Episode 00 Who Is The Fit Institute And What Do We Do

Today we welcome our first guest to the podcast, Betharoni Bird, a 2012 college graduate now working in the culinary arts. Learn how Beth paid her way through college with only modest debt that she repaid within two years of graduating. Learn how your local college may be much less expensive than that dream private culinary arts training school. Hear how (i) you may need to structure your curriculum while in college because your professors may not know what you need to know, and (ii) you may need years of additional training once you have completed your undergraduate degree if you want to pursue a management or professional level of work in the culinary arts field. It's hard work and it's not for the faint of heart, but if you have stamina, an enthusiasm for food preparation and willingness to work hard, you will find there are many well-paying jobs in the field of the culinary arts.

Minute 00-1:00 All of these acronyms are used to describe Income-Based Repayment programs for federal student loans. And the one thing they all have in common is that they stretch out loan repayments for decades. Minute 2-3: I am a lawyer, but I am not providing legal advice here just general information about student loans. This podcast isn’t and won’t be affiliated with any lenders. Minute 3-4: This first Season is devoted to providing information to people who are contemplating taking out student loans. I think people are incredibly nonchalant about what it means to be burdened by a significant amount of debt. The acronyms and names for repayment programs and plans have created confusion and led people to believe that a great deal of their debt will be forgiven by one mechanism or another. Minute 4-5: Millions of people are burdened by student loan debt that they are finding difficult if not impossible to repay According to a January 2017 Wall Street Journal article, as many as half of all borrower

Episode 05 Why Your Student Loan Probably Won't Be Forgiven Minute 1:30 We need to talk about Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) because so many people go into debt believing they will not have to repay their debt in full. This is not correct. Creditors expect to be repaid. Minute 2:30:  There are some loans that will be forgiven in part if certain conditions are met, e.g. teachers teaching in certain designated schools can have up to $5000 of direct loans forgiven if they have made five years of payments, in full and on time. Minute 4:30-8:  Let's talk about Richard Fossey's 2017 book, The Student Loan Catastrophe Postcards from the Rubble, where he discusses at length the problems with PSLF programs, including subsidizing people getting degrees in fields that are overcrowded. Why should Americans subsidize people getting an education in an overcrowded field? Of course, people who have a degree in an area that requires professional licensing cannot practice their profession without the license. In 201

Learn about the dangers of Parent PLUS loans. Just say no. You can't afford them and neither can your student.

Hello and welcome to Episode 03: You Need a Plan and a Budget Not a Loan and a Credit Card. Many people begin college because they don’t know what to do instead of beginning college. That’s OK if you have the money in the world and money is a matter of indifference. Remember this video about how wise it is to incur $100,000 of debt before making any money. Minute 3-5:30: The question is will your learning in college enhance your career opportunities? Maybe and maybe not. The less you know about the particular requirements of a job, the less likely is that your college major will enhance your ability to perform well on the job. A general degree in business will not prepare you for any business. If you think you want to be a business major, your best option may be to work in a sales job. Sales are essential to every business operation. Minute 6:50-8:00: Many employers, such as Chick-fil-A, Amazon, Starbucks and many, many others contribute to their employee’s educational expenses. If going to college would

Private scholarships may be less valuable than you think since colleges often reduce the amount of grants you would have received by the amount of scholarship funds you receive. Your financial aid package may be different sophomore year than it is freshman year. College readiness is more than academic readiness.

Show Notes Summary Min 1                   The application is free, but that doesn’t mean the student aid is free Min 1:15             This podcast offers information about student loans and doesn’t constitute legal advice Min 2                   Colleges use the FAFSA to calculate each family’s expected contribution (the “EFC”) Min 3                   Each family should assess its own personal financial situation to see if it can afford the EFC Min 4                   Family’s unable/unwilling to save in advance of college are unlikely to be able to repay any loans advanced to them. Min 6-8                What you should consider if you have both low-interest credit card debt and savings and how you should treat retirement funds. Min 7-8                How much of your savings will the colleges expect as the EFC? Remember that any expected contribution is an annual contribution, not a one-time contribution Min 9-10             Colleges will seek to capture any savings of child to offset financial aid

00-Min 1             Financial Institute Training: Understanding the impact of student loan debt on the debtor Min 1                   Rose McConnell is an attorney. Developed interest in debt following 2008 financial crash. Min 2                   Interest rates at historic lows. Takeaway: they will go higher! Min 2:43              Creditors expect to be repaid and educational debt won’t just be forgiven Min 3:30              Student Loan Debt has doubled between 2010 and 2016 Min 4                   First season is focused on the upfront costs of student loan debt and the risk of those loans as further discussed in Ms. McConnell’s book, Shun Student Loans, which is available on Amazon Min 5                   New episodes will be released weekly on Mondays and Thursdays. Sign up on Itunes or Stitcher and submit questions and comments on the Contact page of fit.institute. We want to address your questions and concerns