According to a report from the Office of Legislative Research, Connecticut has the fifth-highest average amount of debt per undergraduate with $35,853 for the class of 2020. Approximately 15 percent of Connecticut residents have some form of student debt.
For some Connecticut residents, their way of living will change when federal student loan payments resume next month. We asked six Connecticut residents questions about how the resuming of student loan debt payments will affect their lives.
Responses have been lightly edited for style and clarity.
Hartford
Samantha Bailey, 27
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Debt: Bailey owes $90,000 in student loans, she said.
How did the COVID-19 student debt payment pause affect your life? With payments restarting, do you anticipate experiencing any changes in your lifestyle?
I graduated, moved out of my parents house and started a job during the student debt payment pause. It felt like an extended version of the six-month grace period you get after graduating. I was able to put more money into savings, and I think the pause on payments helped ease the transition from student to working adult. Bills, rent, and other big expenses (furniture, security deposit, etc.) were a lot less overwhelming because I wasn't concerned about an upcoming student loan payment or the interest accruing on my loan. I also had more spending money and could do things with friends or travel more than I would have been able to.
Once payments restart, I'll have to start budgeting a bit more and reduce the amount of money I put into my savings. I think I will start spending less on things I don't consider necessary because I'll always be thinking about the $90,000 of student debt that I have hanging over my head.
Do you still believe that through policy, debt forgiveness is possible? If so, why?
I think that it is possible for existing student loan policies to be expanded and allow for debt forgiveness. I believe that the student debt issue is too big and affects too many people for the government do to absolutely nothing about it.
Do you feel your college degree has been worth the burden of student loans? Why or why not?
I am not sure. All of my student loan debt is from law school. Even though I had a scholarship and lived with my parents to save money, I graduated with almost six figures of debt.
As a lawyer, I make more than I would have with just my (undergraduate) college degree, but my student debt is still overwhelming. I also wouldn't have had this debt if I hadn't gone to law school. I know it gave me more opportunities, but I'm not sure the degree was worth the burden. I think I could have been just as happy if I was debt-free and had just my college degree.
Naugatuck
Erin Doris, 23
Occupation: Social Worker — School: Western Connecticut State University
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Debt: Dorris was not immediately available to share how much she owes in student loans.
How did the COVID-19 student debt payment pause affect your life? With payments restarting, do you anticipate experiencing any changes in your lifestyle?
The pause was kind of helpful in that scheme of things because I wasn't able to work during COVID. I was working part-time at the YMCA and they had closed their doors. I wasn't making any money. I did file for unemployment, and then having the loans pause obviously helped me save money for once they started up again. Now, I have to make sure I am being frugal with the money, and know how much I can spend and make sure I have the amount that I need to to pay both my federal and private loans. It obviously sets you back from making the bigger life steps like being able to move out, being able to buy your first car, or pay rent and pay for your own place. I wanted to go to grad school, but I kind of put that on pause as well because I wanted to get some of this paid off before I had to start paying for grad school. It feels like all the big things are on pause. having to start that back up again.
Do you still believe that through policy, debt forgiveness is possible? If so, why?
It's so hard to say. I hope it can — I really do, at least for the federal loans, because I have so much in private loans as well that to just have the federal loans forgiven would make a huge difference in those major life steps like I talked about. I think it's possible; it's something that a lot of people across the country would fight for and vote for. Biden had a plan — well, we thought he had a good plan for a while, unfortunately. But I think it's definitely something that it would be a big step for the U.S., especially because that is one of the things about the U.S. — the opportunity for education — so you would think they would want to make it easier and more accessible for everyone to go to school and get and education.
Do you feel your college degree has been worth the burden of student loans? Why or why not?
Yes, I definitely do. I think making the decision to go to a state school made it worth it. If I had stayed at the private school I started at and had to continue taking out private loans, it definitely would not have been worth it. I learned the hard way that you can get a degree from anywhere and it will still be the same degree. I went to WestConn and had a great experience; it got me to where I am now. where I am working now, and the job that I wanted so I definitely think it was worth it
Mansfield
Robyn Johansen, 37
Occupation: Demand Planning Forecaster — School: Central Connecticut State University
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Debt: Johansen owes $24,000 in student loans, she said.
How did the COVID-19 student debt payment pause affect your life? With payments restarting, do you anticipate experiencing any changes in your lifestyle?
The COVID-19 student debt payment pause has been incredibly beneficial. I did not take advantage of continuing to pay while they were paused, which helped pad our (family's) savings account and subsequently helped us save to purchase a house last year. With payments restarting, I don't see any immediate changes in my lifestyle. I am currently pursuing my MBA, so my loans will continue to be paused while I am finishing that degree. I am fortunate enough that my company is paying for my degree. I don't anticipate having to worry about starting to repay my student loans until the end of 2025. I have joked that I'll continue pursuing degrees to pause the loans indefinitely. Or until legislation is passed reducing or eliminating debt.
