How to handle massive debt while still in school
Massive accumulated debt combined with unexpected expenses and a low, fluctuating income leaves students stranded without knowing whether to save or pay down balances. This financial overwhelm leads to paralyzing confusion and shame, stopping them from seeing a clear path forward or asking for help.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Cutting expenses to the bare minimum
- 2Working extra shifts or overtime when schedule permits
- 3Focusing on saving and covering minimums rather than aggressive repayment while in school
- 4selling personal items
- 5limiting food expenses to the minimum
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“I have made many terrible financial decisions in the past 8 years. I’m in debt 40k soon to be more from school. Consisting of collections, a repo and charged off credit cards.”source ↗
“Should I just save? Or should I start trying to pay something off?”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
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- 2Why does high income still leave me buried in debt payments?
- 2How to start fixing overwhelming credit card debt