Students who are betting on their education to pay off their loans might be bargaining for more than they can afford.

The National Center for Public Reports and Higher Education released a report earlier this year stating that 20 percent of students who take out student loans and drop out of school will be more in debt with their educational loans than students who borrow money and stay in school to finish their studies.

According to the report written by University of Pennsylvania Professors Laura Perna and Lawrence Gladieux, students who finish their university studies and obtain degrees will usually be presented with better career opportunities than someone who did not graduate, and will therefore be more able to pay off student loans.

“Individuals who complete at least a bachelor's degree average substantially higher salaries than individuals who attain lower levels of education,” said Perna. “The analyses in this report also show that they have lower rates of defaulting on their loans.”

SF State’s Director of Financial Aid Barbara Hubler has seen the numbers of students borrowing money for their education increase and estimates that about 50 percent of students receive aid and that 70 percent of them opt to take out student loans.

Perna and Gladieux assessed that students who come from low-income homes, and with families who have very little educational background are usually the ones who end up dropping out of school.

“The analyses suggest that students with low family incomes and/or low parental education may be less knowledgeable about what is required to "succeed" in higher education,” said Perna. “In addition, family income and parental education are correlated with academic preparation.”

Helen Goldsmith, associate dean of the Undergraduate Studies Program at SF State, agrees with Perna and Gladiuex’s findings. Goldsmith said that the high cost of living in San Francisco makes it difficult for students to afford school on top of living expenses, which can change the student’s priorities.

“It’s really hard to put school first when there are so many things to deal with,” said Goldsmith. “We don’t have pots of money available for people to take so they can finish their education. If you don’t have a lot of personal resource and family resources then there is less of a safety net.”

Goldsmith explained that students attend school to improve their education and lifestyle, but are often unprepared to deal with the financial repercussions of obtaining their degrees. She said students take out loans to pay for school and also work part or full-time jobs to pay for living.

“A lot of students get jobs while in college and they will be working in the Gap and get a promotion, and they think that they are getting a lot of money and decide to stop going to school,” said Goldsmith.

Former SF State student Pete Susoev has not been in school since he was 21 years old. His education lasted for almost 3 years and a year before he could graduate, he decided to drop out of school to pursue his interest in filmmaking.

Susoev splits his 45-hour work week between being an audio visual technician at the San Francisco Public Library and a supervisor at the Stonestown YMCA. He shares part of the rent with his girlfriend, but her full-time nursing studies only allows her 15 hours of work a week, which barely contributes to their $800 monthly rent.

“I’m pretty much ¾ of our income,” said Susoev. “We are paying more than we can really afford right now because between (student) loans, credit card debts, bills, and insurance we accumulatively pay more than $2,000 a month.”

Susoev, who is planning on taking out more student loans to return to school next Fall, regrets leaving school before completing his bachelor’s in broadcasting, but understands that in order to complete his education he will have to borrow more money.

“Ideally I probably would have a better job, because regardless of what you graduate with there’s someone out there willing to give you a job because you have a degree, so technically I would be able to go beyond what I do right now,” he said. “There’s also that feeling of completion, and I’m not looking forward to being 30 and a senior.”