<p>That’s not a question anyone can answer for you. Assuming you mean $40,000 for all four years ($40,000 in loans each year would be absurd), determining what a school is worth depends on how suited it is to your intended course of study, how satisfactory your alternatives are, what kind of salary you could make after graduating to handle repayment of debt, etc. For example, if you want to study public policy and have the opportunity to intern in DC, AU might be worth the debt. If you want to major in English and can attend your state school debt free, AU wouldn’t make a lot of sense.</p>