Student athlete Adam Wise has control over athletics and academics in his life, but less so with paying for college.
Editor's Note: This article is a part of the Degrees of Debt series. It explores one student's story, and how they are dealing with the rising cost of higher education.
Adam Wise, a freshman cross-country runner at Ohio University, has control over many things in his life, such as achieving success in facing the athletic and academic challenges placed before him.
Athletically, his goal is to be named first-team All-Mid-American Conference before he graduates.
Academically, he hopes to get into a physical therapy graduate school after his undergraduate studies.
“I’m taking my academics more seriously in college and running more seriously too, so an increased focus on both is harder,” said Wise, who was unable to compete this year due to a stress fracture in his left leg. “Sometimes, it feels like there’s not enough time, but you find time.”
However, he has little control over paying for that time at OU.
Wise has a cross country athletic scholarship that covers 25 percent of the cost of attendance. Wise is from Lancaster, Ohio and pays in-state tuition, which, when combined with room and board, totaled roughly $22,000 for the 2014–15 academic year, according to a previous Post report.
“I also have some academic scholarships, but even with the both of those, it doesn’t cover my full cost to go here,” he said.
Wise said he received $4,000 to $5,000 in academic scholarships, in addition to several small private scholarships. He also received a loan deal after filing his FAFSA, which helped, but still didn’t cover everything.
Because of this, Wise had to take out a private loan this semester that was a “relatively small” amount.
“It’s concerning,” he said. “As of right now, it’s not looking to be a major problem, but preferably I wouldn’t have as much (debt) as I do.”
He said he hopes to not take out any private loans in the future, though will still have to use federal loans to pay for college in addition to making extra efforts to help reduce potential debt.
“I’m trying to get good grades, trying to take a step in that direction,” he said. “I’m hoping to get a job this summer to hopefully pay for part of it, and keep the scholarships I have to minimize the number of loans I need to take out.”
@AlxMeyer
am095013@ohio.edu
