January 28, 2022 marked my one year anniversary of paying off my student loans . Reflecting back on choosing to pay off my student loans leaves me with several take a ways that I want to share with you! In September 2020 I decided to become debt free by utilizing the debt snowball method to pay off all my debt. Before this I had struggled to save and really understand basic financial principles. As a first-generation college student, I received a scholarship to attend undergrad for free, but the scholarship did not cover summers. During the summers I took out student loans to cover costs without paying interest rates or how much I was taking out. By the end of undergrad I had amassed a little under $17K. Fast forward to graduate school I received another scholarship that covered my education. At the time I was a teacher in a new very expensive city and I had missed the cutoff to have my paycheck last me throughout the summer. So, I decided to take out a loan for two summers to keep
We have come to the end of another semester and overall very different year compared to others but we made it! Now that summer is right around the corner, I thought I would share a few quick tips with you to tie up any loose ends. It’s the end of the semester did you…?? Figure 1 : This is a thumbnail from my YouTube video on "It's the End of the Semester. Did you?” I am holding my face with a stressed look. 1. Did you check your grade portal? Be sure to check over your assignments to ensure that the correct grade was posted. You should be doing this throughout the semester. 2. Did you register for summer or fall courses? Be sure to not miss your timeslot so that you can have first pick on the classes that you need. 3. Did you ask for any extra credit opportunities? If your grade is right on the cusp of the next letter grade be sure to ask this question so you can maximize your GPA. 4. Did you study? With so many projects and papers due don’t f