Hello all! I got accepted into Georgetown's FNP program for the fall. The cost for the entire program is about $88,000!!!! I am planning on working part time (24 hours per wrateek) and will also have a new 5 month old by then. We have no family nearby so my only choice is daycare. It's going to be such a sacrifice>>>I know. I will need to take out student loans in order to pay for school and daycare. I have gotten accepted into another program (one cheaper) but I won't be able to start until Fall 2017. By then I would be more than half way done with this program. Plus...the cheaper program would not help with finding clinical sites (I already know two people who are in the program who had to drop 'cuz they did not find a site that semester and did not have support from faculty). Georgetown on the other hand, I was told has 95-98% success in placing their students.
I guess my question is...what would you do? Would you take out over $80,000 in student loans for the FNP program? Or would you just forget the whole thing all together. I'm also worried about being able to pay back all these loans. I know about loan repayments through the HRSA BUT I don't want to fully rely on this (anything can happen!). I feel like I could miss out on this opportunity...but I don't want to take out this much debt withouth being able to pay for it in the end.
I will start by saying that I am NOT a Nurse Practitioner yet but the rule of thumb given to me regarding the cost of a degree is that it should not exceed the salary that you can earn in one year of employment in your new role. Hope it works out well for you.
I went to a school that was rather expensive... I have graduated and waiting on my license to start working. Anyway, as many have said, you have a lot of factors to consider. However, you should definitely think about and do what works for you....also, you can inquire if your state provides loan forgiveness post graduation. That is something to consider.
Thanks to both of your posts. To belljar1995, PhD, RN, how can going to a top name university shut doors? I'm hoping Georgetown would help me find a job after graduation.
Bellijar1995 is right it can close doors. I see it a few ways but, I am just going to list one. A top school may scare the potential manager as seeing their own education as inferior. That manager might be reluctant to hire you because you could become a threat to their paycheck.
Specializes in OR Nursing, Critical Care, Med-surg.
First off, congrats! In my opinion, I believe it's bit pricey, especially since the NP salary isn't all that great. There's plenty of reputable NP programs that are affordable. However, if that's your dream school then go for it. Just know that the 88K will still be there when you become a nurse practitioner. I wish you the best of luck! :-)
Conqueror+, BSN, RN
1,457 Posts
I will start by saying that I am NOT a Nurse Practitioner yet but the rule of thumb given to me regarding the cost of a degree is that it should not exceed the salary that you can earn in one year of employment in your new role. Hope it works out well for you.