Have you considered/is it an option to take a year to work in between school years? That's one way, although it's no fun, to graduate with very little debt.
I would ask "what are you studying" before doling out that advice. It may make more sense to get to his true earning potential more quickly than "painting houses" for a year to pay off a small amount of debt. I would also suggest that not many, if any of the people I know "saved" money when they were 21. OftenBen, put together a plan and stick with it. If you need to borrow money for 2 more years, do it responsibly and with a plan. Then, you may need to take 4 years to pay that off. Then, voila you are 26 years old and with zero debt. Dude, that's a good place to be. Now you can start saving aggressively, because ideally your earning potential is starting to rise. By the time you are 30 you can take some of the money you saved and invest it responsibly (but slightly more aggressively). -There are a number of ways to do so. It's smart of you to be concerned about your debt, you should be. But you shouldn't be "saving" right now. You have nothing to save. These are your learning years, they are expensive. Your payback years follow, then your earning years, then your investing years then your retirement years then your singularity download your consciousness in to an avatar years. -best save for that one. Good luck.
As a finance student myself I am well aware! But I have to somewhat disagree with the rest of your post. The learning years don't have to be expensive -- leaving school with debt is an automatic, acceptable thing for gen Y, and it pisses me off. Terrible, irresponsible mindset; not their fault. It's just what's done. But the fact that OftenBen is making a post like this means that his "learning years" can become saving years. Why not? Maybe life will be a bit harder for a while, but those are the times we live in. Your post makes perfect sense but -- why not start now? Start the plan from today instead of from post-grad and already a bit farther behind. It's hard though to hand out fiscal advice on the internet because every single situation is a little bit different.I would ask "what are you studying" before doling out that advice. It may make more sense to get to his true earning potential more quickly than "painting houses" for a year to pay off a small amount of debt.
My degree is going to be "Interdisciplinary Studies in Social Science with a focus on Human Capital and Logistics" and, if I get the job I want I'll be working for the Cardiac Research Unit for a major university. (Don't really want to say where, too hypothetical still) The job there isn't directly research, it's data coordination and management, making sure everyone's data is going where it's supposed to go, in the right format, organizing the outreach and schedules to patients that are part of the research unit. The position is currently vacant because of budget restrictions but will be coming back part-time my last semester of college, and full time shortly after that.
I worked FT well going to two year school FT. It was a tough two years, and it was a grind at times, but it was totally worth it. Working in between years, or during, can help a lot. Problem is at that point in life, fresh out of the parents house and no responsibilities, many kids seem to want to say that's "too much", but some people work two jobs and have kids and do that their whole life. It can be done, most people just don't want to make that sacrifice. They want to be young, have free time, play video games, or party with their friends. They tell themselves they need those things, hell I did for awhile. Turns out I laid the foundation for my work ethic that has gotten me to where I am today. Now a 70 hour week here or there doesn't phase me and has me asking for more, and getting raises and promotions. Though obviously that lifestyle isn't for everyone. For me, I got through it by knowing it was temporary and for a greater good. And I still had a lot of fun during those two years, those few nights or random days I did have off, I didn't sit around wasting them, I took full advantage of them and cherished them. Made me appreciate being motivated, and really get away from my lifestyle of pot and video games and being enjoyment of being "lazy". But like others have said, depends on what you're studying too. If it's a really intense major like law, medical or engineering, this probably won't work. But if you're a business major or something along those lines, you can swing working during school.
I have two jobs and I study full time, but the lifestyle like you say isn't for everyone. I'm hesitant to even suggest something like that because if you aren't the sort of person who can/want to handle it it'll set you back a long time. Great point, though, I appreciate the free time so much. I derive as much pleasure from having an evening where I can read for pleasure without guilt as I would from a full-blown vacation.
I had a similar experience during those times. A night where I could just drink a couple beers, and read a book or catch up on a TV show might as well have been a week long vacation. Oddly, it prepared me for my current lifestyle of a busy career, home ownership, and marriage. To this day I appreciate the free time I have so much. Being bored isn't really something I've experienced in a long long time. But yeah, definitely not for everyone.I derive as much pleasure from having an evening where I can read for pleasure without guilt as I would from a full-blown vacation.