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kenzie


Chanel

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grad school disappointment
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I recently got accepted into grad school and into the exact program that I wanted. YAY!

However...

In applying for loans and financial aid, I have discovered that I am not eligible for anything- either because I maxed out government aid for undergrad and/or make too much money to get more for grad school. I can't get a private loan because I have too much loan debt from financing my undergraduate education on my own with very little help (my mom helped when she could, but most of the burden was mine). I did a tally recently and my student loan payments for government and private combined are over $1000/month, so you can imagine how much debt I have from this. I have beenpaying everything on time since I had to start my repayments, as well as all of my other credit cards (I have very few, only about $1000 total in credit card debt, which will be paid off in a few months).But despite all of this, my debt/income ratio is seriously skewed, making getting a loan difficult.

However, without any government loans or private loans for grad school, I can't go. I'm hugely disappointed and Im not sure what to do. I'm going to try to get a second job and work that as much as I can in order to pay off some of my undergrad debt and save money, so maybe Ill be able to get a private loan. But in the interim, grad school (and my life after grad school) is all on hold, which really, really sucks.

My employer will reimburse up to 80%, but I still don't have the financial means (thanks to those undergrad payments kicking my ass) to pay the other 20%, not to mention the fact that I need a new laptop (a Mac) with all of the up-to-date Adobe software and of course, transportation/gas money (the school is about an hour away from where I live).

SO keeps saying that 'we'll work it out somehow' but I'm not sure how that's going to be unless we win the lottery or get a windfall ASAP. The only other option may be to be to get SO or my mom to co-sign a loan, but SO is trying to buy a house, so I don't know if he'll want to incur any other debt like that at the moment. He has zero debt otherwise, though.

Does anyone have any other resources that they know of for funding grad school or any other words of wisdom?

*Edited for punctuation issues. Not sure where all of my apostrophes disappeared to...





-- Edited by kenzie at 18:03, 2007-08-29

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jj


Kate Spade

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Did you talk to the school's financial aid office about scholarships?? I work at a university and I am shocked at how many are available, how poorly they advertise their availability to students and how many go unused every year. It's disgusting.

Also, many are merit based, so it is possible to get one without demonstrating financial need. I would at least look into it and maybe try to plan an in-person visit (where they may be more helpful).

It's too bad the school is so far away, because a part time job there might entitle you to a tuition break.

That's all I've got - I hope it helps :/

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ILoveChoo


Hermes

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ooh, thats tricky.

Your employer will reimburse you the 80% though, so yu'll have that to put toward your next semester, right? Maybe you could get a loan just enough to cover this semester, then use the reimburement money for next semsester (somehow come up with the other 20%)...and keep bumping it up like that? In the end, you'd only have to pay off 1 semesters worth of loan.

Or, maybe your mom can take out or co-sign a personal loan, and you could make the payments?

can you bring tuition costs down by attending only part time- take 2 classes a semester or whatever and just take longer to finish the degree?

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kenzie


Chanel

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ILoveChoo wrote:
can you bring tuition costs down by attending only part time- take 2 classes a semester or whatever and just take longer to finish the degree?

I plan to attend part-time- 6 credits a semester for spring, summer and fall will have me finished in spring '10.

As for the employer reimbursement 80/20 thing- I tried to get a loan for just 20% and it didn't work. Maybe a co-signer would work for that. I plan to make all of the loan payments, so I just need a co-signer to sign. My mom co-signed a few things for me before and I've always paid them.

jj, I haven't talked to the school's financial aid office yet, but I plan to do so. Maybe they'll have something.

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blubirde


Chanel

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I agree with talking to the financial aid office. They helped me through some tough spots during law school when I thought I couldn't get any loans. If all else fails, I'd definitely get a co-sign, although I'd suggest your mother before your SO, just to be on the safe side.

This sucks but I can't imagine the financial aid office can't help you come up with some sort of solution, especially if you have a co-signer available.

Don't give up - money is just money no matter how hard it is to come by.

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cahabo


Kate Spade

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All the ideas I had have already been mentioned. Scholarships and a co-signed loan are definitely something to look into. I hope you get the money you need for school.

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halleybird


Hermes

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Everyone had great ideas. I found that a lot of "middle Americans" fall through the cracks for financial aid. I remember missing out on a lot in college because my parents made too much money (which was true, they just weren't giving any to me!). Good luck!

Is this the only school that offers what you want?

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kenzie


Chanel

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halleybird wrote:

Everyone had great ideas. I found that a lot of "middle Americans" fall through the cracks for financial aid. I remember missing out on a lot in college because my parents made too much money (which was true, they just weren't giving any to me!). Good luck!

Is this the only school that offers what you want?


Agreed. I missed out on a lot as well (studying abroad, etc). I feel like the same thing is going to happen with grad school. Just because I make x-dollar amount per year doesn't mean that I have that much disposable income!

And, yes, this is the only program like it in the entire country- trust me I've done exhaustive research. And fortunately, it's close enough for me to commute there once or twice a week. The cost of the school is actually pretty reasonable for grad school, but that still doesn't mean that I have all that extra money laying around to pay for it.

 



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NCshopper


Hermes

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Everyone's had great ideas so far. I just wanted to say good luck to you on all this. You must feel incredibly frustrated right now, but you'll find a way to make this work. smile.gif

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