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 ...
It’s that time of the semester where courses have paid
out and student refunds are on the way. My FAVORITE part of the semester if I
must say so myself! In case your new to my blog a refund is the overage from
your financial aid. You will know that you are getting a refund because your
account will have a negative balance. This is the only time in life where a
negative balance on an account is a good thing!
Figure 1: This is a thumbnail from my YouTube video “I got a Refund” where I am smiling at the camera while sitting in my office. The background is a light brown, and I am wearing a black shirt.
This semester I racked up four scholarships that covered my balance completely and left me some spending money! Here’s the summary of my scholarships:
- · $676
Private Donor Scholarship
- · $750
Graduate Grant
- · $500
Scholarship for working part-time at a community college
- · $1,210
Employee Scholarship
So for anyone who tells
you that they are no scholarships YES there are and Ms. Duggan told you so! Even
with each of these scholarships I am still looking and applying for more! I
want all the free money I can find! It is also worth noting that you can receive
a refund with other forms of financial aid that include things like student loans. However, this is
not really a refund, and you will have to pay this back WITH interest so stick to
the free money.
Figure 2: This is photo that says “Scholarship” on a black graduation hat sitting on top of several $100 bills.
After each of these items
paid out, I received $258.50 that I used to pay off my last student loan! That’s
right ya’ll I am officially student loan debt free! No more and never again! Seeing
that zero-balance felt like Christmas morning. I am so beyond thankful and over
excited! I did it! Don’t worry I will be filling you in soon with all of the
details so be sure to subscribe to my YouTube
channel if you have not already. Did you receive a refund? If so, how much?
Drop down in the comments and let us know! Also, be sure to become one of my
weekly email subscribers
so that you know about updates before anyone else!
Figure
3: This is a photo of a heart with the words “Debt Free “in the middle. The
heart is drawn on a beach in the sand.
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