Graduates can be plagued by 'interest'

Graduation brings young adults into a world filled with new independence. Unfortunately, few of the youth will be truly independent from their parents' pocketbooks.

Many students are returning home after college, placing the burden of room and board back upon their parents. Other young adults living beyond their means are creating debt capable of haunting them financially the rest of their lives.

It is a common temptation as a college student with a newfound taste for freedom to live beyond meager means. As a full time student, working an additional 40 hours each week to cover living expenses is impractical, at best.

With public college tuition rising by double digits, many students will graduate tens of thousands of dollars in debt. But using credit cards to sustain an upscale lifestyle can dampen a young student's financial future.

One thing some students did not learn while in school is the miracle (or curse) of compound interest.

Using a credit card to pay for debts puts a young worker at the mercy of avaricious credit card companies. With no federal limit on interest, credit card companies are able to charge whatever rate suits them after the "low introductory rate."

Graduates also may not realize the value of making more than a minimum payment on debts.

Most minimum payments barely cover the interest of a loan. Meeting the minimum payments often guarantees decades of repayments.

Increased debt loads (or the threat of working in a job lacking a living wage) bring many young graduates back to the once-empty nest.

The modern nuclear family apparently is acquiring a denser electron shell as "boomerangers" return home from college to career hunt without fear of bankruptcy.

Where college used to be an avenue for mind expansion, anthropology and philosophy majors can look forward to asking how a customer would like their potato side dish prepared.

Four-year degrees are often seen as job-training instead of an exploration for knowledge. Those who choose knowledge are placed at a competitve disadvantage.

Even for business-friendly degrees, entry-level jobs in many career fields typically result in wages on par or below what skilled laborers earn, making the first few years out of college a race to the end of a credit-card limit.

Although it requires swallowing some pride, moving back in with parents is quickly proving to be one of the most economically viable options.

Tempting though it is to run up a debt, young graduates must learn to live within their means. Financial balance is the true key to independence.