Can we talk about the wicked expensive gorilla in the room?

[MissH]

I've seen this issue come up on a few different threads, so I thought I'd give my two cents. I am currently concerned about how I will pay for my MSW. I have long known that this is an expensive proposition. As such, I have set a personal cap of the amount of loans I am taking out to fund this venture.

I have done research on income based repayment and loan forgiveness. I LOVE Heather Jarvis, the person I liked to, as a student loan resource. Thing is, I really don't want to either pay off loan for a really long time, nor gamble on the decisions of lawmakers to fund my higher education.

I have applied for assistantships, I am looking at residence life jobs, but my final decision will probably be financially driven.

[arcoventry]

Considering the supposed low income cap on the field of social work, I think it is very important to discuss the cost of the MSW degree. I am not a believer in being "complacent" about one's worth - there are well paying social work jobs out there, and a wide array of agencies, hospitals, private firms and corporation who hire MSWs every day. Not everyone is going to be a burnt-out child services worker, just as not everyone is going to be the head of a social justice foundation. That being said, I personally have calculated my maximum loan to be $20,000 for the 2-year program.

I currently pay $325 a month on an undergraduate loan of $29,000. Doubling this loan would put me at around $700 a month just to pay off interest and some principal, dragging my payments out to 15 years or MORE. This means even if I got a job making $50,000 a year (which I understand is unheard of as a new MSW grad), over half my monthly income would go to loans. This is not doable, considering as a NYC resident, half my income needs to go to rent.

I think it is valiant for people to follow their dreams and go to their first choice school, but unless you have some serious money saved, or are okay with having 2 jobs after graduation, I think it is funding and tuition costs that should dictate your choice.

Just my 2-cents, obviously people have other opinions and that is great

[SofieCat]

arcoventry- i agree. after my calculations, the max i am willing to take out in loans for an MSW degree from ANY school is about 20k. Personally, a degree that offers a starting job of 40k (If i'm lucky) should not cost me more than 50k in student loans. Some of the big name schools offer temping programs, but the return doesn't justify the price tag for me. Money isn't everything, and I doubt anyone who's considering an MSW is an income-driven person, taking out 80k in loans (USC) for a degree that will earn you about 40k per year doesn't make sense to me. Schools are businesses, they are looking out for their bottom line before anything else.

Edited March 21, 2012 by SofieCat

[Wishing]

I said this in another thread so I'l say it here again: I know many other people disagree with this on the board, but as a macro focused student I very much believe that where you attend school will affect your career options and this is at least somewhat tied to the cost issue. many of the less expensive schools do not offer strong macro skills to their students. In all but a small number of schools, mostly those schools that are more expensive/bigger name (although I think this is incidental and/or due to strong public policy schools located there as well), the macro courses are at the minimum required for social work accrediting. Other schools allow a more involved and well-rounded macro education. Yeah, these schools are typically more expensive, but I would not feel confident in my career path if I didn't think I would get the preparation I needed at the school I chose. I have been working in nonprofits for a while, so I know a little bit about what organizations are looking for in new hires and to me it's worth it to pay a little bit more to get the best education I can in my area of interest. This may not be true for clinical, but for macro-oriented jobs, especially in nonprofits and policy, MSW grads will be competing with graduates from a bunch of other types of programs, including public policy and public/nonprofit administration and those are fields where prestige matters (especially policy). An MSW in that case is a slightly nontraditional path to the same career as grads in other fields and thus MSW grads need to have a strong background in the macro area of their choice (or a broad range of macro skills).

I plan to borrow around 70k. I don't have very much remaining on my undergrad loas (like 5k) so that impacted my decision. As a married student in a dual grad student and eventually dual earner household, I think I am a bit less debt adverse than most of the other posters here. My wife and I have a lot of experience saving large amounts of money on small salaries in HCOL areas and given our prior success with this I feel good about our ability to pay off debt jointly and quickly. Depending on the income-based repayments we may decide it makes more sense to draw out the federal loans for a bit longer after we hit the 6th or 7th year of snowball repayment... I don't know yet. What I do know is that the two of us working to pay down our debt together gives us a lot more strength than I'd have on my own. It's also worth noting that both of us are choosing school and the cost of school over things like having kids (not interested), buying a house (not interested and not practical), staying in one location (we're willing to move for jobs and opportunities), etc. It is a trade-off. I've had people with babies tell me I was insane for taking loans to get an MSW, but over the course of their lifetime they will easily pay that much and more in the cost of caring for their child, even with the cost of my interest on the loans. It's a matter of priorities. Everyone has different priorities and I can honestly say that I don't think there is a right or wrong on this one.

Just my 2c. I have a lot of opinions, so take it for what it's worth.

[SunsetHarbor]

This is a question on financial aid packages and paying deposits to multiple schools. For many of the schools I am looking at they only process financial aid awards (not loans) after you pay your deposit or a month or two after deadline for decision. Has anyone paid multiple deposits to wait out and see their full financial aid package?

[arcoventry]

This is a question on financial aid packages and paying deposits to multiple schools. For many of the schools I am looking at they only process financial aid awards (not loans) after you pay your deposit or a month or two after deadline for decision. Has anyone paid multiple deposits to wait out and see their full financial aid package?

I got into Hunter and Fordham, with NYU being my first choice - no decision yet. Because Hunter is SO inexpensive for in-state students, I put a deposit there, knowing it could very well be the best financial option for me, regardless of what packages I get. Fordham was a safety/last choice school for me, so I chose to not put a deposit down and save the space for someone else.

[KristinMSW]

This is a question on financial aid packages and paying deposits to multiple schools. For many of the schools I am looking at they only process financial aid awards (not loans) after you pay your deposit or a month or two after deadline for decision. Has anyone paid multiple deposits to wait out and see their full financial aid package?

I may end up having to do this as well while I look at some factors between DU and UW-Seattle. I am visiting UW but not until after the deposit is due, and I wont find out about some other scholarships until around JUNE, which is crazy. It could mean loosing around $200, but i wonder if in the grand scheme of grad school costs it isn't such a big deal so that we can make a better and more confident decision....

[SunsetHarbor]

I am having the same issue with UW. I think we will get financial aid packages in April, but not sure if these will only be loans. It sounds like all the SSW grant based assistance occurs end of May. Seems backwards that we are asked to make decisions without the most important piece of information - what the costs will be. All the schools I applied to, I would be happy to attend, distinguishing factor is funding.

May need to accept and leave deposits at Maryland, UW and Minnesota?