This guy just moved to a jungle to escape his student loan debt?

[amastewa93]

So for me to see stories like this guy's makes my blood boil. One assumes that he has no disabilities to put roadblocks up from finding a job he could do. How he couldn't live on the money he had coming in while living with mom is mind-boggling. He was making more than we live on! I would have loved to see what he was spending while living with mom. I wonder how his mom felt knowing she probably won't be seeing him again after coddling him. Wonder too what he is doing for a living in India. It seems more and more young people refuse to take responsibility for themselves anymore. I wonder if his wife is working and supporting him now.

Why does anyone go for a degree in philosophy in the first place without a clear path of how they plan to use it? One of my older son's friend got his degree in Philosophy and one of the jobs he worked was at a call center! My son and the third Muskateer were landing jobs that made them money.

I agree! I share your frustrations. When I first read/wrote about it I was LIVID. Then I realized there are plenty of people doing this. They simply run away from their debt instead of working out a way to take care of it. What always blows my mind when this is revisited is the amount he ran off for. A little more than $20K in debt was enough to send him packing... I can't wrap my mind around that. Just pay it and move on!

[Gailete]

Unbelievable! When I think of my autistic son coming out of school where he got his associate's degree for medical coding and other stuff in a medical office. Since he was having trouble finding a job for what he trained for, he worked his high school grocery job and signed up at temp agencies. Finally got a part-time job and so worked it with the grocery store. Then the medical office gave him full time and he worked part-time at the store. Then he moved to be closer to his main job and save the cost of so much driving. So quit the grocery job, but as he had financial goals he wanted to meet he is working fulltime and part-time still. He had loans and through those years of balancing sometimes up to three jobs he had gotten them down to about the last thousand when my folks gave him a gift of money to finally finish them. What he did would be tough for anyone to go through and balance those jobs and paying off student loans and his car loan (no other debt - he doesn't own a credit card at 35) without having problems like autism. But he made it and I am proud of him. When the boss is away he is in charge! So for me to see stories like this guy's makes my blood boil. One assumes that he has no disabilities to put roadblocks up from finding a job he could do. How he couldn't live on the money he had coming in while living with mom is mind-boggling. He was making more than we live on! I would have loved to see what he was spending while living with mom. I wonder how his mom felt knowing she probably won't be seeing him again after coddling him. Wonder too what he is doing for a living in India. It seems more and more young people refuse to take responsibility for themselves anymore. I wonder if his wife is working and supporting him now.

Why does anyone go for a degree in philosophy in the first place without a clear path of how they plan to use it? One of my older son's friend got his degree in Philosophy and one of the jobs he worked was at a call center! My son and the third Muskateer were landing jobs that made them money.

[amastewa93]

And, by the way, she made her final student loan payment last month so she is now debt-free 7 months after graduation.

That is FANTASTIC!

[~bs]

That's surprising because most preschools (at least in my area) require an associate degree in Early Childhood Education (ECE) and those that do hire non ECE candidates will make it a requirement for new hires to get their degree within X number of months. Many also offer work / study where you work at the preschool / day care during the day and go to school during the evenings and weekends.

Most English majors I know end up as journalists so that's another path for her.

depends on your state, but teaching is 1 career path that generally doesnt require above a 2 or 4 year degree (at least at first), and doesnt require a specific degree. They have stardardized tests to pass before becoming a teacher though.

[~bs]

Actually, you'd be surprised. I had peers in medical school who had degrees in almost every field you can think of. After graduating, and often after working for a few years, they decided they wanted to become doctors so they went back and took the science courses they needed to qualify for admission but they didn't get new degrees. So you very well might encounter a surgeon with an English degree or history degree or business degree. You do not need a science/pre-med degree to get into medical school.

Well, of course they'd need the appropriate medical schooling as well as the english degree. lol Taking "easier" 4 year degrees,then switching to a different track at the master or doctor level isnt new.

[disneysteve]

That's surprising because most preschools (at least in my area) require an associate degree in Early Childhood Education (ECE) and those that do hire non ECE candidates will make it a requirement for new hires to get their degree within X number of months.

There are always at least 2 people in the room, a head teacher and a teaching assistant. She can't be a head teacher but she can be the assistant. It's not a long-term job for her but it kind of fell into her lap and was a perfect first job for her. Money is decent. Hours are good. And it will keep her from having a gap in her resume that she has to explain once she finds something more career-minded for her.

[Scallywag]

That's surprising because most preschools (at least in my area) require an associate degree in Early Childhood Education (ECE) and those that do hire non ECE candidates will make it a requirement for new hires to get their degree within X number of months. Many also offer work / study where you work at the preschool / day care during the day and go to school during the evenings and weekends.

Most English majors I know end up as journalists so that's another path for her.

[disneysteve]

nowadays, the educational requirement is a lot tougher since half the population has a college degree. Its not like the 1970s where having any degree meant something. 4 year degree in a random major is almost the new high school diploma.

I'm sure there's some truth to that, and I definitely see things through the lens of someone who graduated 30+ years ago, but even today, I see young people I know who are working in fields that really aren't what they studied in school. Heck, my daughter is teaching preschool. She didn't go for education. She has an English degree but that's not really relevant when your students are all under the age of 2. And, by the way, she made her final student loan payment last month so she is now debt-free 7 months after graduation.

