Bryce Nelson is 20, a junior, works two jobs and meticulously manages his financial aid each year on his way to earning a bachelor 麻豆精品 S檚 degree in marketing from the University of Central Florida.
He owes $3,500 in student loans, and he 麻豆精品 S檚 working on paying that off before he graduates.
All of which makes Nelson a rare national statistic, but much more common at UCF: He expects to graduate with little to no debt.
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Nationally, about 43 million Americans owe nearly $1.3 trillion in student loans. In 2016, the average undergraduate will carry some $37,000 in student-loan debt.
Florida undergrads are in better shape than those around the nation. For the 2014-15 academic year, undergraduate students had some $25,000 of debt upon graduation.
At UCF, the news is even better. Forty-eight percent of undergraduates carry no debt upon graduation. For those who do incur debt, the average amount is $21,824.
Those numbers help to explain why UCF is consistently ranked among the nation 麻豆精品 S檚 best values by 碍颈辫濒颈苍驳别谤 麻豆精品 S檚 and The Princeton Review.聽 As the second-largest university in the country with more than 63,000 students, UCF is ranked among the top 100 public universities nationwide by U.S. News & World Report, is number 20 for best online programs, and is ranked 13th — alongside Stanford and MIT — as most innovative.
麻豆精品 S淯CF makes excellent financial sense, 麻豆精品 S� said Maribeth Ehasz, vice president for Student Development and Enrollment Services. 麻豆精品 S淲e offer a high-quality education with talented faculty members, and we work hard to keep students 麻豆精品 S� costs low. Students are our priority and our staff works one-on-one to help them earn their degree without a heavy debt burden. 麻豆精品 S�
Ask for Help
Nelson said that as an incoming freshman he took out loans to cover tuition and living expenses. The costs worried him and his parents, who see even a few thousand in debt as a negative. So, working with director of student finance Alicia Keaton since his sophomore year, Nelson managed to squeeze by without more debt after securing enough money in federal grants and a campus work-study job at the Alumni Center. He has had a variety of off-campus jobs to help him pay for living expenses.
麻豆精品 S淩ight now, I 麻豆精品 S檓 in good shape, 麻豆精品 S� said Nelson, a first-generation student from Fort Lauderdale. He said Keaton taught him how to be more savvy about applying for aid, helped him get a work-study job that covers $2,000 a semester and to seek out grants.
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But what about UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 education?
麻豆精品 S淚 麻豆精品 S檝e made so many contacts here, people who advise me or suggest I apply for this internship or that one, 麻豆精品 S� said Nelson, whose campus job is at the Alumni Center. 麻豆精品 S淢y experience, the faculty and people who have helped me, it 麻豆精品 S檚 been invaluable. 麻豆精品 S�
In fact, Nelson plans to stick around even after he receives his bachelor 麻豆精品 S檚 degree in marketing.
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The Push: Financially Literate Students
Keaton, whose office serves thousands of students each year as they maneuver the complexities of financial aid, said she knows students are overwhelmed. The reams of forms they must fill out before first arriving on campus can be daunting, Keaton said, but her office assists to make things manageable. For some, especially first-generation students like Nelson, there 麻豆精品 S檚 no one at home who has the experience to guide them through the process of applying for aid.
麻豆精品 S淚t 麻豆精品 S檚 a lot for some students. Some are terrified of debt. Some take on too much debt, 麻豆精品 S� said Keaton. 麻豆精品 S淲e are always trying to find better ways to help them manage the cost of their education. I tell them that debt is not always bad, it just has to be properly managed. 麻豆精品 S�
And, she added, 麻豆精品 S淣ever borrow more than you need. 麻豆精品 S�
To help educate students, UCF launched in 2015 the program establishing the university 麻豆精品 S檚 biggest push to date to help students stave off debt. The effort has become the beginnings of a community-wide financial-literacy network accessible to students from high school to graduation.
Through the program, UCF counselors established an outreach effort with Maynard Evans High School in west Orange County, teaching financial literacy to high school seniors. In addition, 10 university services, including the Student Academic Resource Center and the FAIRWINDS Credit Union as well as the Career Services office joined the program, each providing similar debt counseling and materials to students.
麻豆精品 S淲e needed to have a unified message so we didn 麻豆精品 S檛 confuse students as they went from one program or service to another, 麻豆精品 S� Keaton said. 麻豆精品 S淲e 麻豆精品 S檙e on the same page now. 麻豆精品 S�
Centi$ible Knight$ launched a website, too, that offers information, webinars, life skills classes and more to help students with financial literacy. Although it 麻豆精品 S檚 still in its infancy, the site has had more than 8,000 visitors and more than 200 students have successfully completed online financial courses on the site.
