Student Loan Debt Leads Student To Sell AD Space On Graduation Cap

Student loans loom over many this time of year, what with the spring semester in full swing for many college students, and many of them thinking of graduation in only a few short months. With the joys of graduating with your hard-earned degree, many students also have the unwelcome feeling of doom knowing that they will soon have to start paying off their student loan debt.

Alex Benda, 22, is one of those students. He says that he can’t focus on the joys of his accomplishments because all he can see are dollar signs — $30,000 in student loan debt that he will have to pay off in the coming years.

“It’s scary to think I’m about to go out into this economy and try to find a job and have all this debt I’ll have to start paying,” said Benda, 22, of St. Clair, Mich. “I started thinking, ‘Do I have anything available I could sell?'”

Most college students don’t have all that much to their names, so selling stuff wouldn’t really be enough to help put a major dent in any student loans. So Benda started thinking outside of the box. USA Today stated that Benda now has hopes to cash in on his graduation cap. What good could his cap do? Bend is hoping to sell ad space on his graduation cap for anyone willing to buy them.

According to The Washington Times, Benda is hoping to put a dent in his $30,000 student loans by selling 1-inch by 1-inch squares for $300 a piece. There is a total of 10 spaces available, so if the senior can manage to sell each one for $300, then he should average about $3,000.00 total.

“I aspire to be an entrepreneur and love out-of-the-box thinking to solve everyday problems,” Benda said. “I realized that I would have the eyes of every graduating student and their families on me as I walked across the stage to accept my diploma.”

Reports state that with his ongoing efforts, Benda has already raised $1,200 from the sales. As of now, he says he won’t turn down ad space unless its rude or offensive. Of course, he doesn’t mind getting a little creative with the space. He told USA Today: “There’s a button in the middle, so I don’t know how that will work with that square, but we’ll make it work if someone buys it. If you want to buy four of them and put a little figurine up there on my hat, I’m fine with it.”

[Image via Shutterstock/zimmytws]