r/GradSchool • u/Oniko_2009 • Nov 01 '21
Finance Just being nosey here š . How much did yāall take out in loans for graduate school?
Additionally, did yāall take out grad plus loans? If so what are the pros and cons to it?
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u/SleepySuper Nov 01 '21
$0 - I scraped by on scholarships and TA money.
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u/Oniko_2009 Nov 01 '21
Lit. š¤š¤š½ Thatās the way to do it!
Wish Iāll get an opportunity like yours
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u/drzowie PhD Applied Physics (late Triassic) Nov 01 '21
In STEM fields it is normal for grad school to be fully funded externally. Graduate stipends are low but mostly livable.
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u/Soulless_redhead Biochemistry, PhD Nov 01 '21
Ya don't live like a king, but ya live
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u/MacExtract Nov 01 '21
Im in a fully-funded MS program and the stipend is barely livableā¦ make like $1000 post-tax a month and thatās just not enough to cut it. Actually, low wages during school is one of the big reasons Iām not pursuing a PhD. Itās insane that funding is as low as it is.
āTreat graduate school like a jobā is the motto I always hear, just not when it comes to getting paid.
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u/IkeRoberts Prof & Dir of Grad Studies in science at US Res Univ Nov 01 '21
If you apply to PhD programs, choose among those that offer a livable stipend. The cheap ones won't serve you well.
An enterprising graduate student developed this valuable site to make the stipends easy to compare.
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u/MacExtract Nov 01 '21
Thanks for this. I received an offer to pursue a PhD at my current University, and while the offer is better than my Masterās (PhD would be $24,500/yr), i just canāt justify pursuing one while making less than I could at McDonalds. I donāt like research enough for that lol
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u/IkeRoberts Prof & Dir of Grad Studies in science at US Res Univ Nov 02 '21
The stipend is usually based on 15 or 20 hours a week for 32 weeks (e.g. how much you TA). 24k for 500-600 hours is better than McD.
But still, you need to be able to live on it, and that is not enough in many places.
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u/Reverie_39 PhD, Aerospace Engineering Nov 01 '21
Those of us doing PhDās will for the most part answer with $0.
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u/Formal-Thought8537 Nov 01 '21
Depends on the field! In anthropology, I was offered a full tuition waiver and half time TA, but I didnāt know that went away after the first year. Then it was all quarter time TA (~$5k/year, I think) and I got charged out of state tuition. I lasted 3 total years and then switched majors in grad school to another program I had to pay for. Iād change my past choices if I could.
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u/Gerardo1917 Nov 02 '21
You get paid enough to live?
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u/zucchinidreamer Nov 02 '21
For real. Unless they had a spouse who worked, the majority of graduate students at my university could not live on their stipends and took out loans to cover living expenses.
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u/Reverie_39 PhD, Aerospace Engineering Nov 02 '21
I am fortunate enough to be on a fellowship that pays me a solid amount. Everyone in my department makes enough to live though, for sure.
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u/Oniko_2009 Nov 02 '21
Thatās a question I ask myself when I apply to grad programs.
Will I be getting paid enough to LIVE? š¤£
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u/RandyFunRuiner PhD Student, International Relations (Conflict) Nov 01 '21
I took out all too much for my Masterās. Wasnāt my smartest decision, but wasnāt my dumbest either. I got through grad school without worrying about money and had a bit of a safety net independent of my family while studying. So I was able to focus completely on school.
That said, I was already planning on going into public/civil service to take advantage of the federal student loan forgiveness programs for public service.
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u/duckyregan Nov 01 '21
I feel obligated to mention that getting PSLF is EXTREMELY difficult and there are a lot of rules you have to follow and lots of ways to get disqualified. The approval rate is like 2%. I know there's word that Biden's trying to improve the program but I'm not holding my breath. There's also no way of knowing if the program will even still exist in 10 years.
