Related Posts
Larsen & Toubro Infotech Hello Fishes,
I'm having 4.6 years of experience as .net Fullstack Developer with CCTC 7.8 LPA.
I'm already holding offer of 18 LPA (5%Variable) and now I've received email from HCL for HR discussion.
How much should i ask for HCL??
Newco Tata Consultancy Amazon Amazon Cisco HCL Technologies IBM LatentView Analytics HCL Technology Larsen & Toubro Infotech
Anyone joining in Capgemini today.
any telltale signs of layoffs in tiger?
Additional Posts in Student Loans
New to Fishbowl?
unlock all discussions on Fishbowl.



I was in the same boat just a few years ago. As a third-year interior designer, I started with a salary of around $45,000, which was nothing, when you factor in student loans and living expenses. I’ve had to be really strategic with my budget, and cutting back on almost any non-essentials to make loan payments manageable. I also looked into IDR plans which really helped ease the burden while I was still building my career. Focusing on gaining experience and networking .. that's truly what helped me find opportunities for growth and salary increases.
Not a designer, but was met with some really low salaries fresh out of college. I felt like I had realistic expectations, even those were apparently far off. Bad timing kind of plays a role too. Minimum payments to loans and always look at the options to help at, income driven, save plan, falling behind only means more in the long run.