Hey, that’s cool. I knew what I posted would not appeal to some folk. And I think it sucks that higher education (not simply in social sciences) is so expensive. And it sucks that meaningful work is so hard to get and often so poorly paid. And it sucks that the wealthy have so many more options than the rest of us.
I just wanted to offer one perspective - that tens of thousands of dollars of debt is a BIG deal, and is going to affect your future for decades to come in ways you may not presently be aware of.
Pursuing one’s dreams is generally a laudable goal. But paying for them is another matter.
This is certainly true, too. But you also pay a price for not pursuing your dreams. It’s a harder call determining whether this price is at least weakly worse than $45k for twenty years at 4% per year. But it’s the call anyone considering this sort of career has to make.
I’m not worried about a house or a family. My house, no doubt, will change many times over the years as I pursue new projects and career options across the continent. It will probably be decades before I have something stable. A family would be nice, but it isn’t what is most important to me. I’m under no delusion that some guy is going to follow me to Africa and take a backseat to my career. As for children, I cared deeply for a child who I loved honestly as mine own. She died of malaria only a few months after I left Cameroon. I’ve got a bigger mission in this world than taking care of my personal offspring. There are countless children out there for me to love. There are bigger things that I need to contribute to.
Travel, fortunately, is sort of built into the deal.
Ever since I stepped off that plane in Yaounde, I’ve known with absolute certainty that Africa is exactly where I need to be. It’s a common affliction. My Cameroon Peace Corps friends, most of whom had no previous Africa experience, are now wading at the source of the Nile, holding bachelorette parties in the Congo, starting start-ups in Cameroon and lounging on the beaches in Senegal. Cheesy as it may be, it gets in your blood. My dreams are in that beautiful staccato tropical French. I’ve spent two long years in exile pining and scheming. I’ll spent two more years making it a reality.
And when I do go back, I want to be as useful as possible. Right now sans degree I could probably get a decently paying job at an American school. But I want to do more, I want to give more, and fortunately for me my plans also will lead to me making a lot more money. Not a lot of qualified people are willing to live their lives in Africa- I’m thinking my Chinese experience will make me even more desirable as China becomes a rising force in Africa. I can certainly carve a niche for myself. I’m honestly not in any way worried about employability. And once I have a job, these jobs tend to be pretty cushy. I’ve been at this for four years and basically everyone I know is in the field. I have a decent idea of the life I am looking at and what my degree will mean.
So the dream is not negotiable. The only question is how to get there. If I need to work in Korea (3k a month, low living expenses) for several years to finance it, I’ll do that. It’ll take as long as it takes. But I feel like it is smarter to get the degree now, since it’s almost certain that the degree will lead to a job that will make more than I could make now.
I think you can understand why the military is not an option for me.
Hey, totally cool. I truly admire your goals and ambition. I wish you the best, and admit I am jealous of the fact that you have clearly identified such goals and have made some plans for how to achieve them. And I’m sorry that in my time on the boards I had not obtained a clear impression of your situation/aspirations.
So I guess my response is that you are supposed to finance your education however the hell you can, because it is a necessary first step.
Just posted what I did because with 3 kids in college I’m painfully aware of the costs involved and the tough choices that must be made. Wanted to raise the possibity of investigating less expensive alternatives (as you have, a la Peace Corps.) I know a ton of people whose budgets are hugely influenced by their student (and other) debt. And I encounter any number of youngish folk who seem to think about what they want and feel they are entitled to first, rather than whether they can afford it or who is going to pay for it.
Look forward to hearing about what promises to be an interesting and rewarding life! Be entirely aggressive and creative in seeking out funding options. And when deciding on what you are going to pursue, choose between your spending alternatives wisely.
As a program administrator in a relatedly broke field (education), we don’t have any money. Whining will just make you an annoyance to the faculty - but Drake’s other point, which is to look into options like being a TA, is a good one.
The truth is that masters degree programs are typically limited when it comes to grant aid. You should really look into federal loans, and consider the repayment and forgiveness programs that are in place. Teaching in certain communities for a period of time can get your loans forgiven. In some states, the state government has plans to pay off your loans if you work in certain fields. (I’m participating in one such program right now.)
Not sure if there are any foundations tied to your field, but they might have merit based aid available. Do you have a national or international conference that you attend yearly? This might be a good source to learn of funding options.
Finally, where are you studying? If your institution has on-campus housing, try to get a gig as a residence hall director, or house master. Grad students are always good catches and they typically pay you in room and board (and sometimes give a stipend as well). If you get a hall with upperclassmen or grad students it should not be a job that gives you intolerable stress.
I’d also check in with faculty doing research - they might have grant money that can pay for some part of your studies. If you do good work and let it be known you’re looking for an opportunity to work, you might get a chance to earn some cash and get some research experience as well.
This absolutely. I went from “we can’t do anything for you” to a full fellowship including a full-time technician assistant in one year. I politely (whined) asked the chair of the graduate program about funding opportunities at least once a week for months. He finally got tired of it and suggested I chat with the Dept. chair. A bit of luck was involved; his Mom got her MD after raising him and his 5 siblings* and a misplaced fellowship was discovered. Yeah me!