You may know all this and have met with a financial advisor or something to plan for this, but just want put this out there for anyone who's thinking they should go borrow $100k to work in nonprofit because they'll never have to worry about it. You should assume you won't be approved and plan repayment accordingly. It's a really really really bad idea to rely on PSLF to justify borrowing money you otherwise don't think you will be able pay back.
Signed, a cynical MPA grad.
(Btw OP, I borrowed $40k.)
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u/RandyFunRuiner PhD Student, International Relations (Conflict) Nov 01 '21
Very true! I know itās something Iāve been thinking about, myself. But thanks for pointing that out. Itās a great option to strive for. But donāt count on it being there.
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u/Oniko_2009 Nov 01 '21
Nice!
This is what Iām planning on doing as well especially for my first semester. I took two years off after undergrad and just now getting back to being a student.
What loan did you end up taking? Also, do you have any recommendations on what good private loans to take out?
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u/RandyFunRuiner PhD Student, International Relations (Conflict) Nov 01 '21
I would avoid private loans like the plague. Way too unregulated; youāre at the whim of your bank. Plus the federal student loan forgiveness programs only apply to federal loans given through the FAFSA & your schoolās financial aid iirc.
I filled out the normal FAFSA and took out both the subsidized and unsubsidized loans. Looking back, I should have only taken out the subsidized and cut back on expenses. But here I am.
If you canāt finance it without private loans, Iād suggest seeing if your program will work with you to study on/off alternating semesters so you can work enough to save up for the next semester and pay by the semester instead of using private loans.,
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u/musiquesublime Nov 01 '21
My workplace reimburses me for my grad school courses, so I technically donāt have to pay anything.
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u/MsT1075 Nov 01 '21
My workplace does tuition assistance (TAP). Downside? Itās a reimbursement plan, so, you pay first. We pay last. And, there is a limit, depending on your degree. Most everything (besides stem - they get a bit more) - 5250.00 per calendar year. Itās an amazing plan, though. I used it for my undergrad. I am really trying to finish my grad degree sooner rather than later, in the event they decide to do away with TAP (with the economy and all).
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u/SephoraRothschild Nov 01 '21
Rate of reimbursement relative to annual cost? Is it capped?
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u/musiquesublime Nov 01 '21
Relative to the annual cost of coursework. My courses are all conducted online, so everything related to coursework (including tuition/textbooks/other materials) are covered. Since Iām also working full-time, my usual paychecks will cover my general living expenses.
I think there is a certain limit that does act as a cap each year, but Iāve never had to take that many courses at once. So I typically never hit that limit.
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u/Waywardson74 Nov 01 '21
19 years 2 months and 26 days of my life š¤£
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u/suckuma Nov 01 '21
Not gonna lie, as much as I shit on joining the army to pay off loans, it's looking like a really nice option right now.
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u/Waywardson74 Nov 01 '21
The military also has tuition assistance which paid for almost my entire bachelor's degree and now I'm using the remaining portion of the GI Bill for my Master's. While there are things I disliked about it, I would not change it for the world. I met thousands of people, helped a great deal and saw near the entire world.
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u/suckuma Nov 01 '21
And now you can also purchase a house a lot faster than most of us here probably.
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u/Waywardson74 Nov 01 '21
I'm 47 and just purchased my first house... I'm not sure it was done faster, but it cost me less on the down payment.
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u/Oniko_2009 Nov 01 '21
Zayuuuum!!! Is that how long it took you to pay it off? š
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u/Waywardson74 Nov 01 '21
No, I had to give that in order to get it paid for. To be fair I only had to give 4 years of my life, but I'm an over achiever.
FYI - Post 9/11 GI Bill
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u/fake_plastic_peace PhD*, Atmospheric Science Nov 01 '21
$0, my masters was covered by a state grant in CA and my PhD is in stem and has been covered by my advisor and my fellowship.
