Funding prior to starting a program
I've been accepted to PhD programs on the US east coast and am currently living and working in the UK. Given the fact that I moved to the UK less than two years ago, have been studying there, and my husband and I have both had periods of unemployment.underemployment, our savings for school are pretty much nil and the cash we do have is in British pounds. Once I start any of these programs I will have tuition waiver and an assistantship/fellowship, but I don't know what to do about the moving expenses before I start the program and we might also need a small loan to tide us over while my husband looks for a job. He'll be looking from the UK as well, but his field tends not to hire people unless they are already in the area.
I contacted one of the schools about whether there was any latitude in when federal loans were disbursed for students, and the financial aid office told me that no federal money was given out before the second week of a program or so. Additionally, when I mentioned private loans (like a bank loan) they said that most private banks don't give loans for school. The office basically said that they think all students in my position borrow from friends or family to make the money in the interval before they start a program.
How true is this? Are there any loans like grad PLUS or Stafford that you can get in the summer, say August or so? What do most people do to tide themselves over in terms of moving expenses? I've been a member of a major US bank for 11 years or so, is there any chance of getting a few thousand dollars to cover an apartment deposit, etc?
I contacted one of the schools about whether there was any latitude in when federal loans were disbursed for students, and the financial aid office told me that no federal money was given out before the second week of a program or so. Additionally, when I mentioned private loans (like a bank loan) they said that most private banks don't give loans for school. The office basically said that they think all students in my position borrow from friends or family to make the money in the interval before they start a program.
How true is this? Are there any loans like grad PLUS or Stafford that you can get in the summer, say August or so? What do most people do to tide themselves over in terms of moving expenses? I've been a member of a major US bank for 11 years or so, is there any chance of getting a few thousand dollars to cover an apartment deposit, etc?