Do you still believe that through policy, debt forgiveness is possible? If so, why?
In a perfect world, I think debt forgiveness is possible. That would require both sides of the aisle to put aside the rhetoric and vitriol to look at the issue holistically. Do I think it's possible right now? In this political climate? Probably not.
Do you feel your college degree has been worth the burden of student loans? Why or why not?
In the grand scheme of things, unfortunately, yes I do think it's been worth the burden of student loans. Since most employers require at least a bachelor's degree, it has been beneficial to me personally as I am making enough money per year to help take care of my family, maintain a house, own a car and take a modest vacation each year. I don't think I would be able to do any of those things with a job that pays less for not having a degree. Is it what I went to school for? Absolutely not. That's another answer for another story.
North Haven
Trevor Keyes, 30
Occupation: Master Control Operator — School: Southern Connecticut State University
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Debt: Keyes did not share how much he owes in student loans.
How did the COVID-19 student debt payment pause affect your life? With payments restarting, do you anticipate experiencing any changes in your lifestyle?
Honestly, shockingly, it didn't affect me at all. I was still paying off all my payments. I didn't stop doing it. I just continued to pay them off even though we had we gone through the pandemic.
I was always paying them off. I got it from my mother. My mother said to do it. So I guess you've got to listen to your mother when she says.
Do you still believe that through policy, debt forgiveness is possible? If so, why?
Honestly, we all hope for it. Sadly, I don't ever see it. It would be a dream for us and help give a future for all of us.
But until our higher-ups figure their stuff out, I just don't know, we can only hope.
Do you feel your college degree has been worth the burden of student loans and why or why not?
I'm still looking for my ultimate goal, to get where I want to be. Going to school is the way to go. But sometimes it's a difficult road. I'm still hoping that I can get to where I want to be. But going to college, it helps. It can't hurt. It always helps.
But you just have to keep working hard at it. Nowadays you think, "Oh, I just got a college degree. I could just get a job." Well, you've also got to work hard and you have to show how dedicated you truly are.
Norwalk
Nikita Singh, 29
Occupation: Software Engineer — School: Johns Hopkins University
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Debt: Singh owes $110,000 in student loans, she said.
How did the COVID-19 student debt payment pause affect your life? With payments restarting, do you anticipate experiencing any changes in your lifestyle?
With the federal student debt payment pause, I was able to refocus that money to my private student loans and eventually qualify to consolidate them for a much better rate. At this point, I've paid down a good chunk of those loans, which feels great because they are still more expensive over time. With the federal loan payments restarting, I know I don't want to change the momentum I have on my private loan payments — it's felt so good to get control of that debt. I think I'll only need to cut down on leisure spending, like eating out, to cover the federal payments, which I feel very fortunate about because I know others will have to make much larger changes.
Do you still believe that through policy, debt forgiveness is possible? If so, why?
Not at all. The issue is way too politicized now. I can only hope that the media around student loans now helps future 18-year-olds make better, more thoughtful money decisions when they enter high education.
Do you feel your college degree has been worth the burden of student loans and why or why not?
This is a tough question for me. I studied computer science in college but also minored in environmental science. I spent a lot of my time as an environmental activist on campus and wanted to work in that field. But when I graduated and realized (with) the enormity of my student loans, I had to find a job that could cover my monthly payments, and activist work wouldn't cut it. I've been working as a software engineer now simply to pay back my loans. I know I'm lucky that my degree has a notoriously high earning potential and cushy work-life balance. But it feels wrong that my debt is deciding my life and career. Some might call it "living in the real world," but no one warns you about that when you sign that loan at 18.
Correction: This story has been updated to include how much Singh said she owes in both private and federal student loans.
Hamden
Phina Tuttle, 63
Occupation: Medical Technologist — School: Quinnipiac University
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Debt: Tuttle did not share how much much she owes in student loans.
How did the COVID-19 student debt payment pause affect your life? With payments restarting, do you anticipate experiencing any changes in your lifestyle?
COVID-19 debt payments were great since it went to forbearance, and it was 0 percent interest, and since I have (a) Parent PLUS loan, it gave me the opportunity to still make payments. With student loans restarting, and because we do so much overtime, we (Tuttle and her husband) did not qualify for IDR (Income-Driven Repayment). Therefore, we will be paying quite a bit, and it will change our lifestyle, i.e. budgeting and no more Grubhub or Uber eats orders.
Do you still believe that through policy, debt forgiveness is possible? If so, why?
No. At this point, I don't believe that debt forgiveness will (be) possible for Parent PLUS loans or student loans. My husband works for USPS and was able to apply for PSLF (Public Service Loan Forgiveness), but we would need to make 120 payments before it might, or could, be applicable to us. Policies are changing every day and are making students and parents more anxious every day.
Do you feel your college degree has been worth the burden of student loans? Why or why not?
Yes, my degree was worth (it) since I am a medical technologist, and during COVID, we were not allowed to take any time off. I have worked as a medical technologist for over 35 years and love my job.
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