An ALICE has $250,000 in student loan debt and left teaching for a stable job: 'There are many teaching college who are hungry and can't go to the doctor'

• Murphy Pizza, burdened by $250,000 in student loans, left academia due to low and inconsistent pay.
• Pizza is an ALICE — asset-limited, income-constrained, and employed.

Murphy Pizza has accepted that she may never pay off her student loans. But she's anxious about her other expenses, like credit card bills and rent.

The 51-year-old has about $250,000 in student loan debt. She completed her doctorate degree in 2009 and worked for over a decade as an adjunct professor at various colleges in the Twin Cities, where she lives. The cost of her education is something she has "learned to live with," she said.

"That's the least of my worries, the student loan debt," she said. "It's the other stuff from day to day that I have to negotiate: credit card debt, medical expenses, or just rent bills."

She is what economists call an ALICE — asset-limited, income-constrained, and employed. Like 29% of US households, Pizza lives paycheck to paycheck, but her income is too high for most government assistance, per Census Bureau data and cost-of-living estimates analyzed by the nonprofit United Way. This compares to 13% of Americans who live at or below the federal poverty line, which is $15,060 for an individual.

Teachers and adjunct professors are especially vulnerable to being ALICEs. Sixty percent of adjunct professors make less than $50,000 a year, despite most of them holding at least a master's degree, according to a 2022 report by The American Federation of Teachers that surveyed 1,900 adjunct professors across the US.

"There are many teaching college who are hungry and can't go to the doctor," Pizza said in an email to Business Insider.

Pizza could make about $45,000 a year when she taught classes, but she had no steady income over the summer or winter breaks. She also didn't have health insurance and "never went to the doctor," she said.

If there weren't enough students enrolled in her courses — which focused on history, anthropology, and religion — Pizza was often dropped from her fall or spring position with minimal notice. She had to work side hustles to support herself: teaching at three schools simultaneously, scoring exams online, and more. At one point, she was working five jobs to afford housing, food, healthcare, and her student loan payments. She once had to declare bankruptcy because she couldn't take on a sixth job.

Adjunct professors often feel like "over-educated gig workers," she said.

And, after thirteen years, she quit teaching because it was unsustainable for her finances.

Pizza left her adjunct role for less pay, but it's worth the stability

When Pizza left academia, she took a customer service job at a tech nonprofit making $30,467 a year, according to documents reviewed by BI. She still lives on a tight budget, but she is grateful for the security of a 9-to-5.

Early in her academic career, she thought she could get her degrees, earn a full-time professor salary, and maybe join the steady tenure track. She's been trying to get a better-paying job for 15 years, but she said the positions aren't available — even with a Ph.D.

Her nonprofit job has offered some relief.

"I'm making less money, but I know when I show up at work now, five days a week, there will be a paycheck," she said. "That's done a lot for my own sense of self."

Shortly after starting the job, she needed surgery. She was relieved to have consistent health insurance for the first time in her adult life, but couldn't afford out-of-pocket medical expenses. Her best friend set up a GoFundMe to help with the costs not covered by insurance.

Pizza also lives alone in her St. Paul apartment and gets discounted rent because she's been in the building for about 20 years. She said her income is currently too high for SNAP, and her friends will help cover her groceries to make sure she eats.

She's still paying off her student loans, but has been able to enroll in SAVE, President Joe Biden's income-based repayment plan. Pizza pays around $40 a month right now. Still, because of interest, she said her debt total isn't getting any smaller.

Although Pizza is used to transitions, she's not sure what will happen next. Lately, she's been working on some grant-funded anthropological research and archiving, which allows her to continue dissertation work and earn some extra income.

The dream, she said, would be to make all the money she needs from just one job. She also wishes she could build savings.

Pizza said many people living paycheck to paycheck feel lonely and isolated. She is especially grateful for her friends, who have always made sure she has food in her fridge and is able to visit the doctor when she's sick.

Community is "gold," she said.

"If somebody's out there in the same situation that doesn't have friends or community, just figure out a way to reach out," Pizza said. "Because there will be people that will care about you."

Do you live paycheck to paycheck? Are you open to sharing how you afford food, housing, and other expenses? If so, reach out to this reporter at allisonkelly@businessinsider.com.