I went to a small but somewhat expensive private college while working for one year. I had to take out a student loan and a private loan to cover tuition. Realized it was way too expensive and not sustainable after one year. Dropped out of college for two years and worked full time paying down my loan. Went back to a much cheaper local university and kept working, had finally decided what to major in (Comp Sci) and continued working while going to classes. Managed to get my private loan paid off on my own. When I graduated after four more years, all I had was about $30k in government FAFSA loans.

My Dad’s parents had paid for his college tuition, he partied too hard and had dropped out. He didn’t want my sister and I to do the same so he refused to help us pay for anything while we were in college. BUT if we made it through and graduated, he’d pay us back. Since I graduated (first in my family to get their bachelor’s), my dad kept his end of the deal and paid off my student loans.

I paid off my car while in college, so now I’m debt free until I one day buy a house.