Surviving as a Full Time student Tribe? - Page 3

[josybear]

hey all!
i'm a full time student, a full time single mama, and i've recently stopped working. i looked at my tax forms and realized that in six months of working as much as i could i made less than 3k. not worth it, and i have enough stressors. so i live on student loans and whatever grants, bursaries and scholarships i can get.

i have a question i've been turning over in my mind.

i'll definitley be attending school over the summer, i can't pay rent without my loans, etc. but i'm thinking about how much school to take. in may & june i'll take 6 credits, that's the equivalent of taking 4 classes in regular semester (because the classes are condensed) but then in july & august i have some options. i can:
-take 2 classes, the same as may & june
OR
-take 3 supercondensed classes. these run all day long for 5 days, then they're done. i wouldn't see my kids except at bedtimes, they'd be shuffled between daycare and the sitters the whole time. but the rest of the month of july (16 days) would be free.

and should i take a 6 credit distance ed class that starts in may and runs through august?

if i do the may & june, the supercondensed july and the distance ed class i'll earn 21 credits over the summer. that's essentially a year of school in three months. is this a recipe for burnout, or the chance to graduate almost a year early?

what would you do?

[Thystle]

Hmm I don't know. What is your first gut reaction answer?






Question... do/can you get a Pell grant if you already have a degree that won't transfer and you have to restart as a freshman anyway? It's in a different field if that matters.

I am super confused. Again.

[Sonnenwende]

If someone has a Bachelor's degree or higher period, they are ineligible for a pell grant. They are only eligible for student loans and work-study. If they want to be a teacher, there is a TEACH grant available.

If only an associate degree has been earned, that is a different story.

[Hey Mama!]

Josybear-I'd personally do it. I left school with less then a year left to graduate, 18 hrs plus student teaching. Now that has turned into 2 years. If I could get that many hours knocked out in the summer I'd be so happy.

About the TEACH grant-it initially is a grant, but if you do not fufill the teaching requirements after graduation it converts into a loan.

[K1329]

I admire you all! Going to school while raising a family is a very difficult undertaking, to say the least! But, I would like to add a word of caution...

PLEASE minimize your borrowing of student loans. Try to avoid them, if at all possible! I work in financial aid, and I see it regularly. Students who maximize their loan amounts and then live off them. The maximum borrowing limit for Stafford loans for someone with children is 57,500. The "note" on that loan after graduation is about 650.00 a month - if you want to pay it off in 10 years. Ask yourself: what salary am I expecting to make after graduation? Can I pay 650 a month and still live the lifestyle I want on my expected salary? Student loans can be a real burden to carry. Please be careful!

That said, there are some new programs for Stafford loan borrowers. Payments can be limited to 10% of your income and any unpaid balances after 25 years are forgiven. Public service loan forgiveness is also new. If you work for a non profit, any unpaid amounts are forgiven after 10 years. Of course, private loans are another ballgame altogether. What you borrow you will have to repay - regardless of income, etc.

A friend of mine just bought her first house, despite a 6 figure income for the last 8 years. She had 125,000 in loans - private and Stafford - and spent many years servicing that debt instead of buying a house, taking her kids on vacation, etc. It can be better to take an extra year, or two, to graduate than the option of graduating quickly, but, deeply in debt. Weigh your options!

Good luck to all of you!

ETA: The pp is correct. Once you acheive a bachelor's degree, you are no longer eligible for ANY federal grant programs... pell, seog, etc.

[Ianthe]

Originally Posted by K1329

I admire you all! Going to school while raising a family is a very difficult undertaking, to say the least! But, I would like to add a word of caution...

PLEASE minimize your borrowing of student loans. Try to avoid them, if at all possible! I work in financial aid, and I see it regularly. Students who maximize their loan amounts and then live off them. The maximum borrowing limit for Stafford loans for someone with children is 57,500. The "note" on that loan after graduation is about 650.00 a month - if you want to pay it off in 10 years. Ask yourself: what salary am I expecting to make after graduation? Can I pay 650 a month and still live the lifestyle I want on my expected salary? Student loans can be a real burden to carry. Please be careful!

