Exactly. When I went to college I could pay for half the costs working a part time job, my parents paid a small amount and my student loans were small. I paid off the loans within three years. People are now graduating with 10's of thousands in debt and it makes no sense to me. I read an article last month about the percentage of student loan funds that are spent on spring break and it was both surprising and disturbing. At the local sports bar I live by in northern california, I'd say that 5 out of 6 employees have dropped out of college and that was after taking out loans for the first year or two. They are working as bartenders and waitresses to pay for loans even though they dropped out.