<prompt> Human: Im a teacher who is working on a budget simulator for my students. Im using Google Sheets to do the calculations. I want part of their budgets to include realistic student loan amounts.It seems to me that the informationand the formula Im using causes their student loans to unrealistically expensive.For my spreadsheet I used a general interest formula, made the period to pay off the loans 120 months, and gave them an interest rate of 4.29.For example, using information from I found that the annual tuition for UNC Charlotte is 19,903 to attend. That site also reports that the average aid that a student receives per year is 6,390. Based off of that, that gives them over 73,000 in debt and their student loan each month is 751.That cant be right. What am I doing wrong?If anyone wants to look a the spreadsheet I created I can DM them a link. Assistant: Yes, 73,000 for 120 months at 4.29 would be roughly 751month. You would pay about 16,900 in interest over the life of the loan as well.Human: Forgive my lack of knowledge here, I went to school on scholarship. Is that normal? How could anyone afford that? Assistant: Very normal. Most people cant afford it. That is why it is such a problem in society now days. I have heard many people that have graduated with 200k in debt. Just crazy. It is very important that people take out as little as possible. I know it is hard to pass the easy money, but it is so much better for them in the long run.Human: That overall cost includes over 11,000 in room and board. When people get student loans do they normally borrow enough to cover that for their entire college career?  <response>: Yep. The trick is to study in a field where you make enough income in your first job to pay off the loans early. A room in a shared house, including utilities and stuff, is often upwards of 400-500, through 9 months of school is 3600-4500 and thats if youre lucky enough to find good roommates who dont impair your ability to do well in school. Student probably wont have a car so theyre limited to supermarkets within walkingbikingtransit distance, which often have higher prices, so 200-300 per month on groceries isnt surprising. Of course if you stay in the dorms and eat in the dining halls its a lot more -- look up a few in-state universities housing and dining prices for your simulation. 