to think that mums should get some sort of concession for student loan repayments?

[bubbleymummy]

I just got my student loan statement and yet another big whack of interest has gone on. I haven't been able to make any payments since I went on maternity leave 3 years ago because I only worked PT after ds. Now I have ds2 and who knows when I'll be back to ft work. dh on the other hand has paid back over half of his. It just seems a bit discrimatory to me...most women will have to take a salary drop at some stage to have a family and won't hit the threshold for repayments while the interest just piles on...shouldn't we get a bit of a break?

HTTM why did you remortgage? Just curious because boy-oh-boy those student loans sound cheap. Cheaper than a remortgage ...

that's true, httm, or they can spread out their studies to work with FT work.

my father did this for both bachelor's and master's in petroleum engineering.

not fun, but he didn't want loans.

Student loans are a good deal as far as loans are concerned. I took one out about five years ago. Better than Career Development Loans and any other type I could get from a lender.

exp - stats show that more women earn less than men on average and are more likely to work PT due to family commitments than men - fact. It's just the way it is. So women will pay off their loan slower and it will therefore accrue more interest.

QC - I borrowed just over 19k (def not 140k! ) and now I owe over 21.5 thanks to the interest. Not sure what rate you're calculating it on but it's not the same as the SLC are using I've been paying at least £575 a year in interest and it's increasing every year.

Also, not wiped after 25 years if you borrowed post 98 and pre 2007. Stays with you til your 65.

But that's their choice. I earn more than dh and have worked for more years than he has. You make yer choices...

You borrowed £19K?! Fuck me. To study what? Surely you had thought about children/childcare and how this would affect your earning ability?

Quattro we did it because as far as I know, a student loan is not available for masters degree. My son had already had 3 years worth for one degree- he could have got a 4th year' s loan if he had taken a 4-year course initially, but he did 3 years, then re-applied for another year for his MSc.

PD- a £19K loan is not out of the ordinary at all- both my children will owe at least that.

Tuition fees are around £3-£4K a year ( that's £12K easily) the living expenses are another £3K ish a year- that another £9K ish.

My son's masters cost him (us) £10K including living costs ( rent, food, bills) and tuition fees. And that was cheap masters- some unis were charging £15K tuition fees for a year's master degree, then you have to add on a year's rent and bills.

bubbleymummy - if I had that amount of debt I wouldnt be a sahm but work on paying it off. I dont see why you should get a concession because you choose not to work.

I know that debt of £20k is common after completing a degree but I naively thought that if someone put themselves in that much debt, they would have figured out a plan to pay it back by earning money.

herc- yes but you are forgetting a couple of things- one, is that you have to earn over £15K, which would mean £30K pa full time equivalent, (I assume- it mean that is your yearly salary, not howmuch you would get if you worked full time?) if you say on;y walnt to work part time due to DCS.

The 2nd point is that £19 is a pretty average student debt- some get it down to around £12 if they work a lot during the hols and then don't use all the loan, but most don't.

BTW- what happens if you don't use all the loan BG? I have friends who have paid for the DCs uni expenses- tuition fees and rent etc- so that their DCs have not actually spent the loan- they are under the impression that their darling DCs can repay the lot straight off- is not that so- or will the DCs invest the money and repay as they go????

figures should be £19K and £12K of course!!!

I dont understand your point - if you choose to work partime then of course you'll earn less - your choice. I dont understand teh 30k comment.

Maybe things are different in Scotland? If you don't use all the loan or you budget properly, you can pay back as much as you like, whenever you like

LOL at pointy

HTTM - I understand now - thanks for the clarification

Although they will take money off at source when you are earning a certain amount, you are free to pay whatever you are able to, whenever you want. I started paying some money back stright away, I didn't hang about waiting for them totake it off at source.

btw I was laughing at your post about your "naive thoughts" ...

goodness, quatt, I wasn't trying to be funny. I just have an instinctive fear of debt.

ah, yes, obv naive

Quattro - don't get too excited about the loans! The full maintenance loan isn't even available to you if your parents earn too much!

My (adult) dd who is off to University was pretty pissed off to discover she can't even apply for the full maintenance loan, even though she would have no issue with paying it back. Tuition fees - yes, but maintenance is apparently up to me and DH to fork out. Even though she's an adult.
It's almost tempting to split from DH, drop down to part time earnings (enabling her to get the full loan, plus I'd probably get all sorts of other financial perks!) and then get back together once all the kids have gone through Uni!!

Now that is an unfair aspect of the system.

5 year MEng degree = 19k in fees and I worked all the way through uni to pay my living expenses and I don't CHOOSE not to work now thanks v much - I have an 11 week old and a 3 year old that I'm looking after at the moment - I'm not sitting on my ass looking at the walls! I also work PT from home but I'm not earning over £15k.

Of course you are choosing not to go to work. Once maternity leave is over you can go back. Lots of people work with children under 5.

HErcules - I AM working - I'm just not earning over 15k anymore and not everyone can afford to go back to work after maternity because when they factor in childcare and travel etc etc it doesn't work out financially. I'm glad it worked out for you but I really don't appreciate being citicised as if I'm just sitting on my ass taking other people's hand outs.