[disneysteve]

Some career fields require a specific degree (you wouldnt want a english major doing surgery)

Actually, you'd be surprised. I had peers in medical school who had degrees in almost every field you can think of. After graduating, and often after working for a few years, they decided they wanted to become doctors so they went back and took the science courses they needed to qualify for admission but they didn't get new degrees. So you very well might encounter a surgeon with an English degree or history degree or business degree. You do not need a science/pre-med degree to get into medical school.

[~bs]

You can be very successful in life with a "junk" degree or no degree for that matter. Some career fields require a specific degree (you wouldnt want a english major doing surgery) some require any degree. HR is one of those that require "any degree". That being said, all else equal, the candidate with a degree that matches the job they're going for will win out. A business major with focus on HR is a much stronger candidate than the same person with a philosophy degree.

nowadays, the educational requirement is a lot tougher since half the population has a college degree. Its not like the 1970s where having any degree meant something. 4 year degree in a random major is almost the new high school diploma.

[amastewa93]

Not to start up the whole college debate again as we've been through that before, but the vast majority of college graduates do not work in their field of study. The degree is just that. It is proof that you went to college. With few exceptions, your college major doesn't have a huge influence on the jobs you end up working. I have a friend, now retired, who got a degree in Philosophy. What did he do for the bulk of his career? He was the head of HR for AIG and did very well for himself.

Most employers in most fields just want to see that you completed college. They want someone who can speak articulately, write intelligibly, learn new tasks easily, and play well with others.

All of that said, I totally agree that you shouldn;t bury yourself in debt for college - and this guy didn't. 20K just isn't a lot of school debt and is perfectly manageable on a modest income. He just decided he didn't want to pay it. I doubt that his decision would have been any different had he chosen a different major. This wasn't about the money.

I agree with that! I have friends that majored in Sports Science and wound up working as a loan officer. Most employers simply want to know you have a degree. The rest is almost always on-the-job training. I can't say I've ever been asked for my degree for a position in a company... but I have it haha.

The fact that he ditched everything in the U.S. to run from $20K in debt is just mind-blowing to me. Living with his parents (like I think he was), he could have worked a modest job and had that paid off in a few years if he actually tried (or cared).

[disneysteve]

Not to start up the whole college debate again as we've been through that before, but the vast majority of college graduates do not work in their field of study. The degree is just that. It is proof that you went to college. With few exceptions, your college major doesn't have a huge influence on the jobs you end up working. I have a friend, now retired, who got a degree in Philosophy. What did he do for the bulk of his career? He was the head of HR for AIG and did very well for himself.

Most employers in most fields just want to see that you completed college. They want someone who can speak articulately, write intelligibly, learn new tasks easily, and play well with others.

All of that said, I totally agree that you shouldn;t bury yourself in debt for college - and this guy didn't. 20K just isn't a lot of school debt and is perfectly manageable on a modest income. He just decided he didn't want to pay it. I doubt that his decision would have been any different had he chosen a different major. This wasn't about the money.

[james.hendrickson]

Guys - lets not knock liberal arts. Lots of philosophy and sociology majors have gone on to very respectable careers.

[Scallywag]

The guy owes 20K. That is not a lot of debt and certainly isn't insurmountable. Most student loans are paid back over 10 years. Surely no matter what his major was, he could find a job that would allow him to pay back 2K/year on his loans. This clown just didn't want to pay what he had committed to. He could have gotten a better job or a 2nd job if he needed to. There is always work out there if you're willing to do it. This guy just wasn't. Plus there are loan repayment options that can lower your payments and/or extend your repayment period. He just used modest debt as an excuse to go have an adventure.

His moral compass has lost a dial, yes !

But my point is that liberal arts isn't for those looking to make oodles of greenbacks unless

(1) you don't expect to work in the field and are just looking to get a degree to put on your resume

or

(2) you do want to work the field but are willing to make do with little spending money after you pay your bills every month

or

(3) you expect a sizeable inheritance or marry into wealth.

i would personally never go into debt for a liberal arts major, and I would not encourage my own offspring or my nephews / nieces to do so either, but that's just me.

If you insist on getting a Liberal arts degree, then I would only do it the Dave Ramsey way - 2 years of Community college followed by 2 years of UDC in a local, in-state public University, while I work part time all 4 years, and live at home with my parents or live in a dorm. Rice and beans, beans and rice, scorched Earth until I graduate debt free or can pay it off in under 2 years.

Hey, you want to study Philosophy, awesome, go for it but make sure you do the responsible thing. If you know ahead of time that you plan to skip out on your loans then also do the decent thing and don't get an unsuspecting sheep to co-sign on your "liberal arts" decisions for you. For some odd reason I have a feeling that someone cosigned on his loans -- I hope I am dead wrong but I just get a terrible vibe here that this moron has gotten someone else into deep trouble.

[Scallywag]

id rather pay the 20k and keep living in the us versus moving to a 3rd worldish country. but that's just me. good luck to him

India has miles to go but it is nowhere near as bad as he proclaims it to be. If it is then he would not expect to permanently live there so he doth protest too much.