<prompt> Human: Hi all Im a prospective college student and Ive been told by my parents that I will be having to pay for it all by myself. I was approved for a 150,000 loan at 9 fixed APR that will be cosigned by my parents. As I understand it, 6 months after graduation I will start paying around 1,500 a month for these loans. The only thing that hasnt really been explained to me, and what I would like to understand before I sign, is how manageable this will be after I graduate. I plan on getting a degree in EconomicsInternational Relations. What do I need to do in order to be successful with this amount in debt? Is it manageable? Am I going to regret this?  <response>: As someone with that degree - no, it is absolutely not manageable. First of all, for virtually any job in economicsinternational relations you will absolutely need a graduate degree to land a career position with any money. Some people go from undergrad and get 30-40K annual positions, work for a few years, and then go back to grad school but in todays market it is virtually impossible to be in this field beyond entry level positions without a graduate degree. A graduate degree can be very expensive. Second, look where a job in that career would land you. Assuming youre in the US... Washington, DC my city or NYC. Both very expensive, and very competitive. After being strategic, taking some huge risks working abroad for almost no money, and being lucky I have what is considered a well-paying job for my ageexperience. Paying 1500 a month in loan payments would absolutely cripple my budget, and the budgets of anyone else that I know in Washington. Getting those loans would be a huge mistake. You will never unbury yourself in this field with those loan amounts. 