Some of the generalizations in this thread really are frustrating. Yes, debt isn't always a good thing. Yes, you can get grants and scholarships up to a certain point. Well folks, I did get student loans. It wasn't because I lived foolishly, or because my grades were too poor to get grants (had full scholarships in undergrad). My parents helped with school when they could, but it wasn't realistic for them to support 4 of us in college (2 in med school) at the same time.
Med school tuition at the time I was studying was $24k/year. Living expenses were another $15-20k, even living in a rathole in Baltimore. It didn't seem wise for me to take a full-time job while learning these mountains of information, so loans were the way to go. Military? I would have loved to, but a knee injury and 2 reconstructive surgeries took that option away. Some of my classmates went through school on daddy's dime, and partied much of it away. Those of us who took loans took it seriously, because we knew we'd be paying for it later.
Face it, education is an investment. Pay what you can without debt, but don't let people here steer you away from obtaining an education solely on the basis of avoiding debt. Here's my rebuttal:
Don't be so afraid of student loans that you lose out on an education!
But don't borrow a thing unless you absolutely intend to pay it back.