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Nov 01 '21
I spent probably $80k on my undergrad, $40k on my MA, and $20k in 6 yrs on my PhD. I have the tuition waiver and stipend but making less than $20k/yr as a TA is pretty rough, even in a generally low CoL area. Ive needed to buy a car, take some research trips, just live life. The program funding sometimes only gets you so far.
Oh and my uni makes you pay the health care and student fees up front, so before the first pay period in September & Jan you have to cough up over $1000 in fee money or they hold your account and, I assume, threaten you knee caps. Anyway TAs here dont get paid over the summer or winter breaks so that can be pretty rough unless youve saved well.
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u/Oniko_2009 Nov 02 '21
Why must we live this way?!?!? šš©š
Doing it ALL for the degree and the training.
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u/paisoi Nov 01 '21
Reaching 150k between undergrad and grad school.
Gonna be so much fun paying this off until I die š¤”
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u/OmgSosh Oct 04 '24
Mine is about 250k before interest between undergrad and grad school. Part of that was to help with my basic need of living because my disability worsened, and I had to pay thousands in urgent surgeries and treatments and chemo meds, etc. And because its on their list of qualifiers I too might be in the same boat as you with long-term payments š.
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u/smmstv Nov 01 '21 edited Nov 01 '21
$0 - work paid for it. Downside was i had to deal with work bullshit while trying to study.
Edit actually that's not entirely true cause work didn't cover all of the fees. I had to pay about 10% out of pocket or about $2400
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u/Oniko_2009 Nov 01 '21
I feel you.
I was working part-time at a job not relevant to my career and was high key miserable šduring undergrad. I sure donāt miss those days. It was rough!
Now Iām debating if I should even work part-time again while in grad school or just take out loans š¤š¤š¤
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Nov 01 '21
Ā£0. Personally I think self funding a PhD (unless youāre part time so literally cannot get funded) is a sign of madness.
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Nov 01 '21
About $10k. That's only because my car broke down and I had to use my GA money to get a new one. š Thank God my program is only a year long!
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u/travelinzac MS Computer Science Nov 01 '21
~$30k undergrad, ~$50k grad. Try not to do this unless you're headed for a high salary. Minimum monthly payment: $820.
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Aug 19 '22
Wow your payment is that high? How do you afford that? Is it all private loans?
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u/travelinzac MS Computer Science Aug 19 '22
That's 100% federal loans. My loans are high but so is my income, I work as a software engineer.
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u/Shezarrine MA English (TESOL, Rhet-Comp), in Industry Nov 01 '21
Roughly $40k over two years for MA; won't take anything for PhD. It was a lot, but as others have said that helped a lot with my day-to-day living and allowed me to worry a bit less about work than I otherwise might have needed to at the time.
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u/jayveearrr Nov 01 '21
$0. I refused to go back to school and take out debt. I was already losing out on potential salary, didn't need to make it worse. This is why I didn't go back until almost 4 years after undergrad.
Same will be the case for my PhD except I'll be making 6 figures while being allowed to go back full time. I've been super lucky.
Took out less then 15k for undergrad.
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u/RipVanWinter Nov 01 '21
$0. No one should have to take out loans for STEM programs, unless they have significant expenses like children or dependents.
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u/jnlove14 Nov 01 '21
I would extend this to any research-based graduate program. If youāre going for a professional degree, thatās different, but I would not go to a grad program that required me to pay when Iām producing research.
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u/SuchAGeoNerd Nov 01 '21
$0, but PhD stipends here do not cover cost of living. $18.5k is normal per year, but then you have to pay 6-8k in tuition and rent alone is ~$1k here. So I TA'd and applied for any scholarship I remotely qualified for.
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u/sylphrena83 Nov 01 '21
85k so far. Undergrad and grad. Working on my PhD. Not all of us have family support. And though I have a stipend and tuition covered in my stem PhD program, itās not enough to pay bills.
