As my wise mother once told me, you've got to have a bachelor's in something in order to survive in this world. If you don't want to be permanently relegated to "labor" or "unskilled", making barely more than minimum wage because that's all the market will cough up for your sweat, you've got to go to college.

Of course, the Boy didn't start college until this past semester. Has it affected our lives together? Sure. It was one factor that kept him in temp work until he enlisted. The military will do a good deal as far as higher education goes, but for the majority of young adults out there college is something that's really got to happen. And with the economy and social realities of life, that means that you've got to find student loans. Sure- you'll be paying those loans back for a while after you graduate. But the jobs you will get with those loans will enable you to survive and thrive. Private student loans are a wonderful option. They enable you more flexibility when it comes to finding the best terms and interest rates for your unique situation. Student loans are going to be responsible for paying the majority of your expenses while living on campus- even if you are able to supplement this with a second (or third) job. You may be able to cover living expenses that way, and possibly even your books. The tuition bill is usually the real shocker. Federal loans are also a possibility; I used a combination of both in order to maximize what I could get from the university I attended.

I have my degree. I may never use it for it's official primary purpose, but the education it provided was able to carry over to be highly effective in my chosen field. Besides... it was fun.