Student Loans : News, Updates and Blog Posts

Many graduate students, prior to entering grad school, work full time for a few years to earn money to live on their own, gain valuable work experience and to pay back their student loan debt.

Working full time before going to grad school can provide a student with more perspective in their field of study and the opportunity to apply real-life skills to the classroom once they go back to school. Unfortunately, for many, giving up a full -time salary to attend grad school can be a tough thing to do. In some cases it is not entirely feasible to give up a full time income. Many grad students today have families, mortgages and other expenses which makes giving up a full time income, as well as taking on more debt, a tough thing to do. But with proper planning and some research you can come up with a great plan for financing graduate school.

1. THINK SMALL! Look at your non-essential expenses. Paying for premium cable? Whether you are attending part time of full time, Grad school is going to leave little time for CSI Miami! Cancel your cable and have an extra $80-100 in your pocket each month. You might be too busy to study to make your regular rounds at the gym. Instead of paying a monthly membership, walk, run or ride your bike to places that you can. You will be saving on your gym membership and on car expenses (oh and saving the environment!). There are tons of other little ways you can save a lot of money by thinking small.

2. FIND A MATE! Consider roommates or living on campus. For many grad students who have been on their own for a while this could be a frightening thought. But campus living for graduate students is a much different experience than for undergraduates. Consider finding a roommate in a similar program. You will gain a study buddy and reduce your monthly living expenses.

3. EAT NOODLES! Boston is a great city full of restaurants and it can be hard for me not to eat out every night of the week. Cooking meals is always a cheaper option. Your bar bill is lower and you don’t’ have to tip your server. Even paying for coffees in the mornings adds up. A pound of coffee currently costs around $7.99 and lasts usually for two and half weeks. In that same amount of time, if you were to buy your coffee every day at $2.00 a pop, you would have spent $21.00 almost three times as much!

4. GET A JOB! Okay let me clarify. If you are working full time and attending grad school part-time, you already have your hands full. But for full time grad students, jobs like being a chauffeur can provide you with endless study hours while you are getting paid. I recently saw one limo driver sitting in the back seat of his limo, books at his side, typing away on his laptop while waiting for his customer. He was earning money while working on earning his degree. Not for you? Find a part time job in your field of study to gain more experience.

5. GET OUT! Now get out there and get the right financing. Look for loan programs that are tailored to your specific program. Getting an MBA? Look at an MBA Loan. Going to Law school? Find loans specifically geared towards law students. Find all this information and more at www.GradLoans.com

Consolidating your undergraduate debt is a great idea too. You can lower your monthly payments and defer your payments while attending graduate school. Find out more at www.studentloanconsolidator.com

Attending graduate school is an investment in your future. Invest wisely, do your research and study hard. Good luck!

Figuring out how to pay for grad school can be a confusing time. Most undergraduate students have parents that help them through the financial aid process..but as a graduate student, it is likely that you are on your own. Here are the top 5 Steps every prospective graduate student should follow, in order to ensure you have your tuition covered, come time to pay!

1. Renew Your FAFSA!!!
∙ Graduate Students are not eligible for grants from the Feds, but they are eligible for Federal Student loans…which are a great resource to help pay for school. Graduate Students can get a total of $20,500 per graduate school year for the Stafford Loan. You also have other options such as the
Grad Plus loan….both of these loans require an updated FAFSA form on file with your school. No FAFSA, no Federal loans.

2. Crunch the Numbers
∙ Graduate school tuition can be tricky because some schools include the cost of living in their tuition costs, and some do not. The ones that include it do not always have an accurate estimate of what those costs will entail. You need to sit down, and figure out how much money you will need to pay for your tuition and for all your living expenses per school year.

3. Choose your Loans
∙ There are so many different student loans out there, so you need to choose carefully. My advice is to always take Federal loans out 1st. If you still need more loans than what the Federal will cover…than consider an Alternative Loan. Just remember: Federal Loans are the best…but Alternative Loans can cover all the rest!

4. Loan Paperwork
∙ Once you know how much you need to borrow you now need to fill out loan Promissory notes. Don’t be fooled, once you submit your notes, keep track of them in process. Make sure there are no issues with them or your with your school. You do not want to be left high and dry, when tuition is due.

