SoFi Blog

Last month, we hosted a SoFi member event in Los Angeles with special guest Johanna Maska, who shared details of her impressive career, including serving as Director of Press Advance for the Obama administration and Vice President of Marketing for the Los Angeles Times.

As someone who knows more than just a few things about transitioning big, Ms. Maska was the perfect guest speaker for our members, whose career paths are anything but traditional. Familiar with good and bad twists and turns, and some really wild rides, our members were wholly tuned in as she told her stories.

Name: Nicole Gaines                                                                                                     

Locale: Nashville, TN                                                                                                    

Alma Maters: UC Chattanooga & Cumberland University                                                

By Day: Registered Nurse at Vanderbilt Medical Center                                                                                               

SoFi Member Since: 2015                                                                                             

Approximate SoFi Loan: $37,000                                                                                    

SoFi Savings: ~$500/month

Nicole Gaines is a single mother, full-time nurse, dedicated daughter, community volunteer, and bikini contest competitor. Needless to say, she is the definition of success. Nicole shares that her secret is in making it a priority to take care of herself in order to take care of others.

Buying your first home is one of those irreplaceable, once-in-a-lifetime experiences. It’s also incredibly overwhelming. So we thought, why not kick things off over happy hour?

Name: Melissa Stanton

Locale: Norfolk, VA

Alma Maters: Michigan State University and Eastern Virginia Medical School

By Day: Physician’s Assistant

By Night: Marketing, Promotions, Accounting, Retail

SoFi Member Since: 2015

SoFi Savings: ~$12,600 on a 7 Year Student Loan Refi

For young professionals today, there’s been a “good news, bad news” financial scenario developing for a while now.

Good news first: The unemployment rate for college grads, ages 22-27, is finally on the decline. Recent data from the New York Fed outlines a 7.1 percent unemployment rate in March 2011 and a 4.9 percent in 2015.

The bad news? Despite the fact that there are more jobs available for younger workers, widespread wage stagnation and decline has made it hard for 20- and 30-somethings to play financial catch up. Add to that a record volume of student loan debt, and you’ve got an entire generation suffering from a generational “wealth gap.”