How to Quickly Pay Off Music School Student Loans

This post was originally published on the Plucky Violin Teacher Blog on January 18, 2016 so links and resources may not be current.

How I Paid off $30,000 in Student Debt in Two Years…

I spent my high school years preparing for college auditions. Getting into an amazing music school was my number one priority and I spent countless hours researching schools and practicing my audition material. I can still remember the moment I opened the envelope from Indiana University. I was teaching one of my violin students when my mom came rushing in with the envelope. I was ecstatic. While I did get some scholarship money, it was not enough to really cover the out-of-state tuition. No matter, I got into my dream school and I was determined to make it work.

During my undergraduate degree I worked as much as I could. I did a work-study in the music library, taught violin, babysat, and became an advisor for new freshmen. Still, at the end of my degree I had a little over $30,000 in debt. Ouch.

I married my high school sweet heart a few years after graduation and we began the business of starting our life together. On reviewing our finances it was clear that something had to be done. We were both in school full time and working at Subway until we could find more lucrative employment.

Long story short, we paid off that $30,000 just two months after I graduated with my Master’s. Here’s how we did it.

1. We got smart and made a plan. The first thing we did was make a plan. We read Dave Ramsey’s book, The Total Money Makeover. (Best wedding gift ever.) We got on a written budget, we made debt payment goals. We got intense.

2. We increased our earning potential. I got busy about finding more students, which eventually allowed me to quit the Subway job. (Man, I was sick of that smell.) Bruce had also recently found a new job at the University’s hospital, so he began earning more money as well.

3. We pursued other income streams. I was fortunate enough to be awarded a Teaching Assistantship in my Master’s that had a stipend and scholarship for half tuition. This was a lifesaver, though not free—it required many hours of work. After Bruce had worked at the hospital for six months, we were eligible to receive a half tuition waiver from the University that covered the rest of my tuition. We were tuition free! (Bruce’s tuition was always completely covered because he’s a smarty-pants.)

4. We cut everything that wasn’t absolutely essential. We didn’t go out to eat. We didn’t go to movies. We splurged on a Netflix membership and worked so much we didn’t have time for much else honestly.  We took public transportation as much as possible and drove a beater car.  (I had to roll start this car, people.  Try and imagine me roll starting this beat up Saturn in flat parking lots.  Yikes.)

5. We got lucky. We worked our butts off, but sometimes we just got lucky. An older couple asked us to house-sit for them while they were out of the country on a church mission for 18 months, so we basically paid utilities and $250 a month in rent for a nice house in a nice neighborhood. It was the perfect place for teaching. Our next apartment was a teeny studio, but it was only $450 a month. A steal.  It was so small, it had a murphy bed that pulled down from the wall.  (I taught in my parents’ basement when we lived in the studio apartment.)

It was an amazing feeling to be debt-free. A huge accomplishment. It took hard work and sacrifice, but it was 100% worth it. You can do it too! I highly recommend reading The Total Money Makeover, it really was instrumental in our success. I read it over and over during those years. It was our financial bible. (Sacrilegious?) David Cutler also talks about financial independence in his book, The Savvy Music Teacher. The Savvy Music Teacher is the January Book Club Pick, and it has some fantastic information about managing your studio finances.

​Did or do you have music school debt? How do you plan to pay it off? If you’ve already paid off your loans, what are your best tips?