Hey guys.  Wait till you have to pay your childrens' tuition.  My
stepdaughter has been out since 1994, her grandmother paid a portion, she
has to pay a portion and I will be paying till the day I retire (about
$25,000 more with interest).  Granted, she went to a private school (which
makes me laugh when my community college students complain about how high
their tuition is).  Nevertheless, get prepared because about the time you
pay off your student loans it will be time to borrow for the kids'.


------
Robert Handy
Brazoria County Historical Museum
100 East Cedar
Angleton, Texas  77515
(409) 864-1208
museum_bob
[log in to unmask]
http://www.bchm.org

----------
From:   Belinda Nickles[SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
Sent:   Monday, April 12, 1999 12:48 PM
To:     [log in to unmask]
Subject:        Re: Paying for College

To Indigo Nights:

Was yesterday a bad day?  Surely you know Mr. Martinson and
I were just being facetious (especially the part about promising
your first-born child).

I'll try to keep this post short (famous last words), but I
feel the need to address some of your remarks.  I too went to
college years apart.  The first time, my husband and I were in
school full-time, working part-time, raising two children--ages
4 and 5--and paying all our expenses.  The second time, we
sold our house to pay for college and still needed a student
loan for me to go to grad school.

I knew going in that museums couldn't afford to pay me what
I'm worth--in central Illinois I make less than a beginning
teacher.  But I have a career that I love and at 49 that is
very important to me.

A student loan was there when I needed it, however, it is
going to take a long time to pay it off.  Some students and
some of those already working have this rosy idea that once
they are out of college there will be a position waiting for
them that will cover all their expenses and still allow them to
eat regularly (I've actually met some of them!).  As others on
Museum-L can testify, you don't always find that kind of job
right away.  Those with that unrealistically rosy view need to
be reminded that a student loan is a long time committment.
That's what Mr. Martinson and I were doing.

Belinda Nickles