The Average College Student Graduates With $20.000 in Dept

The following is an excerpt from "How to Blitz Your College Loans" by  By Liz Pulliam Weston

"The average college student is now more than $20,000 in debt at graduation. The average salary for a newly minted graduate, meanwhile, is $30,000. No wonder so many grads say "the heck with it" and simply take on more debt -- buying new cars, carrying credit-card balances and paying back as little of their student loans as they can get away with. If you're smart, though, you'll make a concerted effort to get out of debt now -- while you're still young enough to make it count.Why should you care about debt? Well, for one, every dollar you spend on interest for credit cards and loans is a dollar you don't have for other, better uses: saving, investing, spending on something fun.

First things first
Your biggest debt is probably your student loans. The good news is that rates on these loans are low. Your best bet is to pay the minimum possible on these loans while you tackle other, more expensive debt. That could mean consolidating your loans into a 15-year or 20-year repayment plan, or using alternative payment schemes such as Sallie Mae's "income sensitive" or "interest only" options."

Liz Weston recommends once you've got that in place:

1. Pay off your credit card debt.
2. Look at your other, non-mortgage debt.
3. Build up an emergency fund.
4. Save for retirement.

Right about now you most likely are looking at this list and saying to yourself 
"I'm a college student how am I going to get started? School takes all my time!" 
What if you could create cash flow and leverage your time without leaving campus? While you're still in college is the time to plan ahead to look towards all that college debt. Investigate possible solutions to adding cash flow, leveraging your time and energy while you are still in school. 

Begin by asking yourself "Would an extra $300 - $400 per month make a difference?" 

If so, here are some options to consider:

7 Ways to Leverage Time to Create Cash Flow

1. Investigate home based business ie. franchise opportunities, direct sales etc.
2. Create an internet business.
3. Become an affiliate for a variety of products.
4. Network through social media sites.
5. Find products and/or services you can sell on campus.
6. Look into legitimate multi-level marketing.
7. Commission sales position.

 Resources: 
"How to Blitz Your College Loans" by  By Liz Pulliam Weston http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/CollegeAndFamily/MoneyInYour20s/HowToBlitzYourCollegeDebts.aspx

Cindy Cohen RN, BS BA
National Marketing Director
Juice Plus+ Corporation

http://www.YourJuicePlus.com

http://www.CindyCohenRN.com