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<p>Billy, I don’t know about most but certainly some do. This is why so many of the parents here warn prospective students not to take on too much debt. We would give the same advice regardless of what school they’re planning to attend, but since Tisch is one of the most expensive and NYU does not promise to meet financial need, it’s an even more important consideration for prospective Tischies.</p>
<p>Like Susan’s D, my daughter graduated without any debt and also like Susan’s D, she has worked continuously since graduation. Even at that, it would have been a burden if she had had loan payments to be making every month. Also keep in mind that getting work upon graduation and working continuously is not a situation that is the norm for graduates, or for experienced actors, for that matter.</p>
<p>One thing that every student should be doing before making their final decision as to where to matriculate is to determine the amount of loans that are going to need to be paid off upon graduation, then plug that amount into a loan calculator and determine what your monthly payments are going to be. It’s also an eye-opener to calculate how much in total you’ll be paying with interest included. I think the average debt at graduation, nationwide, is about $20,000 and for those with undergrad and, for instance, a JD, it’s in the $80,000 range. No one training to be an actor should have anywhere close to the debt that a graduating lawyer has. Financial aid guides tend to recommend that you be able to devote 10% of your gross salary to make your monthly payments. When you calculate how much debt you’ll have and what the monthly payment will be, even in approximation, you’ll see what income you’re going to need to support that.</p>