Hey all, Mercer's spouse here. I've been following the discussion because, hey, this affects me, too (FWIW, did my stint in academia a few years ago so I'm familiar with the application-season crazies and finding-funding-stress and all of that). The figure Sovetskaya quoted here didn't seem right to me--and after checking out GW's numbers, turns out it's not. Tuition and fees at GW for a two-year master's--and I'm including health insurance in my figure--is closer to 45k. Even with living expenses, it wouldn't be anywhere near 120k. I agree that fifty thousand dollars in debt may not be worth it for many students, but the numbers aren't quite that dire. Or they're dire, but not deadly.
Best of luck to all, in any event.
Yours,
Phoebe
www.phoebeeating.com
