BroadwayKing17

While I believe a lot of debt is hard to deal with as an artist, I do believe that if you work hard enough, you will figure out a way to pay off the debt and still audition. I would recommend looking up Stephanie Umoh, a working actress who went from Texas to BoCo, getting into over 200k in debt. (Makes my 80k look miniscule.) Not only was she in the Broadway Revival of Ragtime, but she continues to work regionally as well. Now I know thats just one success story, but I believe it shows that with determination, anything is possible.

alwaysamom

A two month run on Broadway isn't going to pay off $200,000 in student loans. It's a very bad idea to graduate with a lot of debt if you want to be an actor.My guess is that Stephanie will be paying off her student loans for a very long time.

BroadwayKing17

I think it's inevitable to go into debt nowadays. Even if I went to cc for a year, I'd still have to start as a freshman at a BFA program......same debt.

classicalbk

There are some schools where you can, if motivated, get through in three years. That could save some $$$. I wonder if that's a list worth trying to create? Look for schools where only 6 semesters of voice are required. And/or where there are useful summer/on-line/winter classes available that you can use toward your degree.
My understanding (which may be flawed) is Point Park (BA) and Elon can work this way. I've heard of NYU and Syracuse getting done in 7 semesters. Any others?

beenthereMTdad

I highly doubt Stephanie Umoh came out with 200K of debt. She received a lot of help in the form of scholarships especially the last two years and she also worked to supplement her education.

EmsDad

Stephanie estimated her debt at $130,000 in this Boston Globe article:

The education of Stephanie Umoh - Boston.com

Very interesting read. The article describes her financial situation in some detail. MT is not an easy life.

BroadwayKing17

I know Pace accepts some Transfers as Juniors, depending.

beenthereMTdad

^^^^EmsDad. I read the same article. A great article. The readers also need to understand that Stephanie was one of those "wow" talents even at a "wow" talent school.

I believe my daughter was a sophomore when Stephanie graduated. She was given a lot of help by the conservatory. The killer at Boco is that the room and board is 16K which in reality is closer to 20K when all is done. I would put the real cost for a of an education at Boco to be between $240K - $255K less scholarships. My final cost was 144K.

Lulusmom2

Some college debt is inevitable. I have just completed my own Masters degree and am still paying my loans; my fiance is also paying his med school loans and probably will for a looooong time to come. Now my d will also have some debt, but she went into this realistically, and we are also insistent that she also take business courses or some other practical coursework beyond performance so she has that to fall back on when she isn't performing...even if that means opening her own studio or theater or???
I believe the key to this is understanding what debt really means, and knowing that it is very real and not something to take lightly.

MomCares

This article raised concerns that Stephanie and her family may lack financial literacy -- the $700 she'd advanced to a "modelling agency" that she'd had no time to follow up with was my second clue - and may not truly understand the future financial difficulties they've opened themselves up to.

I wish her the very best, but overall the article made me very uncomfortable.

alwaysamom

Seniors Still Paying Student Loans | Moneyland | TIME.com

A link to an article provided in another forum here on CC that I thought was interesting. Particularly interesting was the reporting that in 2010 the average student debt was $25,250, the highest ever! It's wise for theatre kids to keep that in mind when they're looking at the possiblity of high five figure debt, or even worse, debt in the six figures. That is an amount of debt that will be life-altering for many, many years.

MichaelNKat

Here's a practical exercise. Pick an amount of student loan debt and divide between the maximum allowable FAFSA and private loans needed to make up the difference. Go to the FAFSA pages and the private lender's website to calculate the required monthly payments. Add in the monthly cost of a studio apartment, utilites and a high speed internet connection through Comcast or Verizon in the city where your student might want to live after graduation. Add in $80-100 per week for food (and believe me, that's a realistic amount). Add in the monthly cost of basic medical and hospitalization insurance. Add in monthly costs of transportation to auditions and continued voice lessons/coachings. Add in the cost of voice lessons/coaching. Add in costs of clothing. Multiply the total by 1.2 to calculate gross monthly income before nominal Fed income taxes and state/local earned income taxes. Divide the total by 140 hours a month for a 35 hour a week job. That's what your kid will need to earn per hour to meet their basic living needs. Then factor in that auditions usually occur during the day and rehearsals can be day and/or night and that getting 35 hours per week is never 35 hours of a fixed "normal schedule". Then rethink what kind of jobs are out there that will enable your kid to earn that kind of money and yet have the flexibility to audition etc. Then rethink how much student debt really makes sense - unless you are in a position to foot a good bit of the bill for your kid.

Don't mean to come across condescending or smug, but I have witnessed my daughter for the last 10 months since she graduated, working 6 or 7 days a week at jobs that pay $12-70/hr and give her the flexibility to audition and be in shows. It is a constant struggle to get enough hours in to make ends meet and still be able to hustle to make it as a performer. Her work days can start at 4 a.m. and end at 12 a.m. with breaks for preparing for auditions, auditions, rehearsals and performances and taking care of daily life needs in between. While she is extraordinarily happy with what she is doing, living life on her own terms pursuing what she loves, simply put, if she had crushing student loans to pay off, she'd be dead meat. That's the reality for 99.9% of the students who pursue performing after college.

soozievt

Good post, Michael! My kid is almost three years out of her BFA program and she also works 24/7, all in theater and music (loves it, no complaints), and has supported herself since graduation day (though doesn't pay her own health insurance yet) in NYC. She could never afford to also be paying college debts. We have many college loans and these are hard to afford, but the plan was never to make our kids pay them back. The loans are well worth it to me, but it is a whole 'nother story for kids who have to pay them back themselves.

kksmom5

I agree with soozievt . . . good post MichaelLKat.

This is from an online loan repayment calculator with Stephanie Umoh's debt (I bet it's more than that though really.) Just food for thought.

TEN YEAR LOAN:
Loan Balance: $130,000.00
Adjusted Loan Balance: $130,000.00
Loan Interest Rate: 6.80%
Loan Fees: 0.00%
Loan Term: 10 years
Minimum Payment: $50.00
Total Years in College: 4 years
Average Debt per Year: $32,500.00

Monthly Loan Payment: $1,496.04
Number of Payments: 120

Cumulative Payments: $179,525.54
Total Interest Paid: $49,525.54

THIRTY YEAR LOAN:

Loan Balance: $130,000.00
Adjusted Loan Balance: $130,000.00
Loan Interest Rate: 6.80%
Loan Fees: 0.00%
Loan Term: 30 years
Minimum Payment: $50.00
Total Years in College: 4 years
Average Debt per Year: $32,500.00

Monthly Loan Payment: $847.50
Number of Payments: 361

Cumulative Payments: $305,103.24
Total Interest Paid: $175,103.24

beenthereMTdad

Michael and kksmom5 - Very well done