While you are in college, you will experience many new things. One of the best parts of college is learning about different areas of life than you may have been exposed to before. Many people find their lifelong passions in college, and transform those passions into successful careers.

But what if your passion is philanthropic in nature? This can make a career difficult. After all, you probably have tens of thousands of dollars in student loans, and founding a charity may not be the profit center that it appears on many reality shows today. Three to six months after you graduate, a little coupon book will appear in the mail -- and you better be prepared to start repaying your student loan debt.

Fortunately, you may be able to find a solution.

Changing careers can be a very exciting time. The prospect of learning something new that you are confident you will love is very exhilerating. You are full of hopes and dreams -- often not only about the joy you will find in your new profession but about the new, increased income that you will be making.

Often the dreams of this new profit-center based around you can make student loans sound like an awfully good idea. After all, the sooner you get done learning your new field, the sooner you can get started earning the big bucks, right? Not necessarily.

Unfortunately, you need to take a very close look at your career change before you decide if student loans are appropriate. Here are some things to consider:

*How is the job market in your field?

If you have been in the work force for a while, you may be starting to realize that you miscalculated when you planned your career. For some people, they lose interest in the field that they graduated in. For others, they discover an unforeseen passion for a new area of work and study. Others simply discover that the job market in their arena is too thin to survive.

Any of these issues can lead you to decide to make a career change. However, if you are still paying off student loans from your first time in college, you may be hesitant to return to school. It can impact your work schedule, and prevent you from working as many hours as you were before. It may even require that you take out more student loans.