law?
@Cade
Nope, ended up in healthcare and policy instead 
Never quite got the hang of those logic tests for law school. Sometimes I wish I could’ve gone to law school, though. Different life, maybe!
Ollie said:
$130k is a lot, especially if you’re not in med or law. Where did you go for undergrad and grad school? Were they private schools?
No private schools here. I’m in health management and policy. Clinical school sounds rewarding, but no more school for me…unless it’s free lol 
Been there. I had $120k debt after finishing my Bachelor’s, between loans, my car, and money I owed my dad for moving help. No retirement or savings either. Somehow, I wasn’t stressed! Saving my first $10k felt huge back then. Anyway, I paid my dad back in two months, cleared the car in a year, and paid down half the loan in three years. Then I went back for a Master’s, added more debt, and here I am with about $66k left plus a mortgage.
You’ll be fine! Live cheap for a while, focus on saving and paying down debt, then skip the home-buying part if you can 
If I hadn’t done that, I’d be debt-free. But no regrets! You got this.
@Eli
Thank you so much! This helps a lot. Great advice and perspective, and I’m definitely gonna keep it all in mind for my plans! 
Been there too! Check out some YouTube videos on student loans from Dave Ramsey.
Living below your means and understanding how interest works is key. It’s also important to be organized, maybe make a spreadsheet to track payments. Sometimes there’s an emotional side too when you’re dealing with debt like this for a while.
Interest is what gets most people. I got lucky because of the COVID pause on payments, which helped me pay most of mine off during that time.
Good luck with everything.
@Lake
Thanks so much! I appreciate the tips and well wishes. I’ll check out D.R., too. It helps to know others are dealing with the same thing.
Tan said:
@Lake
Thanks so much! I appreciate the tips and well wishes. I’ll check out D.R., too. It helps to know others are dealing with the same thing.
Same here. I actually enjoyed some of the long drives, gave me time to clear my head.
@Keir
Sounds like it worked out well for you! I love long drives and road trips too!
You’ll be okay. I went through something similar after transferring from a community college. Tried to transfer to a public university, but my program kept getting delayed, so I ended up at a private school to finish faster. Even with working through school and paying half my tuition, I had to take $30k in loans for undergrad.
After a while, I decided to get a PMP cert instead of going straight to grad school. Still, I didn’t get noticed for higher-level jobs until I started grad school. Now, I’m sitting on around $130k in loans. Could’ve chosen a cheaper program, but I went for a school with a name that would help.
I work for a nonprofit health system and plan to stay there until my loans are gone, just like I planned before grad school.
@Harley
Thank you, really needed to hear this. I’m in healthcare too! And once I finish, I’ll also be around $130k in debt (unless I manage to cut it down a bit). I also plan to work in nonprofit or government again eventually. I’ve got some years left, and maybe I can get forgiveness if I don’t clear it by then.
You’re right about those degrees with recognizable names—sometimes it really helps. Plus, we both had some solid work experience before. This was super helpful, thank you
@Tan
You’re not alone. I know several others with that Trojan debt! Retirement contributions and HSA or FSA are good options to reduce taxable income too.
Currently on a federal pause for loans, but once that ends, my car should be almost paid off so I’ll just switch over to loan payments. Filing taxes separately if you’re married can also help reduce loan payments.
I finished my master’s a while back and had $100k debt, now down to $90k. You’ll be fine, but don’t assume your future salary is a done deal until you’re actually earning it. Once you’re done with school, live frugally until you have a real sense of your financial plan and payments.
Good luck!