*I was a Mom returning to grad school after being a SAHM.
I just went through this for business school, although nearly every school I got into required that I commit before they would start running the numbers and figuring out my eligibility and shit.
Anyway, aside from the 20,500, which they more or less give to everyone, they’re also supposed to calculate your maximum eligibility in order to figure out how much you are allowed to get out of GradPlus. This is what the school estimates is the total cost of attendance for 1 year (room, board, tuition and additional fees). You have to subtract out the 20,500 from maximum eligibility and that’s how much you’re allowed to squeeze out of GradPlus.
You can also go outside GradPlus to get variable rate loans from private lenders. However, schools are no longer allowed to refer preferred lenders with whom they have contracts because of that Department of Education scandal. I’ll be matriculating at Michigan, and while they will no longer make bank recommendations over the phone or on their website, they are still allowed to list the “top companies” that current students choose if they’re not going to go through GradPlus.
I’ve heard a lot of confusing chatter on whether or not non-GradPlus lenders allow you to borrow over maximum eligibility or not. Some people say you’re capped, others say you can pad in a little extra for comfort sake.
Anyway, for everyone taking the vapours over even sven’s COA, mine is currently estimated to be 158K for a two year degree. And that’s in Ann-f*cking-Arbor. I actually pulled my NYU app after Michigan and Duke sent me their estimates.
[QUOTE=anu-la1979;12338051Anyway, for everyone taking the vapours over even sven’s COA, mine is currently estimated to be 158K for a two year degree. And that’s in Ann-f*cking-Arbor. I actually pulled my NYU app after Michigan and Duke sent me their estimates.[/QUOTE]
Ha, I was over at the B-school to have lunch on Friday, I may have walked past you. Their little cafeteria is pretty nice.
The only thing I know about GBR is that they have a rule against the students hooking up with the admits. It makes me wonder what happened to require such a rule being put in place.
It was a great weekend. I didn’t get much of a chance to see the school when I was interviewing, so this was the first time I got a look at the facility. It’s quite impressive-the only building I think that could top it would be UChicago, although I hear Georgetown got some pretty pretty glass this year and MIT is gearing up to upgrade.
I ended up choosing Ross over UCLA/Duke/Carnegie and NYU mostly because of a combination of the students and administration being amazing + the MAP program + reasonably cost effective location. On the other hand, I went to law school at UIUC, and even though Ann Arbor is a much better college town, it still had enough of a Chambana look about it that I began to remember law school and get a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach (all the negative associations). I’m sure I’ll get over it.
Hey, as an aside, do you know if the parking facility on S. Forest does monthly passes? The bus that goes by my apartment is the 15, which doesn’t go all the way down to part of campus the b-school is located in. I feel like with the combination of books + laptop + gym gear + suit (I’m doing i-banking recruiting) that I’m going to have to bring to school everyday, I’m better off using my car for storage and parking at the structure on S. Forest.
Hi **anu-la1979 **- I was wondering where you ended up B-School-wise. Sounded like you had a solid app and were thinking through the interview process thoroughly. Sounds like it has come out well. Yay.
Grad school financing is always a tough call - pricey and a total commitment to a specific path…at least there are options available so folks like **even sven **and **anu-la **who are ready to make that commitment can access it.
It took me years to pay off my B-School debt, but I can’t imagine my life without having gone there…
Crap, I should have updated you (I sent xash an email). Thanks for your insight into the interview process. Basically I ended up getting interviewed at 7/9 of the schools, figured out that I hated one school on sight (WHARTON!), that one looked better on paper than in person (UChicago) and that I kind of made a mistake by not applying to one (Kellogg, where I had legacy!). The rest I liked, though they all had their quirks.
I’ve dropped out of sight because I was incredibly burnt out by interviews + going to extension school + working 2 jobs. And then I had a cancer “scare”, which was actually just a lab mixup at the doctor’s office that upset me enough to keep me in my apartment rocking back and forth in a panic. Fortunately I am cancer free, finished stats and calculus and am quitting work in 2 weeks, so all’s well that ends well. Well, that is, if I don’t ponder my debt load too deeply!
Anyway, to bring this back to even sven’s original point-I am investigating the benefit of non-GradPlus vs GradPlus loans vs a combination of the 2 right now, so I’ll update your thread with my findings.
Wow - that’s a lot! Congrats again - although I agree you shoulda pursued Kellogg more! ( but I am kinda biased)…I am sure you will do great at Michigan and hopefully you will have a bit more Dope time there!
I don’t have a car, so I don’t know, sorry. I’ll ask around, though, see what people say. There are a couple people who are dual degree with business in my next class, I’ll ask them what they know about parking.
P.S. Do feel free to ask me any questions about Ann Arbor or grad student life at UM. Obviously I’m not at the B-school, but I can answer general questions, and I do have several friends that are B-school students, so I have a good idea of what goes on over there. (The dual degree with business and policy is a pretty popular one.)
but I am kinda biased)…I am sure you will do great at Michigan and hopefully you will have a bit more Dope time there!
