<p>Jane wrote, "I don’t even think my parents could handle a single payment as it is "</p>
<p>I’m confused – the payment schedule for PLUS loans begins right away, when the student is still in school Generally the first payment is due around February or March of the freshman year.</p>
<p>Are you saying that your parents opted to defer payment until you finish school? If so, then there is interest being added to the loan, so it’s probably already more than you think it is. </p>
<p>But that could be a reason for your parent’s attitude – if they are looking at a situation where they can defer payments for another year or so while you remain in school, they may be afraid of the bills that will arrive when you quit. That is definitely a bad financial strategy on their part - but I can see why that would make them feel desperate to have you take over the loan.</p>
<p>Is it possible that you and your parents could meet together someone who offers financial counseling? I think you are in a pretty bad situation whichever way you go, but it may be that someone neutral, with a better grasp of the financial issues, can help you at least come to some sort of agreement…</p>
<p>Aside from the payment issue, your parents’ logic is an example of the “sunk cost fallacy” - see <a href=“http://www.skepdic.com/sunkcost.html”>http://www.skepdic.com/sunkcost.html</a> for a definition. They are thinking, they have paid so much for you to attend college so far, they can’t allow you to quit – even though they seem willing to sign for more loans (and even more crushing debt down the line) if you would continue working toward that animation degree. </p>
<p>I’m thinking that a financial adviser might be able to help them see why that is not a rational approach. It is a very common mistake that most of us make at times - but I agree with you that it will not help your parents for you to continue to attend a school they cannot afford. </p>
<p>You might also want to review the repayment options described here – there may be ways that your parents can significantly reduce the payment amount:
<a href=“http://www.direct.ed.gov/RepayCalc/dlindex2.html”>http://www.direct.ed.gov/RepayCalc/dlindex2.html</a></p>
<p>It’s not good planning – it essentially puts them on path to having a loan that they can never pay off – but it might be an option to at least buy time until you are on a better footing and can afford to help them out more. </p>
<p>Though I think you should also do some research to get a sense of how much a PTA typically gets paid. See <a href=“http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes312021.htm”>http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes312021.htm</a> (and keep in mind that the average wage is not the same as a starting salary). </p>