doctormelody

Thanks! You all are so nice! I hope you all get the acceptances you're hoping for soon!

Yes! It's the only school I applied to this year. I actually moved to Pittsburgh essentially just for Pitt, haha. I was considering adding some more schools for a while, but at this point I think I just need to stick to my original plan. To be clear, I couldn't be more excited about the program, I'm just worried about money stuff. Hopefully I'll get a decent scholarship... I'm in the middle of doing my FAFSA right now and I'm so frustrated, haha. I don't remember it being this annoying last year...

Thank you! I submitted the app on December 15th but it wasn’t complete until the 27th because that’s when my last recommendation was submitted. I got the notification that I was accepted on the ApplyYourself website on the 10th, so it was about two weeks. I was nervous too despite meeting the standards for guaranteed admission, so I get it. I hope you hear back soon!

Makes sense. But yeah, it is frustrating for sure!

Wow, that’s terrible, I’m so sorry! I know that UChicago and Case Western both have final deadlines in April because I looked into it. They do have priority deadlines earlier than that, but I’m pretty sure Case doesn’t have an application fee, so that’s nice. BU and Columbia both have a deadline of Feb. 15th, and BU doesn’t have any earlier deadlines. They also gave me a fee waiver last year. Tulane also has a later deadline of March 31st. BC has a final deadline of March 1st, but they do have a priority deadline that’s earlier than that and they weren’t able to give me a fee waiver last year. I hope this helps, best of luck to you!

Thank you!! I’m very excited.

Thank you!

Thank you! That’s what I’m leaning toward. I really appreciate everyone’s replies!

Also my current salary is too low to merit mention here but but fwiw everyone in my life seems to think I am significantly underachieving in this realm, so take that as you will.

Do you mean cost of living for each school or cost of living when I graduate? If you mean cost of living when I graduate that’s impossible to know because we don’t know where we want to settle down yet. Cost of living is cheaper in my home state for groceries/gas/etc but for rent it’s probably about the same.

Thank you for replying. I guess there’s no real clear answer to this dilemma. Would knowing the numbers help anyone to have a stronger opinion? If I go to Pitt I’ll probably end up with about 85-100k of total debt vs. around 70k for the other school.

I'm sorry, I think I explained it super confusingly! Thank you so much for the advice. The issue is that my program doesn't begin until August, which is when I would be moving, so I can't apply as a transfer because if we move back I would never actually attend Pitt. In order to apply as a transfer I'd have to commit to staying here another year, which would defeat the point of applying to the other school because then I wouldn't get in-state tuition.

Hey, thanks for replying! I'm kinda confused, are you saying I should consider attending Pitt and then applying as a transfer to the school in my home state? That wouldn't make sense because I have established residency here and so I wouldn't qualify for in-state tuition, which would make the other program less affordable than Pitt. I'm confused by what you mean when you mention putting it off as well... if we don't move home before August, I'll almost certainly be going to Pitt. I suppose I could request a deferral, but again, there wouldn't be much point seeing as I would then have to pay out-of-state tuition if I applied to the school in my home state. Does that make sense? Sorry if I worded that confusingly.

Hi hello it's me, creator of a million and one threads, haha. Sorry to post again but I really need some advice. I was accepted to Pitt yesterday (yay!!) and I really want to go. However, I'm worried about the amount of debt I will have to take on in addition to the debt I already have from undergrad. This is my second cycle applying, and I have a strong desire to start grad school this year. I feel like I'm ready and I don't see the point of waiting any longer (it's already been almost four years since I graduated from undergrad). However, I can't stop comparing the tuition at Pitt (22k) with the tuition at the top-ranked program in my (former) home state (12k) and feeling upset by it. I feel like I should have applied to the program in my home state before and essentially the only reason I didn't is because my partner refused to consider living in that city. I was fine with this at the time because I really wanted to move out of the state, but now I feel like maybe we made a mistake by moving here. Additionally, there is a small possibility that my partner may soon have a job opportunity in or around our former town, which is a reasonable distance from the city in which the other MSW program is located. A lot of people commute between the two, and I would consider this as well if the opportunity presented itself. I guess my question is... am I being an idiot by not considering the much more affordable (lower-ranked but still respected) program? The big issue is that I would have to wait another year to apply. The deadline is too soon to ask my recommenders to write me another letter and if I applied now I wouldn't qualify for in-state tuition, which would sort of defeat the purpose. There are definitely pros and cons to both - I don't love the city of Pittsburgh, and I miss aspects of my hometown, such as the natural beauty of the area and being close to family. However, decent jobs are pretty hard to come by in that area and it would be so embarrassing to move back after all this. I also don't want to wait an additional year to start grad school, and I don't want to put myself and my recommenders through through the process of applying for the third year in a row! There's also no guarantee that I would get in, and if I didn't I'd be in a much worse position than I am now. But the tuition... I'm so conflicted! Please help!

