I can either go to grad school and get started in the fall and pay out of state tuition-(loans) or wait until the Spring when I will be instate. What would you do? They only offer 2 classes in the fall and one class in the spring. I feel like I should go ahead and just start and take out the extra loan so at least I will have a head start. The bulk of the classes are offered in the summer. There is a possibility that I may be able to be classified as in state but I'm not sure.
Price difference is about 2,000. Low interest loan. I owe SOOO much in loans already I just feel like putting an extra 4,000 is nothing. I owe a lot already. I just want to get done with grad school ASAP so I can get the grad pay. I really need it. Also if I wait until the spring then I have to stop the whole admissions process etc...
It sounds like you already made up your mind...try for subsidized loans so you wont have to pay the interest now and definitely fight for the instate discount
You know its so weird when you come here for advice and then you read back what you wrote. It does look like I have made up my mind. Guess I just wanted someone to give some good reasons to talk me out of it.
I was told that if I started at the out of state rate, I would have to pay the out of state rate the whole way through. When you add up the difference for each semester, all the way through, that number might seem a lot bigger! DH really needed some more classes for work when we moved here, but we felt that it was important to wait for in-state tuition.
To me $4k is a lot of money to pay back...and remember it isn't just the loan amount you pay back. With interest it is much more. Personally, its a semester I would wait, but the decision is yours
I actually chose to start in the spring because I didn't want to be trying to get used to teaching and grad school at the same time. I thought it might be too much. I started my masters program in January of 95 and finished in December of 96.
Think about if you were an 18 year old college freshman - if you moved to another state and started college, then you pay out of state until you're done. It isn't any different as a grad student.
I would wait, especially if the amount is drastic-like it usually is. I wish I had that option, but I'm in grad school at a private university so it's expensive all around.
But at undergrad you would be living in a dorm and you would have a "home" for the summer, breaks, etc. In her situation she actually moved and there is no "home" to go to...unless I read that wrong.
I just checked again for the university here (and of course, it may be different in different places...) You can petition after a year to change to in-state status, but it is weighed on a case-by-case basis. And the big wordy paragraphs describing it do not sound promising enough to risk my money on! (And goodness that form is detailed - membership in churches or clubs, date you last voted, amount in your bank acct, have you left the state at all in the last 12 months... and this is for a state university!
I paid under $10,000 for my whole Master's-so I think $4,000 would be too much extra. It just depends on how important the money is to you.
Wow!!!!!!!!!! My first one was $23,000 with scholarships and the 2nd was $30,000 with only a few small scholarships. I guess its all relative to the area and the pay scale increases though.
My first MA cost $3200, and it has earned me an additional $3000 a year since then. (Of course, that was quite a few years ago.)
Well thanks for letting me know about the out of state rule! I had no idea. I will check it out because if thats the case I will wait until the spring.
I checked around and found an in-state college that was cheaper. I am also a little crazy and took 5 classes one semester (while working full time). I found out once you hit 9 credits, it is a flat rate tuition. So I took 5 classes for the price of 3 and saved myself at least $2,000.
Hahah, I'm just as crazy! I took 21 credits last summer! That was smart to do, I wish my college had offered that! Undergrad did and I always took advantage.