Comments | applyingtograd: How much is too much? Graduate debt!

kuniklos in applyingtograd

How much is too much? Graduate debt!

Nov 13, 2009 15:54

This is a question I have asked both my advisors and I can't get a helpful answer. I'm a debt-a-phobe. I don't even own a credit card. I save for emergencies and I never buy what I can't afford. But there is one thing I can't afford: graduate school. And I need to resolve my issues about loan debt. I'm lucky I get to leave undergrad with only ( Read more... )

scholarships, money, finance, financial aid, loans, living expenses, salary, debt

Comments 53

idealforcolors November 13 2009, 21:17:12 UTC

are you looking into phd programs, or only ma? i decided that given the relatively low salaries in archaeology i should just go for the phd and less debt, even though i wasn't sure when applying that i wanted a phd rather than an ma...the costs of going into a phd rather than ma program are very low compared to the sort of debt you're taling about. (btw, is the program you're looking at in NYC CUNY? if it's not, add that to your list! it's internationally known for viking archaeology, and the grad students there are pretty cool people too.)

jennesy November 13 2009, 22:33:02 UTC

yeah CUNY! (sociology PhD here...)
The OP is probably referring to NYU/Columbia, though, since they mentioned that they would probably end up $50-100K in debt.

kuniklos November 14 2009, 00:24:30 UTC

I love Tom McGovern from CUNY, he helped me figure out what I want to do and hooked me up with great field schools. As much as I love him, I hate the school itself. I'm applying there as a last shot option to be honest. I want to stay out of NYC if I can, but there is one program there that is so entirely freaking amazing that I would suffer the city for it.

And that's the Bard Graduate Center! I can work in both art history, archaeology and museum studies in one. Not to mention the class listings make a mess in my pants. Seriously I got the class listings and about cried with joy.

jennesy November 14 2009, 02:39:50 UTC

That's how I feel about CUNY Soc... :)
One of the best things about going to grad school in NYC is the consortium - you can take classes at Columbia, NYU, CUNY, etc. I haven't done it (I've been really happy w/the classes at the GC) but I've had lots of people from other schools in my classes.

Thread 9

(The comment has been removed)

freddie November 13 2009, 21:52:28 UTC

if not, i strongly suggest you get thee to a funding database and start applying for grants and fellowships hot and heavy.

Seconded.

kuniklos November 14 2009, 00:42:26 UTC

I will definitely do the research and see if I can manage.

freddie November 13 2009, 21:51:47 UTC

This is a tough question on a lot of levels ( ... )

lissiehoya November 13 2009, 22:20:36 UTC

IAWTC.

I would add though that remember if you're taking federal loans, there are repayment options that can help you out if you're struggling. I was out of school for a year between my MA and PhD and deferred my loans for financial hardship. I continued to pay interest, while paying down my private loan. If you have a good loan company, they should work with you to figure out a repayment option that works with how much money you owe and how much money you make.

kuniklos November 14 2009, 00:47:49 UTC

Yes, I'm considering this strongly. While the more expensive school has a 88% placement (I mean honestly, how can you not be obsessed about that statistic?) it also has the curriculum that makes me squeal with joy.

The other school is cheaper. Not by much, the tuition is the same, but living expenses are much cheaper. I could rent a house for the amount of money I could rent a closet in NYC.

Something I should have noted is that I will have my fiance with me and he's a computer forensics major. His job prospects are excellent and want me to just "go for it and be happy" and he wants to help take care of things. But he doesn't understand what he's offering. If I screw myself, I am going to end up screwing him over too.

I definitely am not taking this lightly. I'm lucky I will graduate with almost not debt, and have a contract job before graduate school to pay my only loan. But I just don't know how to manage this one out. Yes, I will have the career I've wanted since I was 5, but at what cost?

lifedespitegod November 13 2009, 22:05:29 UTC

There's probably some sort of loan calculator out there that will let you figure in your loan amounts and calculate monthly payments. Try that with the likely amount of your loans in the end (I'm guessing around $200k?). Can you expect to comfortably make those payments on the salary of the jobs you want?

Remember that heavy debt can limit your career more than great connections can enhance it, potentially. If you have huge loan payments you can't take any low-paying great opportunities that come along.

kuniklos November 14 2009, 00:48:08 UTC

I will have to look for one, that can help alot. Thanks!

jennesy November 13 2009, 22:36:21 UTC

Be realistic about moving to NYC for grad school. You probably WILL have at least a 30 minute (possibly even an hour) commute to school unless you're willing to spend an ungodly amount of money. While there are a lot of resources here (the libraries, consortium, etc.) and lots of free activities, cheap restaurants, public transportation, etc., it's still really, really f-ing hard to be in school here. In general I think that things in NYC are a lot harder than they are elsewhere. There are benefits to living here, sure, but there are a lot of challenges to living here that you wouldn't experience elsewhere.

greekdaph November 13 2009, 23:32:15 UTC

Agreed.

I ended up choosing against a New York program I really, really liked in large part because of exactly the challenges you describe. I love the city, and lived there before going back to school, but the thought of not knowing for sure that there would be tables at a coffee shop when I wanted to study, of having to commute long distances to class and to see friends, and of having to haul tons of library books up and down subway and building stairs (all the stairs! that's the one thing I don't miss about New York) made me uneasy. The city can be as generative of ideas as it is distracting, and I really admire and am jealous of people who manage to pull of going to school there, but I knew myself well enough to know that school would be hard enough without having to navigate the challenges--which go well beyond the financial--of the city.

kuniklos November 14 2009, 00:40:20 UTC

In the end did you feel you education suffered for it? I worry I am going to regret the choice of going elsewhere. Second choice being University of Buffalo in a much calmer and cheaper area. I can't get the best of all worlds there, but I can focus just on viking archaeology. It really hurts that money is what's going to decide if I get exactly the education I want or one that simply fits the bill.

greekdaph November 14 2009, 00:58:39 UTC

I'm only in the first semester of the program, so it's hard to say, but the really attractive New York program had some issues that had nothing to do with the location (as all programs do, of course). In the end, I love, so far, the program I'm in, so, given the myopic perspective of not knowing how the alternative would have played out, I don't think my education has suffered. (My culinary and cultural well-being, though, are, perhaps, another story.) I don't have regrets at this point, but it's a different situation than yours, as the program I'm in has better placement, less faculty turnover, and more consistent and equitable funding than the New York one, and is near where I grew up so has certain locational advantages, too ( ... )

Thread 5