That said, there are some new programs for Stafford loan borrowers. Payments can be limited to 10% of your income and any unpaid balances after 25 years are forgiven. Public service loan forgiveness is also new. If you work for a non profit, any unpaid amounts are forgiven after 10 years. Of course, private loans are another ballgame altogether. What you borrow you will have to repay - regardless of income, etc.

A friend of mine just bought her first house, despite a 6 figure income for the last 8 years. She had 125,000 in loans - private and Stafford - and spent many years servicing that debt instead of buying a house, taking her kids on vacation, etc. It can be better to take an extra year, or two, to graduate than the option of graduating quickly, but, deeply in debt. Weigh your options!

Good luck to all of you!

ETA: The pp is correct. Once you acheive a bachelor's degree, you are no longer eligible for ANY federal grant programs... pell, seog, etc.

Thanks for the advice!

I recently came accross the website about the 10% of your income and public service loan forgiveness.. do you happen to have that website? I lost it somewhere.

We are paying for DH's grad school with our tax return and I am getting a full tuition scholarship for my undergrad. I don't want to take out any student loans anymore.. but I already have $4500 and DH has about $20k

[jessaroo]

K1329- Thanks for you insight. It is very helpful. My husband is not getting very much support from his school. He asks several questions that remain unanswered. The finaid department has not received his FAFSA even though it was sent in Feb. We double checked with the FAFSA office. The finaid office did not offer any suggestion as to what to do.

Good luck to everyone on this journey.

[K1329]

LizzyQ - Here's a website on loan forgiveness - there's also info on the fafsa.ed.gov website. http://www.finaid.org/loans/forgiveness.phtml

jessaroo - If your dh's office is anything like mine, they have too many applicaions and too few personnel, especially in today's economy! Our applicaions have gone up 40%! I recommend polite persistance. Keep calling. Ask to speak to your financial aid counselor, not just the person answering the phone. Good luck!

[Ianthe]

Originally Posted by K1329

LizzyQ - Here's a website on loan forgiveness - there's also info on the fafsa.ed.gov website. http://www.finaid.org/loans/forgiveness.phtml

THanks! I have it bookmarked now

[mamadelbosque]

We're doing it... have been for a year now. DH finally gave up on ecoturism/adventure travel a little more than a year ago and started going to become a paramedic/fire fighter. He started EMT last january and will finish with paramedic in June at which point he should be able to get a job while he finishes up fire fighting training.

They definetly *DO* give foodstamps to full-time students. We're on them and have been for a little more than six months now. They REALLY help!! We live with my dad who has blessedly not charged us rent so food and transport to/from school are our only real expenses.

[jessaroo]

Has anyone had any luck searching for scholarhips.

We are trying to find scholarships for my dh and it is so hard to sift through them.

We are very specific in our search: scholarships for hispanic+male+nursing

The center for working families said that a lot of students get scholarships that will give a living stipend, but we cannot find any.

[lilyka]

i have been seriously considering this. it would mean wuitting my job and living off public assistance. I am a single mom and there are only s many hours in a day. unfortunately there are no local programs in what I am interested in (ok the local private university has a great social work program but it costs a fortune....) and I cannot sell my house but I am following this thread with interest.

[PlayaMama]

Originally Posted by Sonnenwende

If someone has a Bachelor's degree or higher period, they are ineligible for a pell grant. They are only eligible for student loans and work-study. If they want to be a teacher, there is a TEACH grant available.

If only an associate degree has been earned, that is a different story.

you can get a pell grant if you have a bachelor's and are enrolled in a teaching credential program with no higher degree awarded. my program will be a ms in science education and i will _not_ be eligible but i would have been if it was a non-degree program.

if you go to studentaid.ed.gov you can find more information. it appears that pharmacy programs may also qualify for a pell grant.