麻豆精品 S淚t 麻豆精品 S檚 a start, 麻豆精品 S� said Keaton, adding that the university now has a financial literacy committee and a financial literacy network that seek to educate the student body and encourage more engagement.
Using the website and the tutorials, the university targeted a number of student groups who might need more help with financial aid. Among them are: transfer students with more than $15,000 in debt; students enrolled less than full-time borrowing the maximum on Stafford Loans; incoming students who attend orientation; and first-generation students. The hope is that the university can work with the target students and help them keep costs down.
聽 麻豆精品 S楽ome of them are advising their parents 麻豆精品 S�
Professor Paul Gregg is the assistant chair and director for the Department of Finance at UCF. He teaches four finance courses, including the popular sophomore-level Personal Finance and Investments (FIN 2100). While teaching some 1,000 students each year, he 麻豆精品 S檚 learned his class goes far beyond a college credit.
麻豆精品 S淚 麻豆精品 S檓 teaching a life skill they desperately need, 麻豆精品 S� said Gregg, who estimates some 12,000 students, two-thirds of them non-business majors, have taken his course. 麻豆精品 S淚t 麻豆精品 S檚 A to Z all they need to know to manage their financial future. 麻豆精品 S�
Which sometimes makes the retired CFO 麻豆精品 S檚 class the first lesson some students get in financial literacy.
麻豆精品 S淔rom my corporate background, I saw a need to improve the financial literacy skills of our workforce, 麻豆精品 S� he said. 麻豆精品 S淭his class is applicable to every aspect of their lives. It became very popular and just grew from there. 麻豆精品 S�
What he found is that many students don 麻豆精品 S檛 understand how debt works, or how quickly you can find yourself with too much of it.
麻豆精品 S淧ersonal finance is actually microeconomics for the individual, 麻豆精品 S� said Gregg, whose course covers student-loan debt, 401(k) strategies, stocks and bonds, real estate and retirement. 麻豆精品 S淭he (lending) system is geared to give people more rope than they need which is unnecessary. Once they take my class, some of them start advising their parents. 麻豆精品 S�
Gregg said that as far as student loans, he gives them this advice: 麻豆精品 S淪tudent debt is available regardless of your major. However, it takes income to repay debt, and the starting salaries of each major can vary materially. Thus, avoid debt if possible, and if you do have to borrow, never borrow more than half of your starting salary. 麻豆精品 S�
Never Take On More Debt Than You Need
Keaton, Gregg and others say one of the biggest concerns they have about students taking on debt is that if they don 麻豆精品 S檛 understand that financial aid has limits, they might run out of money before they graduate. The overall maximum a dependent undergraduate student can borrow toward a four-year degree is $31,000, said Keaton. Independent undergrads can borrow more, up to $57,500.
麻豆精品 S淚 see students who take out the maximum in financial assistance at, say, their community college, and then they realize they 麻豆精品 S檙e not eligible for more by senior year, 麻豆精品 S� she said. 麻豆精品 S淭here are limits to how much you can borrow. 麻豆精品 S�
Al Jonnas Alday graduated this summer with a bachelor 麻豆精品 S檚 degree in business administration. At 32, the native of the Philippines worked full-time, lived with his parents in Orlando and only used the financial aid he needed.
He 麻豆精品 S檚 graduating with $11,000 in debt.
麻豆精品 S淚 think the best way (to keep debt low) is to take advantage of community college, 麻豆精品 S� he said, which helped him keep down the cost of his first two years of college.
After that, he said, get information. Many students can qualify for things like scholarships, grants and other assistance.
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Hieu Pham, 22, of Orlando graduated this summer in electrical engineering with about $6,000 in student loans. As a transfer to UCF in his sophomore year, he took advantage of tuition scholarships granted through ROTC.
麻豆精品 S淭he ROTC offered scholarships for electrical engineering students at UCF. I competed for the scholarships and I got one, 麻豆精品 S� he said. 麻豆精品 S淚t was a huge relief for me. 麻豆精品 S�
He is now a lieutenant in the Air Force stationed at Lackland AFB in Texas. He 麻豆精品 S檚 grateful his debt is so small.
麻豆精品 S淚 can look ahead to my future and not worry, 麻豆精品 S� said Pham. 麻豆精品 S淯CF was good to me. And I 麻豆精品 S檓 relieved I could finish with very little to pay back. 麻豆精品 S