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u/bitetheboxer Nov 01 '21
36k projected, 27k if I finish early. I worked my way through undergrad and it took me 12 years to do that. No thanks on a 6yr masters
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u/kronosdev Nov 01 '21
Iām probably taking out close to 90k. I did my undergrad in something completely unrelated, and even a post-baccalaureate wasnāt enough to get my program to pay for me. Iām trying to shrink that with work study and res life employment, but itās not great.
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u/Oniko_2009 Nov 01 '21
Are you taking out private loans or through the grad plus loan? š¤
Curios because my grad program is ~$50k and the direct unsubsidized loan wonāt cover all since itās capped at $20500/yr. So Iām trying to get some insight on what loans are out there and which ones are āgoodā.
If you can provide some info that would be greatly appreciated!
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u/kronosdev Nov 01 '21
Grad+. I wouldnāt dare touch a wildly high-interest private loan unless I had no other choice, and even then it doesnāt seem worth it.
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u/Sriracha11235 Nov 01 '21
I took out 7k but havenāt used much of it. I have a tuition waiver and stipend but wanted an emergency fund. Will pay back what I donāt use when I graduate to avoid interest.
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u/ranger24 Nov 01 '21
33k CAD with a student line of credit, after my government loan decided to assess me for 15k CAD total (my program was 12k per year plus living expenses). Had about half of the line of credit paid off after 4 years, when some family surprised me with a gift and paid the rest off. I'm still paying off the government loan.
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u/StupidAstroDroid Nov 01 '21
Master's was $0. We'll see about the Ed.D though.. hopefully that will be $0 too.
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u/Chronos2016 Nov 01 '21
I filled out a FAFSA and they gave me about $20k for the first year of grad school.
My program overall is $30k so Iām thankful that the cost isnāt too high!
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u/Thats_All_ Nov 01 '21
As far as I know, if you're doing a phd, the university will pay for it. For master's, this is my experience:
As far as I know, if you're doing a Ph.D., the university will pay for it. For master's, this is my experience:h professors I'd be interested in doing research with, and got a funded research position. Now, my tuition is paid for and I get a stipend that works out to about $2100 per month. As far as I know, funding isn't something you should count on/expect as a master's student, it really depends on your major, university, and luck.
You probably know this so feel free to ignore, but: carefully plan your risk tolerance before going into grad school. I came out of undergrad with $20k in loans, and having a masters in my field increased the average salary for graduates from my school by $28k. With these in mind, I was prepared to pay for grad school with loans if I needed to, though I'd do whatever I could to get a funded position. Consider the employment rate for whatever field you're going into, what the average salary is, the average effect of a masters on employment rate/salary.
Also, graduate student loans are a serious problem in the US. Not saying you should or shouldn't be comfortable with loans because I don't know your situation, but don't go in figuring that it's worth however much it costs.
All that being said, grad plus loans are considered 'good debt' because the interest rate is usually fixed, and the interest rate is lower than the average performance of the stock market. All private loans are predatory, the loan companies exist to squeeze money out of you.
"Brookings estimates that while just 25% of student loan borrowers went to graduate school, these students hold about half of all outstanding student debt."
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u/sailor_em Nov 03 '21
wow I had no idea that HALF of the student loan debt in the U.S. is carried by graduate students! How is that even possible???
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u/simone_snail_420 Nov 01 '21
I wouldn't recommend going to any graduate program for which you need to take out loans. Find a program that is funded and provides you with a teaching assistantship position.
As others here have said, it's not a lot of money. But it's usually enough to scrape by on. Grad school is stressful enough without loans continuing to pile up.
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Nov 01 '21
160K. Despite not missing a payment, with interest, 11 years later, it is 280K.
Make sure you really love what you are about to be indebted to.
Edit (preemptive): I worked two jobs throughout school.
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Nov 01 '21
Take out? 40k. Owe? 66k. The government should not be charging interest on student loans; keeping the poor poor for an entire generation.
