grad school and med school

[scarlett09]

I know that this has probably been talked about in this area before, but I don't know how far I want to go back to resurrect a post.

I just completed my first semester of graduate school in May. I took one class and worked 35 hrs/wk. Next semester I will be taking 2 classes and working ?? hrs/wk. My position within the university that I work at continues to be unstable due to the fact our state is always in some sort of fiscal crisis. I know that I will at least have reduced hours due to a hiring within my department who will need to be paid with some of the $$ I currently make. But I am not completely sure how much I can rely on what I am being told right now. There might not be any $$ available to pay me after this new person starts in mid to late July. I could very well be unemployed by Labor Day.

With unemployment a possibility, there is the thought of being a full-time graduate student instead. Has anyone had a SO in med school while being a grad student? How did you work out living on your student loans and theirs? Did you take the full amount offered to you as a grad student? I could have looked into a grad assistantship, but my grad school has cut those due to financial woes (grad school is also a state school). Some people even lost their positions in the middle of last semester. I have tried to talk to my MS3.11 about this, but he gets a glazed over look in his eyes. Then starts calculating the total amount of debt we will have when we are married and finished with our respective programs. Basically, my undergrad (currently in repayment) plus my grad school plus his medical school could be in the ballpark of $250K.

Any advice, suggestions or happy thoughts are greatly appreciated. :|

[SuzySunshine]

Re: grad school and med school

I did grad school at night while I worked full time while DH was in med school. Because of the insane cost of living where we lived I still qualified for financial aid and took as much of it as I could, it helped us live and pay off some much higher interest credit cards.

I was always told educational debt is a "good debt" because its an investment in your future. Unlike bad debt for cars, credit cards, etc. However if you're looking at a lot of debt from your husband I'd recommend taking as little as you can.

[planet]

Re: grad school and med school

How many more semesters do you have? He's starting 4th year next month, right? If it would take more than a year to finish part time then I would go ahead and take the FA and go full time so you can finish before the match and moving.

Why is it ok for his debt to limit your education?

If you are more than a year away from finishing even if full time, then maybe it would be worth waiting and transferring to a different school. Is the job your TA position? Can you still take just one class and find a different job? Forgive me if you put this all in your introduction.

[medpedspouse]

Re: grad school and med school

My first seven months into grad school, we both were full time students. I took the max that we could borrow for it was the only way to pay our living expenses. The downside to it was that we did not have health insurance. After seven months, I found a job where I could also attend school full time and receive full benefits.

I, too, was told that ed debt is not bad debt. It did not hurt us when we purchased our home last year after training. Since we did not have consumer debt, our credit score was still high.

By the way, I believe this is still correct...it has been many yrs since I was in school. If you are enrolled in school at least 3/4 - full time, you can defer the undergraduate payments. I think for graduate school full time is 9hrs. :huh:

Hugs to you. It is not the most fun time. However, looking back - even though we were stressed - I actually enjoyed going to school while DH was in school because we would often study together and had a similar academic schedule. As they say - misery loves company.

[Meenah]

Re: grad school and med school

This may sound rude but it isn't meant to be. Are you supporting the two of you while he is in school? Is he your spouse or boyfriend? For me that would make a difference on how much I was willing to give up or take on for someone else's career.

[scarlett09]

Re: grad school and med school

So...I had a whole thought-out response typed up the other night, spending a little bit of time on it. Then, when I went to hit "submit", I got logged out of iMSN! I was very annoyed, and with everything that has been going on in my family this week, I did not have the energy to resubmit until now. Grrrr...

Thank you for all of your advice, I really appreciate it. After further discussions with the doctor-in-training, my parents, my bosses at work and some number crunching, I decided to take the full amount offered to me for the next academic year. It will cover the tuition for the 4 classes I will be taking and give me some money to supplement the reduction in my hours at my current job. I will be able to defer my undergrad debt (yea!), but I have to wait until October for a refund check (boo!).

Your responses made me think for awhile. On the surface, it may appear that the SO response is "well I am over 100K in debt, so no grad school for you". I have to say that he has been the one pushing me the hardest to go after my career goals and desires. When I graduated from undergrad, I did not really have much direction, other than to find a job, any job. His love and patience for me and my slow, but steady, movement towards a career path have been amazing. He is the best thing ever :mydoc: (sorry, it's been an emotional day).

However, his reaction is solely based on his personal experiences. His parents are in as much debt as he is and have been for most of his life. Everytime we discuss an issue (such as getting engaged or married), or try to make a decision (down to eating out to celebrate the end of 3rd year), he has an automatic financial reaction. "No, we should be saving.", "We will never be able to afford that", etc. I have learned to come to understand the behavior and chalk it up to the way he is hard-wired. But that means with all of these conversations, I have to reassure him that his debt is the result of higher education and NOT the result of poor planning and decisions like his parents. And I have to make him understand that it is okay to treat yourself every once in awhile or to buy something you really need (versus want). Especially since he has been working so hard.

We split rent and utilities at a 70/30 split (he pays more right now). That is because my other monthly expenses are pretty high, and I do expect them to decrease pretty soon. As we move towards what I understand to be a travel-expense filled 4th year, that split will move towards 50/50. Unfortunately (or fortunately?), I do not hold a TA position. My position is both student-services oriented and behind-the-scenes planning and organizing. I do have about 2 years experience, but I still need a little bit more or that master's degree to get a good position.

Oh, and education debt must be good debt. I purchased my first car in February and I had absolutely no problem securing a loan and getting a good interest rate. I am sure the excellent credit score and haggling DF helped too.

I really do feel a lot better about this whole thing. I can make it work, since I know that you too have gotten through this. I will have to keep you posted, since with residency looming, I may have to transfer grad programs!

[alison]

Re: grad school and med school

I am in grad school and also work for my department (I get a tuition waiver and a stipend in exchange).

I don't know what field you are in, but is there any way for you to teach (as a TA) in another department? Do you speak a foreign language? Many times foreign languages are looking for instructors. You wouldn't need to have your Masters in hand. You could even try your English department to see if they need anyone for composition classes or staff for the writing lab, since they tend to be low on instructors.