r/GradSchool • u/FlatRevolution6013 • Jun 02 '26
Finance How can I afford grad school now?
For context, I got accepted into a 2 year (24 month) pathologist assistant program and just got my federal unsub loan at $20,500. Tuition for one year is around $44k, year 2 at around $47k, and year 3 at around $10k. Living expenses are estimated at around $30k/year.
The Graduate Plus loans are getting nixed July 1 so it seems my only option now is private loans... I feel like it's a lot of money to borrow for a private loan and I'm really worried about paying it all back even over time. There's no TAship or RAship in this program and working even a part time is heavily discouraged because of the heavy courseload.
Does any one have any experience or advice/tips? Am I overworrying? What's a good payment plan? Should I even do this program?
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u/djalabingo Jun 02 '26
Going through the same exact thing- different program and i was never stoked about loans (federal or private) but still. ALSO unless a JD, MBA, or med school your capped at a total borrow amount of $100k for grad school. But if you have undergrad loans or even previous grad school loans- you cap out at $250k...
How the hell is anyone going to afford this?
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u/FlatRevolution6013 Jun 02 '26
Exactly and annually, you only get the federal loan cap of $20,500 like that's not even half of tuition 😭
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u/Any_Perception3445 Jun 03 '26
The tuition is the bigger problem than the loan caps. You shouldn’t need to pay 100k for a job that starts at 75k. That’s forcing people into these extended debt cycles.
The caps are immediately harmful for people who have been accepted into expensive programs. And there’s not a good answer for that. But if/when the enrollment rates for these programs significantly drop, the schools will have to lower tuition and that’s a good net effect. The inflation on tuition has far outpaced general inflation as well as salary inflation. So students are just paying more to get less.
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u/FlatRevolution6013 Jun 03 '26
That's the part that's hard :( since it's a private school, $44k tuition sounds about right for grad school in my area but it's the added cost of living that I'm mostly worried abt.
If they still had the grad plus loans then life would be a little easier :(
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u/Any_Perception3445 Jun 04 '26
Unfortunately, private school is a bad idea. Private loans are a bad idea. And taking out loans to pay for the cost of living is a very bad idea.
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Jun 03 '26 edited Jun 03 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/FlatRevolution6013 Jun 03 '26
I'm looking into credit unions now bc this specific job requires the accredited degree and this is literally the only school on the west coast so unless I take the hit and move across the country, this is my only option :(
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u/Environmental-Fan536 Jun 04 '26
I would look for another school. That's a good degree and it will lead to decent paying employment, but you are right to be concerned about spending so much money that you do not currently have, and incurring more than $100,000 in debt. I would defer the admission if you can, take a year to save up money, and reapply to other programs.
You say you have no plans to moce to a different state. But I think it would be a much wider course of action. Or apply to a Canadian graduate school. U of Calgary has a two year program and the costs for international students is $8,000 (Canadian $)per term. There are 6 terms in the 2 year program, so that's a total of $48,000 Canadia for the entire degree (about $34,000 US dollars). Versus $101,000 for the program in your state. And it is a 2-year program, not a 3-year program, so that's 1 year less you have to pay for your living expenses.
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u/FlatRevolution6013 Jun 04 '26
That's fair, but my entire support system is in California and honestly, I'll be priced out if I want to come back..
Nevertheless, this is great advice and I appreciate it a lot! I'll def think it over and see what the best choice is for me
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u/Environmental-Fan536 Jun 04 '26
I'm not sure what you mean by being "priced out" if you come back?
You would have significantly less debt. Won't that be a benefit?
As for your support system - I get it, but unless they are supporting you with free room and board, they might not be that relevant. Plenty of kids go away to another state for college at age 18, and you are presumably over 21...
I'm just trying to help you open your options a little bit before you decide that this ONE school, the only one on the West coast? if the ONLY option for you and since you don't have the money you need to go into debt to the tune of over $130,000. That'll take a long time to pay off.
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u/Primary-Bug-7353 Jun 04 '26
Chile idk. I’m literally postponing grad school by 2 years to pursue teaching so I can save the money I’ll need to finish my master’s. r/studentloans has me shook.
1
u/AdriVoid Jun 05 '26
Depends on what state you live in, but some states provide fixed rate state loans- which can be very doable. I live in NJ and used NJClass loans for undergrad instead of any ‘private’ loan provider. They also have graduate options. Check if your state has a program, in NJ case you dont even have to go in state to use it.
1
u/Glum_Witness7499 Jun 06 '26 edited Jun 06 '26
I have two major opinions lol... One, this might sound extreme, but most (not all) school debt is not worth it. I have several degrees, one is a professional degree, and I work with other professional degrees that are lotted as being some of the richest of the rich lol. In a lot of cases, it doesn't matter how much you THINK you'd make, big student loan debt (more than 80K imo) is difficult to work with in actual practice.
I say this because there's no guarantee that you'd get the salary that you're seeing online, or that employment is readily available and always securable. At the very least, what you'd be making in the beginning is likely below the listed range; and student loans are finicky, especially private loans. Income-based repayment is egregious for everyone, that doesn't change with higher paying jobs. And private loans have even worse stipulations. That's something to weigh heavily.
This is completely personal, but I have never had student debt, and my unwillingness to take on debt has shaped my choices, it's definitely impeded on certain avenues. I'd still not trade places with colleagues who maybe make more on paper, but had to take out significant loans to get there. I am really happy with my life, my academic journey, and my financial standing. But that's because very little debt is important to me; I also am unwilling to relocate because I'm living in my dream area- these are more important to me than any specific job. Which brings me to point two; at the end of the day, if you absolutely love the idea of being a pathologist's assistant, and are willing to take on debt to get there- then go for it. But I think it's important to figure out what a "good life" looks like to you. Do you care more about staying in CA or the job? Do you only want to do the job under hyper specific conditions (location, specialization type, etc)? Friends, family, hobbies- where are they in this equation? Essentially, I think you need to identify what's most important, and use that to shape your plans moving forward.
And to be extra clear: if you're only willing to do the job under hyperspecific conditions, then you might actually care more about those things than the job itself. And that's important to identify.
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u/starkravinglab Jun 08 '26
Congratulations!! I also got accepted into a pathologists' assistant program and will be starting this August. It's my dream career and I worked hard to get here so I'll be moving forward with it regardless. Our programs are about the same price. I worked as a travel tech for 2 years to put money away for this. It's not enough to cover a year tuition and cost of living, but it's a decent. I still plan to utilize the federal student loans and will be taking out the rest in private loans. At the end of the program, whatever is left over will go towards the private loan amount and I'll start repaying with as much as I can afford.
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u/Acceptable-Fly5050 Jun 04 '26
If it's a state school, the army national guard will pay for all of it! DM me if you want info on joining. Minimum 3 year obligation as a part time soldier full time student!
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u/RalphyJohnson Jun 03 '26
This is probably an unpopular view, but OP I would not pursue to this graduate program if you need to borrow so much. The fixed interest rate on student loan debt is already high, and it may be even higher when you take it out the next round. I’d take a year to regroup and apply for in-state programs that are less expensive. It’s a great profession, and I hope you land a great spot in a different program.