Hey all.
Recently I’ve become very interested in the economics of graduate school. When I was getting my bachelors degree, I initially wanted to be an occupational therapist. However, when I saw the sticker price for tuition I backed out. I realized that just for tuition alone I would be paying over $100k, plus how would I live? More loans?? I quickly backed out and changed careers. Ended up getting a PhD in psych because I felt like a fully funded grad program was my only option.
There were several other girls in my degree considering the same graduate program, and I soon realized that many of them had their parents to pay for it. But I wonder, for my other friends who took out loans for the program and for rent, how could it possibly worth it?? One of my friends who graduated with the degree only makes $72k! Again she was no loans but sheeeesh if she did, she could never afford to live in NYC like she currently does. Honestly she would be drowning pretty much anywhere.
So I’m just wondering, for people who took out loans for an MSW, PT school, OT school, SLP school, how are you affording to live?? These degrees seem so popular among women, and I understand the desire for job security, which these degrees generally do provide, but it seems like a rough financial spot to be in. The economics of it all are interesting to me because I feel like these degrees propped up around 20 years ago and are quite popular but the payoff doesn’t seem worth it, idk! Just curious.
Thank you!
How do middle class folks in the allied health professions afford the loan payments and to live??
byu/Appidea12321 inStudentLoans
Posted by Appidea12321
9 Comments
I got employed first and used tuition reimbursment to get through school as i could manage it, instead of going straight to college out of high school. I only have about 10k in student loans, and thats from dropping out of my masters program so i had to pay for the dropped classes myself.
Many many many PSLF eligible jobs. You get on an income driven repayment plan for 10 years, then the loans are forgiven and you pay no tax on the amount forgiven. It’s pretty manageable. (Assuming federal loans) the caveat is usually these PSLF jobs pay lower than private employers. Most non profits also tend to have good, cheap insurance, and good retirement.
I graduated with 125k debt. Make 90k. Paid back 100k over the last 38 months via budgeting. Plenty doable with a variety of methods.
Yes the overall ROI isn’t the best. But it’s certainly doable especially with PSLF.
It really comes down to what choices you make in life. I agree that paying over $100K in tuition alone for an OT degree would give me serious pause, but I’d also need to realize there is a big difference versus making a salary of $100K in Cleveland versus $90K in Manhattan! There is also something called “delayed gratification” when means many people who pursue advanced degrees somehow feel entitled to a luxury lifestyle once they finish school and then splurge on a new $140,000 Cadillac Escalade and a $600,000 house and then their life is pure hell for many years. The best advice I can give is to decide what profession you want to pursue and then find the cheapest way to achieve it, and then live as frugally as possible once you finish school and start making a nice salary so you can pay off your loans quickly. Only spend on luxury items once all your student debt is gone.
Until OBBB grad students had unlimited borrowing ability with respect to federal grad PLUS loans. So most people with grad debt have all federal loans for their grad degree. What people do is get on an IDR plan and their payment is primarily based on their income, not their loan balance. After the term is up they get forgiveness. If they are low paid they get massive forgiveness and the taxpayers foot the bill.
Now because of the OBBB changes there are now caps on all federal borrowing
I work in an undesirable setting and have a partner who makes as much as I do in business. I’ve paid off 118k in 3 years and have 26k left. Would be done with loans if I wasn’t contributing 15% to retirement. It’s doable if things line up but I would be dying if I didn’t have a dual income
I’m a speech therapist in the metro NY area. I have 2 jobs and even one I make good enough money. I was initially going for loan forgiveness but I rather live frugal, stack my cash, then leave the metro area. Everything depends on how you live. Live at home, with roommates, with a significant other. Most of my friends grew up with little money like I did and didn’t know much about loans and what it was truly like taking them out. With that said, I have more loans than I should’ve but being an SLP and the potential amount of money I can and do make was worth it for where I live. I have close to 100k in loans from grad school, some undergrad and leveling courses but I made it out of generational poverty. I had my fun with my money and now I’m paying my loans and living frugally with my family.
Edit: it also depends on the jobs you’re willing to work and travel. I’ve switched jobs and keep looking for which ones will make me more. I’ve got 2 good jobs I’ve searched and relentlessly applied for. A district is next when I’m ready.
Well many PT/ OT programs are scams with their pricing tbh
MSW here. I think it’s a combination of financial and career planning alongside some luck. Decided to not go into 6 figure loan programs like my siblings, came out with more reasonable debt. Benefitted from COVID & SAVE forbearance. Was flexible and moved rural for work (people struggle w/ this) so benefitted from higher pay rates, sign on bonuses at multiple jobs & overall job security due to shortage. Lucked out on rent and COL is pretty manageable imo for a single person.
I worked for 6 years before grad school to save up as much as possible. I got into a relatively inexpensive program for my field. I was planning to take out some small loans but ended up applying for institutional scholarships and receiving enough to bring my tuition under $40k.