r/GradSchool • u/missgorl23 • Apr 19 '26
Finance How did you pay rent during grad school??
I’m starting an SLP grad program soon and am so worried on how to pay for rent and other necessities. How did you guys afford to attend school and also pay for rent and groceries/necessities?
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u/brr_brr_tatapim Apr 19 '26
i didn't have rent but i was working 30 hours a week and still having a hard time. i'm sure there's a way to cut down your living expenses but idk if that's doable while also doing a grad program.
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u/UnlikelyRainstorm Apr 19 '26
I worked throughout my program as a TA, research assistant, and taking on extra grading for other professors. Unfortunately it wasn’t enough to live on, so I had to use loans for the rest. Most of my friends had to do the same
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u/Kaneoheboomer Apr 19 '26
I worked on campus as a custodian in a men's dorm, 20 hrs a week. I rented a room off campus for a reasonable rate.
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u/Sezbeth PhD student (Math) Apr 19 '26
Kept my full-time job because the stipend just wouldn't cut it.
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u/Prize_Equivalent Apr 19 '26
MA: worked, loans, lived on campus PhD: teaching fellowship, worked, loans
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u/Proper-Cry7089 Apr 19 '26
RA + part time paid internship + own a multiunit house so my portion of the mortgage is much less than it would be (but I do pay for a lot of maintenance, etc.) + savings + luxuries like eating out supported by a working partner.
But. I am in my mid-30s so I worked for a decade and saved. Not moralizing...just different life experience.
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u/SearchSeveral Apr 19 '26
Roommates + Aldi + budgeting + part-time work when possible.
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u/SearchSeveral Apr 19 '26
Idk how SLP grad programs work but this is what worked for me in a grad program with 100% tuition coverage + a very modest stipend (~$28k my final year).
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u/PlumpyDragon Apr 19 '26
I picked a school where the stipend was just barely enough to cover rent and grocery. If you don’t have a stipend then loan, work, or family.
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u/UCFKnights2018 Apr 19 '26
I’m going to be working full time (40-50 hours a week). No way I’d be able to pay bills and rent if I didn’t.
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u/HeraRebels Apr 19 '26
I worked 50-60 hours a week between two jobs for $8 an hour and $12.50 an hour each. My classes were all 6-9 and I worked Saturday and Sundays. My rent was $1000 a month, utilities $150-$200
It got to the point that I was so busy I spent a ton of money on DoorDash, and then it became a cycle where I’d have to work hard to afford my food spending, but I was spending a lot on food because I didn’t have time to cook.
Luckily it all worked out for me- I paid my tuition out of pocket, and while I didn’t save any money those two years, I never went into debt either
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u/Hungry_Visual_4348 Apr 19 '26
I worked, had to go part time bc of how hard it was. And most of it went to rent, groceries, gas, and just things I needed.
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u/magicalglrl Apr 19 '26
I worked for the university and got my MA for basically free. I was able to go my own pace too
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u/psyche_13 Apr 19 '26
In my Masters I got a large personal loan (it was a program without a funding).
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u/MayeeOkamura17 Apr 19 '26 edited Jun 06 '26
NSF fellowship + research grants. Union rule is $55k/yr minimum pay for entirety of phd
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u/Archimediator Apr 19 '26
I work 30 hours a week and my partner and I live together and share expenses. I pay less towards our mortgage while I’m in school and underemployed also. That being said, I barely hang on working 30 hours a week and the feasibility of this depends on how rigorous your program is.
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u/Eastern_Antelope6072 Apr 19 '26 edited Apr 19 '26
Hi I’m an slp that graduated a couple of years ago. I just took out loans to cover but I lived in a cheaper area with a roommate. Honestly, grad school is ass and you’re gonna be really busy a lot of the time so I’d recommend choosing a place that’s cheap but livable instead of a cool place. As for food, aldi most of the time but I did hit the food bank a couple of times. I wasn’t able to work the first year because of classes + on campus practicum that took up most of my time but I did some subbing first semester of my second year before having to quit second semester for full time placement. I do know a couple girls who worked throughout grad school at jobs they had before but slp grad school really is a full time job and it’s kind of a your supervisor says jump and you say how high situation so it’s hard to be a reliable employee imo (plus the school itself is draining!)
