how much are you willing to pay?

[dawn321]

Hello all...congrats on all the acceptance letters that have been received!

 

I was accepted to DU (The only school I applied too) and was thrilled to be going there.  When I went last year I was advised that classes only was about $36,000 and that the full program (tuition, board, ins, etc) was around $55,000.  Today, I received my financial aid letter and the program went to $52,488 for classes only and $76,108 for everything.  With the merit scholarship, I would be taking out approx $40,000 for grad school alone. 

 

This was my only choice in school.  My wife and I are super excited to start a new life in CO (living in CT now) and the program was exactly what i am looking for.  I am not impressed with UCONN or Fordham and honestly want out of CT. 

 

SO, what are you willing to pay?  I realize I will be in debt for the rest of my life....but, its what i want to do.  Is it worth it?  At this point it may be even too late to apply anywhere else....

 

Anyways, any thoughts are appreciated (especially the ones that tell me to just 'do it' and go with my heart).

Thanks all and again, congrats!

 

Dawn

[citychild]

Honestly, $20k. Maybe SLIGHTLY more depending on the school. I just cannot rationalize more debt at this point. But that's me. And, more so, $20k is the equivalent of a 10% down payment on a house and $40k is 20%. I would like to purchase... eventually. But would like to be 5 years into paying off my loan and have my house paid OFF before I retire... I'm guessing, at 70.

So, that was a ramble. For me, it's $20k in loans.

[MSWGirl2013]

Hello all...congrats on all the acceptance letters that have been received!

 

I was accepted to DU (The only school I applied too) and was thrilled to be going there.  When I went last year I was advised that classes only was about $36,000 and that the full program (tuition, board, ins, etc) was around $55,000.  Today, I received my financial aid letter and the program went to $52,488 for classes only and $76,108 for everything.  With the merit scholarship, I would be taking out approx $40,000 for grad school alone. 

 

This was my only choice in school.  My wife and I are super excited to start a new life in CO (living in CT now) and the program was exactly what i am looking for.  I am not impressed with UCONN or Fordham and honestly want out of CT. 

 

SO, what are you willing to pay?  I realize I will be in debt for the rest of my life....but, its what i want to do.  Is it worth it?  At this point it may be even too late to apply anywhere else....

 

Anyways, any thoughts are appreciated (especially the ones that tell me to just 'do it' and go with my heart).

Thanks all and again, congrats!

 

Dawn

I'm looking at taking out about $20,000 a year in loans.  While this isn't ideal, and I will definitely apply for any assistantships available to me to help offset the cost of the program, I'm fully prepared to take out the full amount.  However, $40K for two years and $80K are drastically different numbers.  I don't think I'd be willing to take out loans that are equivalent to the cost of a house.  I would apply for a less prestigious program that was more affordable.  That's just my take on the situation, you have to do what is best for you and your family.  You know your financial situation and debt better than we do and you know what you can/can't afford.  Personally, I wouldn't be willing to go into that kind of debt when the expected salary for MSW's isn't that high.

[kiki123]

I don't want to have to take out loans exceeding $20,000 to get my MSW either, which is why I think I will be attending a state school in the fall. Ideally I'm able to secure some financial as well...

[Inspired V]

The only person who can decide what's right for you (and your family) is you (and your family).

 

Try to weigh the things that make you want to attend DU against what you might be able to find elsewhere (if you opened up your search and reapplied next year). I lived in Colorado for a year and almost passed up Peace Corps to continue my career there simply because I loved the lifestyle and the area so much... but when I thought about it, I knew Colorado would always be there and I could relocate there to continue my career later on in life if I still wanted to.

 

I will say that there are some aspects to DU's program that are hard to find elsewhere -- the animal assisted certificate, for example. But I personally believe there are more generous private institutions that offer incredible educational opportunities as well. I received generous offers from both private schools I applied to which have actually made tuition cheaper than if I was to go to an out-of-state public school. 

 

It's difficult to really give much advice since you only applied to the one school. If that's what your heart is set on and your family has come to terms with the financial implications of accruing so much debt, than none of us should be reason to stop you from doing so. However, I do think you'd be able to find a better deal on a high quality MSW elsewhere if you were to start your research over and expand your choice of location.

 

Good luck!