How will I survive?

allnurses Guide · Feb 5, 2014

You want to max out your GradPlus loans first. If that's not enough then you will need to go private.

flipper628 · Feb 5, 2014

I used to work at a financial aid office at a University. You actually want to max out your federal Stafford loans first, you may be eligible for subsidized. If not it would be unsubsidized. Each institution sets a budget for students depending on whether they are undergrad, grad, part-time or full-time. You can take out as much loan money that puts you at that cap. If there is room in your budget for more than what you can get in Stafford loans then apply for grad plus.

If I remember correctly you can take out 20,500 in Stafford loans for fall and spring semester (summer is a separate budget). So 10250 a semester, if your classes are 6k each semester then you get refunded the difference. And depending on your budget there may be enough room to borrow another 6-8k in grad plus loans. Talk to you financial aid counselor. There are options, but it probably won't be enough to completely live on especially if you have a mortgage and stuff.

Hope this helps.

allnurses Guide · Feb 5, 2014

AFAIK you can't use Stafford loans to cover living expenses.

flipper628 · Feb 5, 2014

You can take the max that you are offered per year as long as you haven't reached your cap. So I believe for grad students you can take out 20,500 per year (not including summer). If your tuition isn't that much then you are refunded the difference.

It is different for undergrad. But I know for a fact more is offered to grad students because that's basically all the financial aid they are offered. Sometimes there are small grants that you can qualify for.

Each University has a financial aid office and students are assigned a financial aid counselor so make sure you speak to them, and they will guide you.

403RN · Feb 5, 2014

Thank you all for your helpful information. I will definitely contact financial aid asap if I am accepted. Right now I work M-F as a field staff case manager for a home health company and am a little unsure if I will be able to work this schedule during grad school because it is so chaotic from day to day. Perhaps 3 12-hour shifts will be better, idk. The FNP program will be Fall-Spring-Summer-Fall-Spring (so, ending Spring 2016). Any financial aid will be helpful, but the idea of getting in more debt is dreadful. Oh well...keep the comments coming! Thanks again.

allnurses Guide · Feb 5, 2014

Traditionally your last three semesters of grad school are very difficult to work full time: figure you will have one day of classes plus three days of clinic, bare minimum of 30 hours right there without any out-of-class work.