[HitmanCFYA]

Of course there's always that antiquated method of working through school and paying with cash.

[BigDave]

That would be nice...except for the fact that you can't work while in CRNA school (maybe before clinicals starts) and with school running $30k and 28 months of living expenses running $3000/month for a family of 5. Do you have $100,000 saved up?

I did work 2days/week during NP school and came out with a 4.0 average. In grad school, anything less than an 82% in a class and you are sent home with your tail between your legs.

Then there is that philosophy of why should I bust my butt scrubbing butt for $25/hr when my time will be worth 4x that after I graduate. Paying back a loan is actually more time efficient.

BTW, I went to OUHSC for my BSN (class of 1995). Are you going there?

[katie1980]

Okay everyone, I need some advice. Now that I have been accepted to anesthesia school the worry about money begins. I have read over all the responses in this thread and found it very helpful ~ thank you. I think the best private loans for me will be the bank one and sallie mae tuition answer loans. My concern though is that I already have a moderate amount of debt as well as a house and two cars in my name but a good credit score. So my question to everyone is - has anyone applied for loans that already has a moderate amount of debt (similiar to my situation) and gotten approved? And I start school in august when should I begin applying for my loans? Thank you.

[ECU_CRNA2B]

katie1980
I don't own a home, rent the ol' apartment and I do make 1 car payment on a 2003 vehicle. Also have about 12K in credit card debt. I don't know how this compares to you, but I have never had a problem with loans or anythign. The very best advice on this thread is what has been repeated over and over again---apply before you quit your job. It matters to them that you are still having income. Plus all of the ones I have applied for so far ask if you want a co-signer and state that will help tremendously. Also, some have the incentive that if you continue to pay on your debt for a certain period of time they will cancel the co-signers responsibility for the debt or drop interest rates or both.
If you are really worried about how your credit stacks up, get a credit report from the three agencies and see how it looks. websites like equifax.com will give you access to all three for 29 bucks. there are added features which will give you your FICO score (the number that tells lendors how much of a risk you are, along with your debt to income ratio)....again why it is important to get those loans before you quit.
Hope this helps some...
k

[BigDave]

You can obtain a free credit report from each of the big three every year at: https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp
They do not give you the total score, but you can see if there are any blemishes that should be cleared up before going for a loan. (you can get the scoring or things like credit watch for an additional fee)

I would work on that soon, and keep your job? until after any loans are approved. For an August start, applying in April was plenty early for me. Remember, some want proof of enrollment. My school allowed me to enroll in early April for the fall (Nov 7th for the spring).

[ECU_CRNA2B]

Bigdave
as always you are the wealth of knowledge...
didn't know about the free credit report thing...thanks again.
k

[michewa]

ok, so i just got accepted to anesthesia school and was extremely excited...until i read the student handbook and came across the phrase "the maximum amount that can be borrowed while attending is $55,500." inital thought...cool, i'll have 20k left to live on. then my basic math skills kicked in and realized that left me just over 700 bucks a month....and unless i plan on eating ramen noodles while living in my tent on the river bank, that just ain't gonna cut it. (and, of course, there's a little clause in there as well about being forboden to work during the course of study). i had just assumed that i'd be able to borrow enough to cover ALL my expenses.
so my question is, do personal loans (that don't get paid to me thru the school) count towards this total? or is it more of a 'don't ask don't tell' policy.

it really freaks me out to think i may not be able to even start the program b/c i don't have $30-40k just hanging out in my bank account.
read through all the postings (which were extremely helpful) but still haven't quite figured the answer to this out...

[ECU_CRNA2B]

michewa,
you gotta read through this thread again if you are still confused. ArkyCCRN and Big Dave have done a fantastic job of supplying info. I printed it out and started making my own little notes, so that I could keep up-perhaps a bit anal, but hey, it helped!
Big thing to keep in mind (as others have so advised) is which loans require school certification and which don't. School certification: allows school officials to determine your need for a loan and the amt you may borrow for school. This severly limits what you can borrow as most schools do not recognize that we are a lot of students who require funds to LIVE off of as well as go to school.
Two loans I applied for, and do not require school certification:
1. Wells Fargo Education Connection Loan. Got 25, 000.
2. Sallie Mae Tuition Answer Loan. Got 30,000.
---Both loans are dispursed to me!
Mental note:
Loan to Learn, the START graduate loan adn Bank of America Education Maximizer all require school certification.
Good luck and post if you have more questions!! This thread has helped me immensly and hope it helps you too!!!
K

[BigDave]

The school knows nothing about my private loan.
How big is your tent??? It gets cold in NY!!

[ECU_CRNA2B]

More info to pass along, as I am spending the day trying to accumulate dinero to go to school....
Someone told me that you have to be careful when applying for a multitude of loans as some of the borrowing agencies are in fact the same. For example, Chase loans are now the same as Bank of America Loans (the two companies merged sometime recently). These two agencies release their loans through Sallie Mae. Therefore applying for a chase loan and a Sallie Mae loan may come back to bit you in the arss. Let me know if anyone has details on this......is it true/false? I already have the SM loan ans was gonna apply for the Chase one, but when I saw it was secured through SM, I didn't complete the application....info on this is welcome.
Also, found another loan that does not require school certification...
Chela Academic Edge Loan. Interest rate is a little high (currently 8.65%) and there is an origination fee of a maximum of 6.5%. funds of course go to you.
Spiffy website I encountered...www.finaid.org go to loans, then private loans. It gives a great run down of the different ones out there..its how I found the Chela loan.
just some more FYI....
K