5. Organize
∙ One of the most common mistakes students make, is not keeping track of your loan information. Who are your lenders? What is your interest rate? How much interest is accruing on your loans? My advice is to make an excel spreadsheet with each loan listed out. Keep phone numbers and addresses of the lending institutions, and the servicing companies. All this information is very important, and keeping it organized will surely make your graduate school experience a much more enjoyable one!

More Helpful Sites for Financial Aid Info:
Live Podcast
FAFSA Information
Add me as your friend!

Because it is nearing the end of the summer, students are scrambling to find ways to pay for school. I received a phone call a few minutes ago from a girl who needed a loan asap! Here is a re-creation of our conversation:

Caller: “Hello, my tuition is due August 15th, and I am short $2,000. If I can’t come up with the money, my school will drop my classes. Can you help me?”

Me: “Sure, have you already filed a FAFSA for this school year”

Caller: “What is a FAFSA?”

Me: “FAFSA is the federal form that all students should fill out. It is free to do, and it determines your eligibility for federal grants, and all federal student loans. You cannot take out a federal loan unless you have a FAFSA on file, which is why it is really important to fill out this form.”

Caller: “Ok, so I fill this form out, and then I will be able to take out a Stafford Loan.”

Me: “Well not exactly. Once the FAFSA is filled out, your college receives a Student Aid Report from the government. On that SAR report, it will say whether you are eligible for the Stafford Loan (which is based on your financial need). If you are eligible to receive the Stafford Loan, then you would just fill out a Stafford Loan Promissory Note in order to receive the funds. This whole process can take over a month to complete, from start to finish. ”

Caller: “Oh I see, so it is probably too late at this point in time to do the FAFSA and get the Stafford Loan?” Me: “Most likely, yes. Check with your school to see if they will still accept a FAFSA for Fall semester. If they say no, then you can apply for an Act Education Loan; which does not require you to have a FAFSA filed. You can get those funds in 3-5 days.”

This is a conversation I have almost daily. Remember to file your FAFSA, and then renew it every school year. That way you won’t be left in a jam.

For more information, visit:
Stafford Loans
Scholarships
FAFSA help

How many times have you uttered these nine words to yourself, “If I only knew then what I know now.” If you’re south of the legal drinking age, probably not often, but as father time marches on you gain new perspective.

I can tell you unequivocally that I wanted to hop into a Delorean, hit 88 mph, and go back in time to save me from myself on several occasions. I would have saved myself thousands on student loan repayments. Actually, who am I kidding, I would have placed a few choice wages on sporting events while I was back in time and became wealthy enough to pay my way thru school, but I digress on my fantasy adventures. My aim today is to have you eliminate those aforementioned nine words from your vocabulary as it pertains to student loans.

So let’s pump those 1.21 gigiwats of electricity thru the flux capacitor and get you where you need to go. Just follow my 6 easy steps below and you can’t go wrong.

1. Complete your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) (this application is sent to the Department of Education). Please note, if you do not have a pin number you will need to request one at www.pin.ed.gov
2. You will receive a Student Aid Report (SAR) which will be sent to both you and the school(s) you list on your FAFSA (up to six schools max) within 5-7 business days.
3. The school will send you an Awards letter outlining the financial aid you are qualified to receive. Financial aid which includes grants, scholarships, and federal loans.
4. If you qualify for a Stafford Loan you will need to find a lender to fund your loan. You can go to http://www.staffordloan.com/ and one will be assigned for you. We make it easy!
5. If you are a dependent student who needs additional funds for school you may have your parent apply for a parent plus loan. If they get accepted for the loan that would obviously be great, but if they get declined for any reason you will be qualified for additional Stafford loan funds. You can take that denial letter to your financial aid department.
6. If you do not qualify for a Stafford loan than you may wish to explore private student loan options. You can visit ActEducationLoans.com for more details regarding undergraduate private student loans.

So now that you’re back from the future, what is your game plan? Will you travel down the road of uncertainty like so many others before you? Will you navigate the course I have outlined? Regardless of choice one thing is certain, “Roads, where you’re going you don’t need roads.”