How much in student loans do you have going into grad school?

[grad29]

Maybe a personal question, but I don't see this talked about much (probably for that exact reason). However after speaking with current students at interviews I believe it's one of the most overlooked things by grad students. I'm just curious how I may compare to fellow psychology undergraduates. Other sections of this forum that deal with money include lots of other fields, so since the majority of us are psychology undergraduates, I figured it may be interesting to post here. So if you don't mind answering these 4 questions, or just the ones you feel comfortable with:

(1) How many student loans do you have?

(2) Are you/how much are you paying through loans for graduate school?

(3) How much credit card debt and savings do you have?

(4) What is the average salary for people currently employed in your area for your field?

I'll start (I should mention I've been working full time since 2012)

(1) $15,100

(2) Not funded (may get ~$10,000 from post 9/11 GI Bill if I qualify), ~$29,000 in program costs + ~$12,500 in cost of living 

(3) $0 credit card debt, $5,000 savings

(4) $65,000/year 

Edited February 10, 2016 by westy3789

[Piagetsky]

If this file is not public, LMK, but this might be helpful.

 

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1IImqRbOrbWmZuy0xRgq3wh4RjmmuHWYBgZ3WbjBkW2g/edit#gid=17

[grad29]

1 hour ago, Piagetsky said:

If this file is not public, LMK, but this might be helpful.

 

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1IImqRbOrbWmZuy0xRgq3wh4RjmmuHWYBgZ3WbjBkW2g/edit#gid=17

Perfect! Very interesting and thanks. Pretty shocking some people have over $300,000 in student loan debt with things like art history PhDs. 

[dancedementia]

1. 70k so far and counting. Sigh.

2. See above. Almost none of my own funding (I pretty much work a part-time job for living expenses and that's it).

3. Debt = 35k. Savings = 0.

4. 50k.... sigh.

[mschanandlerbong]

(1) Less than $2,000 as I'm finishing up my last semester. I've been very lucky to receive almost $20,000 in scholarships from my school's Alumnae Association over three years as well as to have received a healthy college fund from my grandfather when he passed away (it also helped that I was his only grandchild at the time, so I got all the money).

(2) I'm hoping to go to a funded program but if I go to an unfunded master's program I expect to have to take out loans. I don't know how much, though. That's a worry for another day.

(3) $0 in credit card debt, ~$2,000 in savings but I'm probably going to have to use that on rent over the next year. I work a part time job to pay for internet and basically just to get by.

(4) $60,000 I think

[Neist]

12 hours ago, westy3789 said:

Perfect! Very interesting and thanks. Pretty shocking some people have over $300,000 in student loan debt with things like art history PhDs. 

I sort of stumbled in here, but man, that's interesting, and terrifying.

I'm hoping to have under 50-60k if I get funded. I can't even fathom taking on 300k in debt.

[outsidegirl4]

(1) None, I had 26k from my MA but paid it off and had a full ride undergrad. 

(2) I'm funded with tuition and stipend. 

(3) No debt, 5k savings.

(4) 75k

[bugabooo]

(1) $0 

(2) Hoping on as much FinAid as possible (of really any kind) through the University, but might be looking at ~$20k/yr for two years as a worst-case scenario.

(3) Less than $500 debt on my card, a little more than 4k savings 

(4) Average entry-level with MA is 40k but the national average as of 2010 was 87k.

[sackofcrap]

Let me start by saying, the program I am in now is a specialist level (EdS) program (above a master's / below a phd).

(1 & 2) Going into graduate school, I didn't have much debt, because I went to undergraduate with a full tuition scholarship, so I only had to pay for room and board and books, etc. Coming out of graduate school, I will have a ton of debt because most of my financial aid is now through loans. And I jumped directly from undergraduate to graduate school, so I have only been working part time, which doesn't make much money. I work in assistantship, but that pretty much only covers my rent and food, etc for the month, so basically, all of my tuition is coming from loans. It's essentially the exact opposite of my undergraduate.

(3) I don't have any savings yet really. I have about $3000 in credit card debt.

(4) Average salary for school psychologists according to NASP is between $64,000 and $71,000. It depends on how many days they work per year. If they are a school psychologist working at a university, then the average salary is $77,000. Currently, I am in Texas for school, but I most likely will not end up working here. Salaries here seem to start somewhere around $50,000 or so and work their way up over time (i.e. if I stayed and worked in Texas for 5 years, I would probably be making close to $60,000 by the end of it.)

 

 

Edited February 24, 2016 by sackofcrap

[SAH]

(1) ~$10,000

(2) None - I was offered full tuition and a generous stipend 

(3) No debt, no savings 

(4) $85k