The Illinois College of Optometry Student Blog

At 22 years old and recent college graduates, my friends and I are at the age that we have entered the real world. College loans, grad school, jobs, figuring out where to live, and how to still have a life are all problems in our young lives. It seems that no matter where you go or what you do, you have to spend money. For instance, my friend just asked me if I had any ideas for a date night for him and his new girlfriend because he was already running out of ideas. Besides g

I can say with absolute confidence that I am one of the cheapest most frugal people at ICO. I’m Canadian, so I don’t get those awesome subsidized and unsubsidized loans that most Americans can apply for. I also don’t get the option to defer payment until graduation. I do get something called OSAP. It pays $210 perweek of class… which added up to be between $7,500 and $10,000 each year. Any extra money comes from a line of credit from the bank, or savings, so every extra dolla