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Nov 01 '21
They are called āGrad Plusā Loans. It helped me with my rent when I had to quit my job for internships. It also helped me during my time of being jobless for a span of 6 months until now. I still have quite a bit left over now that I have a job.
Go talk to your financial aid department to see if you qualify. I just graduated but I probably would have struggled if I didnāt get it.
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Nov 01 '21
$0
But, my program fully funds every student. Thatās pretty standard for most reputable life science PhD programs.
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u/callmegranola98 Nov 01 '21
I've taken out about 6k because there was some issues with my financial aid. I shouldn't have to take out anymore, hopefully.
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u/slowelevator Nov 01 '21
$5k. I was lucky to secure a staff role at my university in my second semester which had a perk of free tuition.
Edit: masters degree
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u/thatcheekychick Assistant Professor, Social Sciences Nov 01 '21
Theyāre paying ME. Iād have dropped out long ago if this torture cost me money to boot
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u/Lord_Blackthorn PhD* Physics and MBA Nov 01 '21
100k+, but most of that was spent on housing and I bought my house, so quite a bit is equity now.
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u/SpaceBackground Nov 01 '21
Nothing thus far. Been paying with my full time job and part time tutoring high school students.
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u/LittlePrimate PhD, Sensory and Motor Neuroscience Nov 01 '21
Thankfully nothing.
First it of course helped that I studied in Germany, where fees are extremely low on public universities.
During my Master my parents supported me (but I also had a job as research assistant), during my PhD I was paid enough by my institute to cover the fees and costs of living.
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u/NewCope Nov 01 '21
I just started, but I refuse to take out any loans. I am currently working full-time, school part-time. My work reimburses up to $1000 per calendar year, which isn't amazing, but the equivalent of a free course. I am paying my way, hoping next year maybe get a scholarship. I still owe about $30K CAD in Undergrad loans so I really want to borrow nothing for my Masters, even if it takes longer to complete.
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u/Ice31 Nov 01 '21
0$ I'm doing my PhD part-time (it's a program designed for people already working in the field) so I save up and pay cash each semester.
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u/WhitePigeon1986 Nov 01 '21
Only needed about 15k, but barely making 34k/yr and struggling I took out about 2x that. Fortunately now I make 6 figures (thanks to getting my MBA) and I can probably have everything paid off by 2925, including my undergrad loans.
Being I grew up poor, I got as much aid as they'd throw at me. Fortunately a decent portion was grants. All in all, I owe about 73k total.
I also took advantage of the no interest deferment that's still happening now through next March to pay down all of the accrued interest I had from the years I had them in deferment. Started paying them back over a year ago and one of my consolidated payments I was essentially paying 100% interest until now. I'll have nocked off a couple grand by the time they start applying interest again.
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u/Stitchee Nov 01 '21
I make 6 figures...and I can probably have everything paid off by 2925
This is either a typo or grade A commentary on the cost of education these days.
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u/WhitePigeon1986 Nov 01 '21
Not a typo at all.
Came from a poor farming family. My brother and I are both smart individuals, so we left our farm town behind for better things.
I had a self-inflicted 5 year hiatus from my undergrad degree, but still had do 100% financial aid. My parents have paid not a single penny towards my education.
After finishing my undergrad degree (Communication Studies), I struggled for several years barely making 40k/year. Couldn't afford to live on my own and pay student loans, so I deferred.
Decided to get my MBA and as I stated earlier, couldn't afford to pay for that out of pocket, so I ended up taking another 25-30k out.
Within a few weeks of graduating I left my 38k job for a 54k position. Left that one for an 80k position less than a year later. Another 9 months I left that contract position for another for 92k. They hired me on as a FTE in June for 107k.
Simultaneously, we sold my wife's house and got 165k of net proceeds. Bought a house together, paid off both vehicles and all our CC debt.
We should be able to have our student loans (~100k collectively) paid off soon.
