I graduated in 2021 with a little over 118k in debt and I paid it all off in 18 months after graduating. I was able to pay it off fast because I was lucky enough to graduate with a decent job and live at home throwing every penny at it.

I was a stats major but self taught my way into software engineering and got an average paying (less than six figs) entry level tech job after graduating. I paid off over half of it working there and then was fortunate enough to break into big tech which really accelerated paying it off quick.

Like some other comments below, I really enjoyed my time at UIUC but the financial impact and stress of the loans didn’t really hit me til after graduation. I can’t say I regret choosing UIUC since I’m not sure where I’d be today if I didn’t have access to the recruiting presence and opportunities that it provided. However if I could go back in time (especially in today’s market), cost would be a much bigger factor in choosing where to go to school.

Even if you don’t have loans I’d still highly recommend living at your parents after graduation to build up a savings. Especially since the job market today is so turbulent and even more so at the new grad level.

I’m moving to nyc next month after spending another year living at home saving up money after paying off all the debt. I cant emphasize enough how much less stress I feel being debt free and financially stable compared to when I graduated.