Recently, I had a post about a discount on tuition for Ontario students.  It got me thinking about my schools day, and how I got through school without going into any debt.

Now, a few disclaimers:

1. I graduated in 1999. So, it’s been a while.
2. I did a B.A. So, while not as cheap as college, it certainly didn’t cost the same as medical school.
3. I didn’t pursue any further education after the B.A. I only have an undergraduate degree. I am the least educated member of my family.

So, how did I get through school without going into debt?

1. I worked during high school. I started babysitting regularly as soon as I was old enough to, and then got a job at Shopper’s Drug Mart, and later on at McDonald’s. I was absolutely appalled when my first year tuition bill arrived – it was as much as I’d saved up while working at McDonald’s! I didn’t always enjoy working there, so I was determined not to waste my money partying away my first year and flunking out.
2. I got an entrance scholarship. If I’d kept my high school average (which was pretty much impossible to do once I reached university), I could have kept it, but it helped defray my first year costs, which was great.
3. My parents chipped in. Generally, they covered living expenses (with the idea that they’d be covering them anyways if I was living at home), while I covered tuition. I’m very grateful for this – I think the fact that I had to pay for my tuition made me appreciate my education more, but if I’d had to pay for living expenses as well, I’d have really had to struggle, and probably had to borrow money.
4. I did a co-op program. So, that was 4 months at school, then 4 months at work, then back at school, etc. It was a bit disruptive (I moved 10 times during university!), but it helped me save up money for school, and gave me great world life experience. I highly recommend a program that has co-op or internships. My last co-op job led to my first full time job. It was great not to have to job hunt during my last semester!
5. I inherited money from my grandmother when I was 19. For the most part, I didn’t tough the money – I didn’t need to, and for the most part, I wasn’t a frivolous sort. But in my last year, when I decided I wanted a car, I dipped into that money and bought my oh so practical Chevy Cavalier. Which I promptly scraped the side of less than 6 months after I bought it.

So, as you can see, there were a variety of factors that enabled me to graduate without debt. It was really nice to started my working life without debt, and I’m very grateful to my parents and my grandmother for the financial support they provided. I’ve tried to pass it along, by giving money to my nieces and nephews as well as some friend’s children, to put aside for their education.

Did you graduate with debt? If so, how did you deal with it? If not, how did you manage it?