Affording NP school

[fblackwell]

hi I am looking at applying to an NP program in Ga. I am thinking about FNP and my biggest concern is affordability. I still owe money for my two bachelor degrees that I am currently paying back. I want to go to grad school without taking any loans out. So this will pretty much be out of pocket. I will also have to still work so I need to either go online or at least part time. If you have any advice about where to go to school for my FNP that is most affordable, I'd really appreciate it 😊

[Corey Narry, MSN, RN, NP]

Well, here's what worked for me:

- attended an on-campus local state university that I can commute to and take advantage of in-state tuition

- used my employer's tuition reimbursement benefits which paid for a fraction of the tuition

- applied for scholarships/grants though the university and was picked as a recipient of a HRSA Advanced Nursing Education Traineeship which paid for 50% of the total NP program tuition

- worked full time the first year, part-time second year while picking up extra hours when school's not so busy in order to pay the remainder of tuition with my paycheck

- didn't have big vacations, big purchases, ate at home mostly, etc to save money

[AGNP]

Congrats on deciding to apply for NP school! When I first started I thought I could do full time student and 0.8FTE (I couldn't take it anymore the third semester) and so when looking for schools I would say:

- yes, in state tuition is nice

-but there are distant programs that have "in-state" tuition for the students through grants (I believe, correct me if i'm wrong) for students who apply from certain states. Overall, I would recommend going to a school with a brick and mortar campus.

-if you aren't in school yet then start saving and budgeting smart. There are so many apps and websites that are out there now to help (mint, i need a budget, etc) throughout your course or before to help you save.

-don't be ashamed to ask family if they can help. doesn't have to be cash $$ but maybe in other ways like having you come over for dinners, etc if you live close by?

-I ended up selling my house, but I don't have kids to consider, and I used that money for the rest of my tuition funds after going per diem as a RN

-you can even look into applying for jobs or getting clinicals somewhere you can get a job at that has loan forgiveness programs.

[fblackwell]

Thank you so much for the advice! this sounds like something that would work for me. Ive been thinking of in state for sure and although distance learning can work with a full time schedule, it costs so much in most schools. This certainly helps to know that there are graduate students who can have financial assistance with grad school :)

[fblackwell]

Thank you for your reply. It helps knowing there are other options out there :)

[Cococure]

Clayton State in Ga is the most affordable program I have seen...the in state rate is very good ...I think the entire program is like $25k

Good luck