when your loan doesn't fully cover tuition..

[SchoolPsych_NYC]

I received a federal unsubsidized loan for the 2015-2016 academic year. These loans are up to $20,500 annually. My annual tuition is more than $20,500... My loan has disbursed, was divided in half for the fall and spring, which has left me with a balance of almost $5,000 to pay out of pocket for the fall. I'm assuming the same will be due for the spring. I was just curious to know what other graduate students have done in the past to cover the costs of the tuition that isn't covered by your financial aid loan? Should I try to obtain a private loan to pay for the balance? Do they expect me to pay this in cash? They do have payment plans, but its to be paid in full by the end of the semester... 

 

I should mention I will be attending the MS School Psychology program at St. John's University in Queens, NY.

[rising_star]

Grad PLUS loans might be an option...

[sunnyskies13]

I applied for a private loan. Just be prepared to have a cosigner for backup. My initial application was denied even though I have a good credit score, never miss payments, have a full time job and my only debt is undergraduate loans.

[SchoolPsych_NYC]

Grad PLUS loans might be an option...

 

I took your advice.. hope this covers things :/

[SLPH2b]

I received a federal unsubsidized loan for the 2015-2016 academic year. These loans are up to $20,500 annually. My annual tuition is more than $20,500... My loan has disbursed, was divided in half for the fall and spring, which has left me with a balance of almost $5,000 to pay out of pocket for the fall. I'm assuming the same will be due for the spring. I was just curious to know what other graduate students have done in the past to cover the costs of the tuition that isn't covered by your financial aid loan? Should I try to obtain a private loan to pay for the balance? Do they expect me to pay this in cash? They do have payment plans, but its to be paid in full by the end of the semester... 

 

I should mention I will be attending the MS School Psychology program at St. John's University in Queens, NY.

 

I'm attending St. John's this fall for a different grad program. It's so expensive and I agree that the financial aid amount they're offering does not cover the cost of tuition. I've been calling Financial Aid office every day for nearly a week but their hold/wait times are ridiculous! I told the folks over at Financial Aid Office that they seemed to have miscalculated my cost of attendance and that the loan amount they calculated for tuition was half time per semester, so basically there was another semester of tuition they didn't include! I decided to apply for a private loan because I got a way better rate than what the PLUS was offering. I hope I won't have to take additional loans for spring because this is ridiculous. It also doesn't help that I got in off the waitlist, so there were no GA positions offered :/ 

 

Also, they didn't calculate health insurance (if you don't have one) into the cost of attendance. If you feel like they need to adjust your budget, you should fill out the Graduate Budget Appeal form and show documentation of school-related expenses (rent, books, health insurance, even one-time purchase of a computer!). 

[sackofcrap]

Generally grad students get the Grad Plus loan. You can get a grad plus loan up to the full amount of your school fees. It is better than taking out a private loan.

 

Also, arf09, as someone who has experience in what you went through (i.e. I applied to st John's for grad school and was accepted, but i ultimately decided to go to a different school), I was also in contact with financial aid about them calculating my costs as half time and they informed me that they do that for everyone to start out with, but when you register for classes, then they change the cost of attendance. 

[drownsoda]

Grad plus loans do cover the remainder to my understanding. They have no cap, and are designed to pick up what the other one doesn't. 

I got the same $20,500 loan offer— I took $20,000 even, and only needed about $8,000 more for the year, and the Grad Plus covered that exactly.