A few months ago in this thread I mentioned that I was quitting my job and in the process of applying to graduate school.
Well, about a week ago I received my acceptance letter from The University of Vermont in the mail, and a few days ago I send back the postcard expressing my intent to register for classes starting in the fall. They didn’t send a lot of information with the letter, so I hope I get a nice packet telling me what I need to know. I also didn’t get any kind of notice about financial aid. I was hoping to get a combination of teaching and research assistantships. Granted, I still may get them, since the letter did say that the individual departments decide who gets those, and they might not have made their final decision, or they might want to know I am attending before they offer me a package. The problem with these offers is that, according to the website, they are pretty much all or nothing. Either you get the assistantship and it pays full tuition and a small stipend…or you don’t and that’s that. No “in-between” area where I can work less hours than someone will the full ride and only get the tuition (or fraction thereof) paid for. And since I didn’t have the hottest undergrad GPA (good enough to get in, but to get a lot of moolah?) I fear it won’t be good enough to compete with the good students.
If I don’t get any kind of financial aid…well, then it will be quite hard for me to afford it, but I think I could make do. I can always just take out more loans ( ) if that’s what it comes to, and can get a part-time job. Plus, the college is technically close enough that if I really needed to, I could live with my parents for free and commute. I’d rather not do that, because after six years of living on my own, it would really cramp my style to move back in with them. I mean…what if I wanted to bring a girl home? Huh? Oh, wait, nevermind…that’s not going to happen. Besides that, though, my parents live 45 minutes from the college, so while I could commute, I wouldn’t like it very much.
So that’s that. Right now I’m just doing a combination of waiting for more info from grad school (and perhaps I’ll call them this week about the financial aid thing) and also looking at housing. My mom actually informed me of a girl she works with who is in nursing school (at the same college) who is looking for a fourth roommate for her and her friends to live in a house with. In general, the more roommates, the cheaper the rent, so hopefully that will work out nicely.
First on all, congrats on getting accepted to grad school.
At my university, separate letters are sent out by the department and the grad school itself. While the grad school letter is more “official,” the department letter is the one with all the details regarding financial aid. It may indeed be a little while yet before you hear something about assistantships and the like. It’s possible that the department only has so much money available, and needs to hear back from folks who have decided not to accept before they can offer more money to the people who have (that has certainly been the case in my department this year, and apparently a lot of other schools have been experiencing an explosion in qualified applicants).
As for your living situation, well… when I went to grad school, economics forced me to move back in with my parents too. It was a little uncomfortable at first, but the combination of 90+ hour weeks at school and a bf with his own place solved most issues. Unless the rooming situation is truly affordable, I’d bite the bullet and move back in with the 'rents, at least for the first year. You never know when you might need what little money you’re able to save from a stipend. (Got a car? Want to go on a much-needed vacation? Those pennies do add up…)
When I got accepted at my top grad school, I accepted but then when they offered me no money, I wrote them telling them that I needed assistance to be able to go, so they sweetened their offer. You might try that if push comes to shove. This was back in the Paleolithic Era, but the squeaky-wheel principle remains valid.
Cool, I’ll certainly give you a…well, not ring, cause I don’t have your number…but I’ll let you know in osme fashion when I’m back in VT.
The people I might be moving in with have a lease that runs out in August, so don’t fret yourself about looking for anything now, since I won’t be moving there till then it seems. Plus, I don’t know if they want to live in Burlington itself, or on the outskirts in Winooski, or Colchester, or something. I have to meet with them and talk about stuff and see if we even want to room together.
It will be nice to be back in VT again. The job I just quit kind of burnt me out, and being in a familiar place will help me recharge, as it were.
I would go ahead and fill out your FAFSA, if you haven’t already. Also, you should make an appointment to talk with the head of your program, just to voice your monetary concerns. My experience has been (MBA) that many graduate schools have money to burn. Several out-of-state students in my class were granted in-state status, and I was given 2 scholarships that I did not apply for. If nothing else, you’ll probably get all the loans you need.
) if that’s what it comes to, and can get a part-time job. Plus, the college is technically close enough that if I really needed to, I could live with my parents for free and commute. I’d rather not do that, because after six years of living on my own, it would really cramp my style to move back in with them. I mean…what if I wanted to bring a girl home? Huh? Oh, wait, nevermind…that’s not going to happen. 
Besides that, though, my parents live 45 minutes from the college, so while I could commute, I wouldn’t like it very much.