New College Graduate Shocked by Student Loans: 'I'm Going to Die With It'

Even as President Joe Biden pushes to get a new student loan forgiveness plan under way, many Americans are graduating from university certain they will die with their student debt.

Mary Kate Willis, who goes by MaryJaneNotKatev2 on TikTok, recently shared her thoughts on graduating with a slew of student debt, similar to millions of other Americans across the country.

"In honor of me graduating college this week, I was like, you know what, we're going to rip the Band-Aid off. We're going to check our student loan debt," Willis, who is located in Orange County, California, said in her recent TikTok video.

Across the country, student loan debt has topped $1.76 trillion.

Willis went on to say she knew the ballpark range of what she owed but taking a look at the actual number proved brutal.

"I'm going to die with it," Willis said. "I can confidently say, there wasn't even a panic. It was just my heart sank."

Willis said like many Americans, she doesn't know how she will be able to pay off the whopping amount that is now attached to her name for earning her college degree.

In 2023, American borrowers had an average of $37,338 in federal student loan debt and $54,921 in private student loan debt, according to the Education Data Initiative.

"This is why I don't understand why people [expletive] on sugar babies because I could get this all paid off tomorrow if I just found a rich man," Willis added.

Some Seek Out Sugar Daddies

Many young Americans have turned to unorthodox lifestyles like seeking out a "sugar daddy" who pays an allowance for dates.

SeekingArrangement, a top site for these types of relationships, shared their average sugar baby is 25 years old and earns $2,800 monthly as an allowance, which can easily help college students in debt from their education.

"Ask not what you can do for the patriarchy but what the patriarchy can do for you. If it benefits me, maybe it's not the patriarchy. Maybe it's just a helping hand," Willis said.

For those entering higher education, the exact school and degree will play a huge role in the type of financial future many will have due to the prevalence of debt, financial experts say.

"To deal with these debts, Americans are going to have to drastically curtail spending, consider finding additional income or possibly multiple sources of income, second and third jobs and do everything possible to pay down their debt," Andrew Powers, a registered investment advisor in Illinois, told Newsweek.

"For students entering college and just beginning the student loan process, they should really consider the employment opportunities in their major and if their future salary can pay for their education."

'Dying With Student Loan Debt Is ... Common'

Of those with student loan debt, 22 percent believe they will not be able to pay their debt off this year, according to Finder's student loan data. And women, at 32 percent, were far more likely than men, at 13 percent, to say the payments were unaffordable.

"Sadly, dying with student loan debt is all too common," attorney Michael Lux, who is the founder of The Student Loan Sherpa, told Newsweek. "The numbers of seniors with student debt is growing at a distressing pace."

Roughly a quarter of student debt is currently owed by people older than 50, according to recent research, showing that for many, student debt will follow them far longer than their 20s and 30s.

"For younger borrowers, it is easy to look at student loan debt as a life sentence, especially when you can't even afford the monthly interest charges," Lux said.

However, some hope remains for old borrowers, Lux said. The newly created SAVE plan courtesy of the Biden administration caps payments at 10 percent of your discretionary income and cuts additional interest after you meet your monthly payment.

"Recent changes to how the government handles student debt in bankruptcy may provide a new opportunity for relief," Lux said. "That all said, the harsh reality is that college prices have increased dramatically, and wages haven't kept pace. As a result, each year more and more borrowers find themselves with debts they cannot afford."

Under Biden's newly introduced plan, the federal government would offer debt relief to specific types of borrowers, including those whose debt has skyrocketed due to interest rates or those who still owe 20 or 25 years after graduation.

The fate of the student loan forgiveness program proposed by Biden will be decided in several months, but final negotiations were this week.