Yeah, I agree that this woman made some pretty stupid decisions, I mean I wouldn't exactly get a home loan to buy a house unless I knew I would be able to pay it off! The difference though is that you probably wouldn't enter into a home loan situation unless you already had a job -- going to university is supposed to be the groundwork to get you a job. There's a much higher uncertainty there, so much bigger risk. But I mean I always think it's a good idea to have a backup plan -- I did a major in computer science too, and worked in industry as a programmer, and though I'm pretty poor (out of practice) at it and don't particularly enjoy it, I can always do it if I "get stuck". :)