Im probably the perfect person to talk about this actually, having accrued some of it foolishly. I started college right out of HS and I was nowhere near emotionally mature enough to handle it on my own. I took the max I could for student loans, paid for what I had to while spending the rest on partying. Hardly went to class...dropped out 2 semesters later after accruing about 10k in govt loans an 5k in private loans. This was back in the early 2000s when lenders would give a loan to anyone with a pulse. The private loan had over 20% interest and I didn't realize how much that one really screwed me over until I got a bit older and wiser. After taking off about 5 years, I decided to go back. I had paid less than 500 dollars to the principle of that private loan in that time. I struggled, but paid the loans.
Upon returning to school, however, I used financial aid only for school and living expense while working as much as I could (was a very tough time)
All in all, I have racked up about 60k in debt. I, however, am not too worried. I have a graduate level degree in Computer Science. Finding a good paying job in the field is about as easy as it was for me to get my first student loan. I make automatic payments and will be debt free in just under 3 years. (this includes a 7000 loan on a used, reliable car)
Now, on the other hand...I do have plenty of friends in the common "I have 40k+ in student loans and can't find a job" situation. They are far more concerned. I can't speak to their fiscal responsibility however. I will say, however, that my immaturity and mishandling of my finances screwed me over for a few years. It's one of the reasons I suggest that young people think really hard about jumping right into school because its what's expected of you. I learned that lesson the hard way and I know I'm not the only one.
