“I wish I had thought about this sooner.” Student loan strategy isn’t something you figure out after graduation, it’s something you plan before you ever choose a program. There are only a few real paths with student loans: • Standard or accelerated payoff • Public Service Loan Forgiveness (tax-free, with a qualifying employer) • Taxable loan forgiveness (forgiven later, but taxed as income) Each option comes with long-term consequences, and the “wrong” one can cost you years and hundreds of thou