[happyhats]

I think this will be our situation sometime in 2011. My husband is very unhappy with his job, and he really wants to work in the medical field. I am really trying to encourage him to do so. But any nursing programs we find are full time, monday through friday, nine to five type hours. There's just no way that he could work as well. I'm a sahm, but I am going to try to find something part time in the evenings/weekends closer to when he will be going back to school. Right now he's going to finish up some pre rec classes online/on the weekends and he can still work during that time.

One one hand it does make me nervous, sure. We'll be losing out on some money for sure, we'll have no choice but to add to our student loans, and no choice but to recieve assistance. BUT. If we don't get into a higher income bracket we'll always be recieving public aid. It's hard to get much of a break at his current job, and we feel pretty strongly about someone being home with our dd. Plus this really is something he has always desired for reasons other than money. In a couple years we'll be self sufficent and tax payers.

It seems backwards in a way though. We just started getting benefits through his job. We'll have to get life insurance privately, and go without healthcare other than the clinic (dd will get medicare of course). Plus, we really desire another child. I don't know what that means. There's pros to waiting until he's got an RN job, but I also think that we could do it if I was to become pregnant sooner. We're researching ucing, we have all the baby stuff from dd, etc. Or to get pregnant while we still have his work insurance and then him leaving after the baby is born. DD and then other lo would still be small enough that it shouldn't be a large financial burden. But it might be harder for me to get a job and leave an infant.

Although I have SOOO many questions/ideas I'm pretty at peace with this decision. The truth is that we have to do something or else we will work dead end jobs forever that neither one of us is happy in. If we wait for the "right time" or when the money is here, it will never happen.

[daniellebluetoo]

subbing, I'll be back latter!

[Sierra]

Originally Posted by LizzyQ

We will be starting this fall.. I am getting a full tuition scholarship so all our grant $ money will go to rent in family student housing... dh is going to start a masters program and hopefully a PT job.

Can everyone share recommended resources for grant money?

I don't think I'll qualify for a Pell Grant, and it has been nearly impossible to find scholarships and grants for people going to grad school.

I've been offered full tuition and am exploring my decisions and their consequences in regard to part time or full time study.

Unfortunately, I think I may need to continue working at least part time through the first year, which means I can't go to school full time. If I don't go to school full time, my scholarship will be reduced and there is no guarantee they'll raise it back up the following year if I switch over to full time.

So these are BIG decisions, and I am appreciating this thread.

My biggest problems are:
1. I am currently chained to a mortgage that is unsustainable on a student budget (heck! it was unsustainable prior!). I also wouldn't be able to sell my house for what I have out in loans on it due to its falling value.
2. One of my kids is under five through next year, so perhaps we'd qualify for f.s. for a while, but she will be over five the following year, which means we'll potentially have two or more years of study during which we don't qualify.
3. Because I am not YET a full-time student, my needs are calculated on a full-time working person's income.

[Thystle]

BUMPING to see how the fin aid and admissions is going for you all?



Hubby got accepted into several colleges but in a twist of fate a contract came along he could not refuse. So he moved and we will be joining him. He is still planning on taking classes though, just not full time.



I wish everyone luck with classes and their fin aid packages!!!!

[amydidit]

Well I haven't received my financial aid offer yet, but I'm hoping it'll come soon. I really need to know what it is and where that's going to leave me. I'm hoping it'll be enough to pay for school, books, and daycare for my girls.

[mamadelbosque]

Just an FYI HappyHats, you guys very well might qualify for medicaid for you too not just your dd. And if you get pregnant, you almost certainly will, so you'll be able to go see a doctor/midwife and not have to go your whole pregnancy w/o care (and yes, medicaid at least in OH does indeed cover midwives

And Sierra - food stamps don't have an age limit. Your thinking of WIC, which is for pregnant/breastfeeding women & children 5 and under.

[Hey Mama!]

For 10/11 school year I have been awarded a full pell grant, a MO access grant, and a $2,500 scholarship, plus have been offered loans. I applied for 9 scholarships, so I'm hoping I can skip the loans altogether for next year. I'm waiting to hear about summer aid, I won't find out about that until the end of this month.