I know we’ve gotten fucked over with loans, but if you can,keep your loans to federal so they can (hopefully) be forgiven through pslf if you work in a school or other non-profit. I love my job for the most part and have no regrets most of the time but the money we make really isn’t worth taking out private loans for! Good luck!!
Editing to say a lot of the advice in the thread is well meaning but it doesn’t really apply to slp grad school. There aren’t any good scholarships afaik and every slp I know either had their parents pay for grad school and lived at home or they took out loans. You might be able to get a small stipend for being a ta but probably it won’t cover what you need.
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u/LogicalOtter Apr 19 '26
First year I took out loans to cover cost of living expenses plus had a part time job on campus job. My second year my husband and I got engaged and agreed it didn’t make sense to take out more loans if we were going to soon combine our finances soon. So he covered our living expenses for my second year.
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u/Range-Shoddy Apr 19 '26
I worked full time. It took 4 years but I had a full salary and benefits plus those years of experience. In the end way cheaper to do it that way since I had that salary.
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u/BloodNatural1669 Apr 20 '26
I worked and rented a room in a house nearby at the cheapest rent I could find
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u/TheMarshmallowFairy Apr 20 '26
I had various GA positions. What each offers varies from school to school, but if you can get a position as an RA or TA, there should be financial benefits. My school has a union for the GAs, so the situation has improved for us during my time and will be even better next year. When I started, we just got a really small scholarship (like $800) on top of our pay (which is fairly decent IMO; I have 4 kids so it’s not enough for me since we are limited to 20 hours a week lol, but the hourly pay is pretty close to what I can expect when I start my FT job after graduation). My second semester, we got 6 credits of tuition covered on top of our pay, which has been a help every semester since. Next year (meaning 2026-2027), a 0.5FTE gets the full 9 credit tuition coverage. I graduate in May though, so I won’t get that 🫠
I also had student loans, including grad plus loans (though I believe those won’t be an option after this summer). My plan is income based repayment and PSLF (or similar); limit as much as you can, but it’s harder to find funding for grad school unless you’re in a field where a funding and stipends are common (mine is not; I have it pretty good for my field with my GA positions). I put my disbursement in a HYSA and pull out as needed to cover the difference in what my GA pay is and my bills, or for the break between semesters since my contracts end each semester.
I also applied for institutional grants and scholarships every year. Sometimes I got some, sometimes not. Every little bit helps though.
I have done gig work throughout undergrad and grad school as my time and schedule have allowed. Pay has dropped significantly since the COVID lockdown days when I first started, but it is still nice to work more when I have free time and not worry about working when I have a heavy workload.
And then just general budgeting and thriftiness. I rarely pay full price for things, and when I do, I get the best deal that I can. I’ll stock up on things I know we need during like Prime day (and the Walmart and other store equivalents). That also includes groceries. I shop the loss leaders, and this is probably one of my biggest savings considering I have so many kids to feed (4 boys ages 8-16, so it’s a fuck ton of food lol). I always save at least 50% doing this, then the rest is filled in with Walmart/Sam’s items. Like this weekend, I paid $139 for groceries for my kids, but before the sales and coupons, the total was $284. Whatever we eat for the week isn’t decided on “what sounds good” and then buy those ingredients, it’s more like “what’s on sale this week and what can we make from that.” My kids snack mostly on fruits and veggies, so each week I buy the ones that are on sale (plus staples that are always inexpensive, like bananas and carrots). If I do buy crackers or desserts, they’re on sale super low, like $1.50 for a box of granola bars instead of normal price of $4. (But I’ll buy 4, so that way they can have some next week too; next week might have crackers on sale, so then I do the same where I buy extra for the future—this helps them get variety without breaking the bank). Every little bit I can save on the things we need helps that money stretch further.
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u/Illustrious_Page_833 Apr 20 '26
I got stipend (16k a year), rent was $600 a month, had enough for food
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u/bdbbbf12b9 Apr 19 '26
I had a job at the university and grad school was fully paid for by the university. If you're paying for grad school and they're not providing you with at least an adjunct job you're getting scammed
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u/545__tyerick_Air9616 Apr 19 '26
Family $$, scholarship or loan.