Student loan debt has become the norm instead of the exception when it comes to college graduates.

The figures may surprise you:

According to the Project on Student Debt, 71 percent of students who graduated in 2012 had student loan debt, with an average debt of $29,400.

That’s nearly 3 out of every 4 students graduating with debt average to the price of a new car.

With a struggling job market and increasing house prices, prospects aren’t looking good for graduates.

One student claims that she is unable to make the payments immediately on one of her loans and qualifies for a deferment.

However, the loan accumulates $200 per month—in interest. If she defers for one year, she will owe thousands in interest alone, and paying that down still won’t go towards paying down the loan.

Many students are in similar situations where they must “scrape by” financially, paying more towards debt per month than they take home. Debt is no longer a $100/mo expense like a cellphone bill. It has become the largest expense in the lives of many young people with little hope to pay it back anytime soon.