Additionally, my three letters of rec were all from professors and I was worried about it as well but it hasn't proved to be a problem!

I think you'll be fine! I have less relevant experience than you and I was admitted to Columbia last year. Seriously, stop doubting yourself so much! I know it's natural at this point in the process but I honestly think you'll be okay.

Thank you!!!

Thank you!!

I was just accepted to the University of Pittsburgh! I'm so happy!

I was just accepted!!!!!! I'm so happy and relieved. I really needed this today.

Same! I keep envisioning nightmare scenarios where they only give me like 2k a year... I know that probably won’t happen, but I worry about it nevertheless. And yeah, I had to turn down Columbia and Tulane last year and I was really sad about it. I tried to be smarter this year and only applied to Pitt because I’m committed to taking on as little debt as possible, so I really hope it pays off.

Gotcha, that makes sense. That is a lot of debt but hopefully she will make good money when she’s done! I am hopeful too, I’m just also anxious, haha.

Thanks for the encouragement! You definitely bring up some good points. I guess I just wonder why so many people thought they would qualify but didn't? Like, did they just not keep up with the paperwork over that decade? It seems like it shouldn't be so complicated unless they don't actually want people to take advantage of it... but I guess that's just how stuff works when the government is involved. @bloome, I definitely feel you on this, I have to consider my partner's future financial situation as well. The plan was always for him to help support me while I'm in grad school and for me to do the same thing down the line when/if he wants to go back to school, but I worry a lot that this won't be feasible if I'm saddled with an enormous amount of debt.

I also applied to Pitt! I know it's only been a week since they reopened after winter break but I'm already so anxious to hear back, haha. Here's the thread I made for Pitt this year if you or any one else wants to talk about Pitt specifically! https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/110999-university-of-pittsburgh-msw-fall-2019/

@lincoln.hawks and @placeinspace, thank you for replying. I too read the article about only 1% of applications for PSLF being accepted and found it very sobering. @lincoln.hawks, do you mind if I ask why your coworkers did not qualify? Is it because you have to be on a standard repayment plan or something? I have income-based repayment now for my undergrad debt. My income is very low at the moment and I recently consolidated my loans so currently I pay $0 a month. I know that interest is accruing though. I just can’t afford to worry about it right now. I definitely don’t expect PSLF to be a magic solution to all of my problems once I graduate, but I will admit to being slightly confused as to why so many people did not qualify. Hopefully it will improve in the coming years? I read that something like 28% of the applications were just incomplete, but that still leaves a significant portion of denials that can’t be chalked up to people just not filling out paperwork correctly. @placeinspace, your friend changing careers because they were denied seems like an extreme example... surely it would make more sense to just reapply? Idk, maybe there’s something I’m missing here. It’s scary, for sure. I just don’t know what I’ll do if I don’t go into social work... I’m not a business-minded type person, and I have no desire to ever be anybody’s boss. I feel like at this point the jobs I’ve had are not gonna lead to anything that pays a living wage, so I almost feel like I have no choice but to go back to school. Idk though, maybe I’m wrong. I definitely want kids and a house someday, but I’m not gonna get there making 12k a year, either.