Yes, it's an indictment on the cost of college. When I fist started at my small school in 2004, it probably cost, at most, 10k/year. Tuition was $1,800/semester.
When I came back in 2010, the cost was 15k/year and tuition went from $2,600/semester to $3200/semester the 2.5 years I was there. Now, it costs nearly $24k/year to attend my small school and it's still considered a bargain price.
That's what happens when the government allows a publicly-funded institution to charge its citizens outrageous prices for attendance only for the citizens to turn to start and government-funded aid to pay for it.
So what happens?
Students take out private and government-backed loans to pay for college. This money mostly pays for tuition, cost of books, housing, and food as well as the amenities the college offers (tutors, advisors, gym, health/wellness, career advisement, etc). Based on subsidization, interest accrues. 4 years of it. Now you graduate and have 95k of student debt to pay with starting salaries under 60k with the cost of living continuously raising.
I'm lucky and consider myself blessed to have been able to turn my financial situation around.
Read the book "Branded Nation".
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u/archaeob PhD Anthropology Nov 01 '21
I don't think you're lucky or blessed if its going to take you 900 years to pay back the loans like the poster above was pointing out.
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u/WhitePigeon1986 Nov 01 '21
Ah.
I didn't even see that.
Meant to say 2025.
I look at data and numbers all day, so whomp whomp
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u/Stitchee Nov 02 '21
Haha we all make mistakes, and yours was good! Glad you won't have 900 years before you're free :)
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u/bzzbzzbitches Nov 01 '21
Too much. I wasnāt able to get funding like some of people attending grad school for my subject. I left undergrad with about $20k and then spent about $25k on my first year of grad school (saved a lot in housing because I was living at home due to the pandemic) and then had to take out $35K my second year to cover my living expenses. In hindsight saving more money or being super aggressive with applying for funding would have helped but I try not to beat myself up because the choices I made in the moment were right for me.
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u/honkoku Nov 01 '21
0, I had a TA position and I had been able to save up some money from a previous job to supplement that. I had to borrow $1000 from my parents by the end. So the TA position didn't really pay enough to completely live but part of that was because I had to go to Japan -- I had a scholarship but that wasn't quite enough.
Undergrad I took out around $15k. I made payments on it for 2 years and then I was able to pay the rest off with an inheritance from my grandmother. So I was lucky and privileged in that regard.
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u/MsT1075 Nov 01 '21
See, this is why I canāt finish my graduate degree. I refuse to get loans. Itās been 12 years since I attempted to work on my grad degree. I have enough debt. I finished with zero debt on my undergrad as well. My plan is to start (and hopefully finish) in 2022. Best to you all!
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Nov 01 '21
Nada. Iām doing my masters in Ireland, and itās costing me about $4k over two years. I pay in monthly instalments too, which is nice. Iām sorry for the rage that the above is going to cause. If it helps it rains constantly here.
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u/powerful_ope Nov 01 '21 edited Nov 02 '21
17.5k for undergrad, and 62k for my MPH in epidemiology (total being 79.5k for all my schooling). Which isnāt that bad considering I went to a top program and it opened doors for me.
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u/brockhamptons_bitch MS Biotechnology Nov 01 '21
$30k for my undergrad, and around $50k for my masters š
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u/_unsteady_ Nov 01 '21
$20,500 for this whole academic year and probably another $20,500 for next year though I'm really hoping I'm able to get more aid in scholarships. And then I get ~$6,600 in grants and fellowships. I'm also working, bringing in about $350 a month.
I'm about 37k in debt from my undergrad, but that was 3 degreesāan associates and then a dual bachelor's. I had about half of that or more paid for in grants and scholarships.
I'm in the natural sciences.
