College Loan Calculator

When deciding on a college to attend, many students must factor in the cost of a college loan. You must consider your projected salary after graduation, the annual interest rate, and how long you’re willing to be in debt. The College Loan Calculator will organize and configure all of your data to create a payment plan and timeframe.

How to use the College Loan Calculator

Download the Excel spreadsheet using the link below. The template already has data in it to help guide you. The top column has your estimated annual salary space. Research the job you intend to do after graduation and input their average salary. Round down if you want an even number.

Skip the next area and go down to the orange bar. Here you will enter your loan benefactor, amount, and interest rate. Make sure these numbers are exact. Next, enter the projected date you will begin paying back your loan. Estimate how long it will take you to pay back your loans (10 years is a safe estimate) and the end date will be automatically generated.

This data will generate all of the math answers for you. The amount of interest earned over your payment period is displayed next to the monthly payment amount that was calculated. Along with the monthly payments, the yearly payment amount was also generated.

At the bottom of the page, the total amount of loan money you will pay (including interest) is shown, along with an estimation of your monthly income.

Tips for using the College Loan Calculator

• The percentage generated at the top shows how much of your estimated annual salary will go to loan payments. Keep this under 8% to allow yourself room.
• If the payments seem too high, extend the amount of years you are giving yourself to pay back the loan. If the interest is too high, scale the years back.
• If you currently have excess income, put it into the spreadsheet to see if it will lower your overall payment. If you can afford to pay back loans earlier, you will lower your interest.

Download the College Loan Calculator

Template courtesy of Microsoft