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Post Info TOPIC: Grad-school scholarships/financial aid
halleybird


Hermes

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So, getting my master's is going to cost about $10k in tuition. I realize that's quite cheap, comparitively speaking, but it's also $10k more than I have. I know a lot of you are in grad school -- how easy is it to get scholarships or grants? Do you have to be in desperate need to get one, or just semi-poor like me? Any tips or ideas?


If I get in, I will obviously start with my department, but are there any good outside resources as well? I am clueless about all this, because the state paid my undergrad tuition & I never even paid attention to getting outside financial aid.


Oh, and I would be doing this part-time as part of the college's distance-learning program, so I can't do any research assistantships or TA programs. I would really like to avoid doing a loan, since I am already up to my ears in other loans. 


Thanks in advance 



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jen


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Your school doesn't pay for tuition?

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halleybird


Hermes

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jen wrote:

Your school doesn't pay for tuition?
My college gave an automatic tuition waiver to HS seniors in the top 5% of their class who also met a minimun SAT requirement and had a number of extracurriculars. So I didn't pay any tuition -- I just had to maintain a 3.2 GPA or something like that.  (They have since changed the rules, though, and I think they now give the waivers based on the stupid exit exam that all HS students have to take in this state.)

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jen


Kate Spade

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Ahhh, so now you cannot get any more $ towards school? Sorry, my Dad handles the money stuff, I don't know too much about it. I can tell you that I did get some finacial aid towards my school but hardly any.  I'd say my family is upper middle class and we got money so you should be able to as well. Just don't count on a lot!


It sucks-if you're poor you get scholarships, if you're rich you can pay for it with no problem, and if you're in the middle you're sol! I worked in the guidence center at my high school and applied to EVERY scholarship that came through that door and did not get one! It sucks.  Kids with less money then me who didn't know their ass from their head got money and I didn't.



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lsubatgirl


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I'm not sure on the Financial aid side of things either since my state paid for my undergraduate and I worked and paid for grad school.  That said I do know a lot of employers will pay for some or all of your continuing education such as a masters degree if it relates to your current job because they get tax breaks for it.  I would definetly check with your school system to see if they do anything like that. 


I do agree with jen's assessment on the middle class getting screwed.  It sucks!!



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honey


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i'm not 100% sure about all this (but i know i'll learn soon, since i'm in the process). scholarships & grants are based solely on the criteria the sponsor chooses, so as long as you meet the criteria your set. in boston (where i lived when i started undergrad) the local library had a database of scholarships available, so maybe start there.


also i just wanted to add, the process sucks all around if you're poor, rich, or middle class. when i went to college i got a ton of aid (the decision was based solely on my mom's income) but it was still stuff. b/c if you don't have a lot to begin with, even if they ask you to pay a minimal amount it's still a lot of money. and even for the rich paying $30K plus a year is still a lot. not that they can't afford it, but it's not a small chunk of change.



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halleybird


Hermes

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thanks guys...I will keep you posted if I discover anything new.

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poptart


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I am not super-knowledgeable about this, simply b/c I never won a single scholarship that I applied for, but I did apply for many. Resources I would suggest include:



  • The admissions department of the school to which you're applying

  • The academic department (as you already mentioned)

  • The HR department of your state department of education (since you are a teacher, there may be special scholarships available for teachers pursuing their master's degrees in a particular field, etc.)

  • Associations for teachers (you teach Eng/Lang Arts, right? I'm thinking NCTE, but you probably have a state association) may also have scholarship programs

  • Local libraries for a list of national scholarships - I think they're published in this blue book/binder thing, but this is a very vague recollection.

Each time you talk to someone, I'd ask them if they have other ideas of places you can look. I think your best bet will be scholarships designed for teachers, b/c most general scholarships are for people get their undergrad degrees, from what I know. HTH



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halleybird


Hermes

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thanks, Lisa -- I hadn't even thought of the educational associations I belong to. Do you think it matters that I am getting a masters in English, though (not education)? I guess I won't tell them that part of the reason I am getting my master's is to get out of the K-12 system.

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poptart


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There might be some that stipulate that you have to get your master's in ed, but I think there is enough "disillusionment" with the MEd degree in general that you could spin it as "I think content knowledge is the true key to teaching success. I don't want to get so bogged down in classroom management and pedagogy that I lose touch with the reason I became a teacher, which is to teach these wonderful children about wonderful literature blah blah ..." 

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halleybird


Hermes

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Lisa wrote:

There might be some that stipulate that you have to get your master's in ed, but I think there is enough "disillusionment" with the MEd degree in general that you could spin it as "I think content knowledge is the true key to teaching success. I don't want to get so bogged down in classroom management and pedagogy that I lose touch with the reason I became a teacher, which is to teach these wonderful children about wonderful literature blah blah ..." 
ah, brilliant idea. Lisa=genius.

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