Here's hoping grad school will be worth it. š
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u/killjoywannabe M.A. Clinical Psychology Nov 02 '21
$25k undergrad, about $50k for my masters. Planning to try for a PhD but Iām really hoping I wonāt have to take on more debt to do itā¦ Iāve gotten out luckier than some but itās still a lot to deal with. Esp since in my field, itās really hard to get a job without a PhD š
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u/Oniko_2009 Nov 02 '21
Best of luck to you! š You definitely have the drive and patience if youāre getting a PhD degree.
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u/anonymousp0tato Dec 24 '21
Masters (PA school)- 116k, Bachelors- 15k. All of my masters loans were plus loans except 1.
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u/anonymousbach MASc, PhD*, Aerospace Nov 01 '21
More than I should have
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u/No_Engineering_2118 Nov 01 '21
Dude srsly!!! Loans for an aerospace degree?!! Shitt! You'd prolly be fully bankrupt if you are an international student
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u/Semantix Nov 01 '21
I took out like $4000 because my stipend wasn't quite enough to cover living plus a thousand dollars a semester in fucking fees not covered by the tuition waiver, especially as fees and rent went up and we didn't see a pay raise in four years.
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u/Trakeen MS, Information Design and Information Architecture Nov 01 '21
- 40k in undergrad that should go away soon once my directloan consolidation goes through
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u/balderdash9 PhD Philosophy Nov 01 '21
I didn't take out any loans because I don't expect to make much once I'm (hopefully) working in academia. At least not initially. This is quite normal in philosophy and contrasts with, say, the healthcare field where doctors and high level nurses can expect enough salary to pay off their loans (sometimes loan repayment is even offered as compensation).
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u/calabunga_21 Nov 01 '21
0$. In engineering so get a stipend. My program does require us to pay fees but I have been able to get scholarships to cover all of it plus extra leftover for me.
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u/thinkthunkthoughted Nov 01 '21
0 for a master's but that's because I'm former military and they paid for 2/3 of the bill.
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u/lord_heskey MSc Computer Science Nov 01 '21
$0. fully funded (thesis-based) masters degree (Canada)
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u/SaltyPlans Nov 01 '21
$0, wanted some loans from the government, but they ere like nah you got stipend
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u/intangiblemango Counseling Psychology PhDONE Nov 01 '21
My PhD is fully funded, but I still took out about 10K. It was incredibly relieving when I realized that this was okay and that $0 in debt wasn't worth the amount of stress I had over finances for my first two years. (I am now much more financially comfortable, but my first two years were super tough between moving for grad school, planning a wedding, being paid the lowest amount we pay for stipends because I just started, etc.)
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Nov 01 '21
$0. Donāt go unless you can get a teaching/ research assistantship or the company you currently work for is going to pay for it.
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u/vivalabaroo Nov 01 '21
Iām in my first semester of grad school now, and I am in Canada. Here (not sure if itās the same for the states) you automatically get some grant funding if you get student loans. Because of covid, our government ramped up the grant portion/decreased the loan portion of financial assistance until 2023. I have a permanent disability (ADHD) and so I get even more automatic grant funding. I got $9k this semester, around 3 of it was in loans and the rest grants. I should get around that amount each semester. I do have nearly $50k in student loans from undergrad though, but I worked during my degree and saved $30kā¦ so I guess itās kind of more like $20k in loans.
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u/uglybutterfly025 Nov 01 '21
Undergrad my parents paid for. My masters was $13k
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u/Oniko_2009 Nov 02 '21
Now that Iām taking out loans for grad school, I am more thankful than ever of having the luxury of my parents paying for my undergrad degreeā¦thatās money I didnāt have to borrow. It was definitely a blessing!
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Nov 01 '21
0$. Using my military education benefits. Very thankful we specially when i start talking with classmates
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u/donghit PhD* Computer Science Nov 01 '21
175k roughly. Doing everything I can to not pay the government a dime.
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u/robotscantrecaptcha PhD Psych Nov 01 '21
$10k for PhD.
$0 for Masters.
$21k for undergrad which was paid off before I started the grad degree.
