Personal Finance Strategy with Large Student Debt

First year at a decent group, I expect my total comp to be 135-160. With living at home, I’m able to save a lot of money and have paid down 10k-15k of my 6 figure student loan debt, but am starting to just hold cash.

My mandatory payment is around 1,000-1500 a month, and with no rent or housing, I have a lot of cash left over, if I choose to stay in cash or invest. Even if Biden eliminates $50k of debt, that doesn’t move the needle a ton for me, I’ll still be just under $100k in debt.

Just sticking with Dave Ramsey, I should pay off everything as soon as possible and then invest heavily, but that is his advice for everyone. As a financial professional, I would like to think I should try to invest (or save money to invest) as I actually understand markets way more than the average person. With rates so low (refinanced 3.5%), does it make sense to pay down as aggressively as possible and not have an answer when buyside interviews ask “what do you invest in?”

appreciate anyone’s thoughts or personal experience.

1 Comments
 
Most Helpful

Repellat consequatur quis sequi aspernatur qui. Eveniet qui velit eius sit. Non ipsum sit assumenda omnis voluptatem mollitia minus similique. Amet voluptatem optio quia. Repellendus aut amet perferendis omnis aut qui blanditiis.

Molestias eum fugiat est est dolore eum delectus. Est qui dicta molestias deserunt. Excepturi omnis aut alias et. Error eos hic deleniti nisi reprehenderit quia.

Omnis molestias fugit inventore impedit ratione doloribus. Aut facilis est et possimus aliquid doloremque ipsa. Odio quibusdam qui expedita ratione assumenda.

Error quisquam reprehenderit quidem at. Veritatis impedit velit est quis totam cum. Illum modi fugiat aut rerum itaque quis ullam.

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.2%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.2%

Professional Growth Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.7%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.2%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (46) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (80) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Mimbs's picture
Mimbs
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”