Agawam, MA – Wednesday, March 09, 2011 -- A number of significant financial challenges await graduates in the Class of 2011, including mounting student loan debt and stubborn levels of unemployment. College tuition has increased by a staggering 439% since the 1980s, leaving today’s graduates with an average of $24,000 in loans. That debt forces almost 85% of graduates to move back home while they try to find work.  The current unemployment rate for graduates is at an all-time high of 10.8%, with bachelor degree students among those most affected. 

Cambridge’s “Life After Graduation” series deals with two of the biggest obstacles facing graduates – making a financial plan to meet your new obligations, and choosing a suitable student loan repayment plan. The series was written and hosted by Tiffany Santilli, a Western New England College student graduating this year.  Ms. Santilli uses her own circumstances to educate her fellow students about the tough choices they’ll need to make after graduation.

“The rising costs of education, housing, and basic necessities puts a tremendous amount of financial pressure on graduates at a time when their income is limited, if it exists at all,” notes Ms. Santilli. “All the choices we have to make can be confusing, especially if you haven’t researched your options and don’t have a plan.”

Part One of the series, Post-Graduation Financial Plan, is currently available at Cambridge Credit Counseling’s YouTube page (http://www.youtube.com/user/CambridgeCredit), and Part Two, Student Loan Repayment Options, will be released at the end of March.    

ABOUT CAMBRIDGE CREDIT COUNSELING CORP. 
Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp. is a professional housing and debt counseling agency dedicated to educating young adults on the importance of sound financial management, and to providing financially distressed Americans with education and debt management services appropriate to their needs. Visit Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp. online at http://www.cambridgecredit.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Thomas Fox

Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp.

413.821.6919

tfox@cambridgecredit.org