Paying for Grad School

[taeslp]

Hey everyone,

As we all start hearing back from colleges regarding interviews and acceptances, I was curious how everyone is planning to pay for their graduate school, housing, books, etc.  I don't have any debt from my undergraduate study but I will be on my own for graduate school for the most part.  I don't have any clue about loans or that sort of thing and I know there are a few different loan options available (government, private).  If anyone has any information, pointers, or helpful tips I would be so grateful!  Thanks in advance! Good luck to all!

[SLPgradstudent]

1 hour ago, taeslp said:

Hey everyone,

As we all start hearing back from colleges regarding interviews and acceptances, I was curious how everyone is planning to pay for their graduate school, housing, books, etc.  I don't have any debt from my undergraduate study but I will be on my own for graduate school for the most part.  I don't have any clue about loans or that sort of thing and I know there are a few different loan options available (government, private).  If anyone has any information, pointers, or helpful tips I would be so grateful!  Thanks in advance! Good luck to all!

Apply for FAFSA as soon as you can!  You can get probably Federal loans that will have much better interest rates and payment plans than private loans would. I'm still figuring this stuff out too, but FAFSA definitely a good place to start.

[esopha]

Definitely apply for FAFSA. Try to avoid too many Grad PLUS loans, and avoid private loans, too, since they generally don't have forgiveness plans. I've been aggressively saving (probably less diligently than I should be), picking up odd jobs, and searching for scholarships. There are a couple that I've found - ASHA foundation has some, and then I also found this one:

http://ebsunited.com/scholarships/multicultural-scholarships-and-grants

It's only for second year/CFY applicants, but every bit helps.

Edit: Found the ASHA one!

https://www.ashfoundation.org/grants/Graduate-Student-Scholarship/

Edited February 12, 2016 by esopha
found a link

[eggfish]

Loans :'(

[MangoSmoothie]

You're in a very fortunate position to not have undergraduate loans. As is normal for most professional master's programs, there's limited funding. We had one TA position that 25 of us were vying for. In my program, almost everyone is paying with loans obtained through FAFSA then the graduate plus loans, and then working. Grad Plus loans are fine, but they do have a slightly higher interest rate. I wouldn't put them on the same level as private loans at all. Quite a few people in my program still rely on their parents for spending money or rent or tuition (which hey, if you come from a family that can do that for you, that's great). Bar-tending and waitressing can bring in a lot of money as well. I try to pay for tuition and rent through loans, and then work enough to cover the rest of my expenses and bills. if you can work a lot this summer before your grad program begins, definitely do so and try to save so that you have money to live off of during your program, or at least the first year.

Apply for scholarships as well, and be on top of it. Many of them may not be available until you actually begin your program. I unfortunately didn't apply for a lot of scholarships that just had a deadline, but there's some coming up I won't miss. The nice thing about a grad program is you really get to know your professors and clinical supervisors, so it's not too hard to find letters of rec.