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Lenny

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I don't know how much I can help, but I'll give it a try:

A loan to help with University education is probably the best bit of money you're ever going to get in your life - make use of it! In England we pay it back when we start earning £15,000 (around minimum wage, I think), at a very low interest rate which converts to about £50 a month. Yeah, it takes years to pay off, but who really notices £50 a month?

Yes, we have the same system here. It's a per-semester type loan I am applying for, and the amount I can recieve is 9,500. Living expenses are going to be included, and I don't have to start paying it off until after I graduate, as HoH said.

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Unless the place is really huge, I'd advise against a car. Most campuses can be walked, and if you don't fancy that then there's always public transport. Whilst it may be useful sometimes, a car can be a lot of hassle - having to park it, insure it, pay for petrol/maintenance. There's always the risk that burglars will target student areas - hundreds of laptops, lots of money, bikes and cars. Easy pickings - students aren't known for being security conscious, and living in an area with other students can make you careless as you think that you're safe.

Well this place is a large area, and depending where my job and apartment are, I may need to keep my vehicle. At this point I'm in a contract with it anyways, so it's okay. And i'm going to be living with my brother, one of our friends and my girlfriend at this point and they're going to be keeping theirs as well. Some of the loan money can be used on the vehicle, which I think is essential here.

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Things might be different in America - I lived on campus in my first year, this year I'm living about fifteen minutes walk away, and I'll be back on campus next year.

I'd be tempted to not get a job during term time, too, unless you really need the money - do you really want to be cooped up in an evening or weekend job when new friends are having fun? Chances are you'd be stuck in fast food, too - I can't imagine employers wanting to pay students a lot for good jobs, but rather paying them little for the shitty jobs other people don't want.

Well, the thing is I'm going to need a job just to help pay for a few things, but I don't even need to have a serious job, I can really just work wherever might be good for my schedule. I'm hoping to get into good shape by the time I move down there and try some personal trainer, or something of that nature.

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So you're paying back whether you're employed or not? On the one hand: ouch!. On the other: good motivation to get a job asap.

How much do you pay back per month? Is it fixed or based on various factors?

Yes. That is how our two systems are different. Obama has tried to make it that way but the amount that is given is only about 4,000 per semester and you have to go through a bunch of loops just to obtain it. At this point i'd rather just use the money, go to school and live off of it. Even with that grace period it won't be that hard to pay it off. I'm still very excited about it. We're trying to move things fast now, i've been showing everyone what steps they're going to have to take if we all want to do it together and as far as I can tell nothing is going to stop us.