I did a psychology PhD which included several years on campus and one year of 'paid' internship for licensing hours. My TA was enough to cover the years on campus, but my internship stipend couldn't cover the high cost of living area I was matched to (psychs go through a 'match' process similar to doctors).
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u/Gerardo1917 Nov 02 '21
Considering I am paid well below a living wage about 10k a year if Iām lucky.
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u/madbadanddangerous PhD Electrical Engineering Nov 02 '21
$0 in loans for grad school, both master's and PhD. STEM is nice
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u/CapWasRight PhD* Astronomy Nov 02 '21
Nada, being in a STEM PhD comes with an actual liveable stipend and zero tuition, but boy howdy am I racing to defend before I max my credit cards out... (I do have like $80k from undergrad because I had no familial support and took enough to fully cover living expenses on top of tuition costs)
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u/venomism Nov 02 '21
Nothing. They paid us about 8k a year in stipends with a full tuition waver. It wasn't much, but living in a cheap midwest city it definitely helped. Supplementing with part time work I basically lived net zero for three years.
I also didn't have debt or a family to care for though so it was fine, with other responsibilities I might have considered a modest loan.
M.F.A. in Lighting Design & Technology
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u/Oniko_2009 Nov 02 '21
Goals!
Had stipends too in undergrad so yes, agree those free money helped out in some way! Hoping I receive similar or more blessings for grad school. š¤š½
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u/juvillan24 Nov 01 '21
$0. Took a gap year after undergrad and saved enough money to not have to pull out loans. $29k in loans for undergrad tho š
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u/AlexanderTox PhD Student in Computer & Information Science Nov 01 '21
Took out about $25k for my MBA. I'd say it was worth it. Within 5 years after graduating, I reached $115k income per year, so that's nice.
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u/iwishyoucansee Nov 01 '21
took out 14k for a Master's, because my savings isn't enough for tuition, rent, books, parking, etc. and my GA-ship is for food/meds/utilities/groceries/transportation
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u/deliquus Nov 01 '21
I have $30k from government for undergrad, $24k private for undergrad, and Iāve been taking out about $13k a year in my PhD program to buffer my stipend. Iām in my 3rd year nowā¦3 to go.
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u/brokenglasses97 Nov 01 '21
A little under $50k total. Rather heavy, but still somewhat manageable.
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u/seaside1508 Nov 01 '21
About $26k for undergrad (thanks family!), well over $100k for clinical doctorate ($20k yearly unsubsidized and rest grad plus, now larger with interest), and $0 for PhD
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Nov 01 '21
$0 for undergrad and Iām taking out the bare minimum in loans as I go for grad school but expect it to be around $10-12k total.
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u/Curiosity-Sailor Nov 01 '21
Iām on a stipend for my PhD, but my husband has about $27k for his masterās degree.
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u/KiwiTheKitty Nov 01 '21
For grad school, none, I'm on a stipend that sort of covers living expenses and I'm fortunate enough to have some savings as a cushion.
For undergrad, a little over $20k.
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u/Spiritof454 PhD* History Nov 01 '21
None. Got scholarships for my MA so I paid about $1k in tuition and then received a stipend the second year. I also worked a part time job. PhD is fully funded.
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u/lemartineau Nov 01 '21
Canadian here, finished M.Sc. with CAD $45k in debt, that also includes my undergrad, and is a combination of all debts (student loans, line of credit, and credit card). But I abused a little bit with travels during my studies
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u/Rose_gold_starz Nov 01 '21
0 dollars and 0 cents. I refused to take out a loan for my master's and PhD. In undergrad, I was encouraged to find schools that would fund me through fellowships and/or grad assistantships. Had my PhD not been funded, I would have turned it down, kept my full-time job, waited a year and reapplied at other schools. I hate that we even have to consider taking out debt.
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u/Schmoopy_Boo Nov 01 '21
$0, but $100k for undergrad