Living While in CRNA School

wallyballie_golf · Oct 3, 2005

During one of my undergrad. course one of my teachers stated that she was granted around $750 a month through some fed. loan service. Has anyone hear of this, and know the name of the grant? I know that it is not a lot but is some aleast cover gas and food.

TLC RN · Oct 3, 2005

If you apply for a loan, say through Sallie Mae and still have a job with verifiable income, then this org will loan you about 40K if you want it. Try and apply for a loan after you have quit your job and it is solely credit based, even with co-signer, they all got together this year and changed things. Try it yourself and see what your school allows. Go to bankone.com or bankofamerica.com and act like you are going to apply for a loan. It will ask what school you plan to attend and it will show you the loan amount for that school. You don't have to follow through with the loan application, just look at what your school allows.

Thanks for the info. I guess I will be working a lot longer than I thought to save up more money to go to school. Oh well, you do what you gotta do.

rn29306 · Oct 3, 2005

Thanks for the info. I guess I will be working a lot longer than I thought to save up more money to go to school. Oh well, you do what you gotta do.

Take the max on federal school loans - $18,500 a year. My in-state friends got a refund this semester for $6,100. Due to being out of state, I got $3,300. I paid some for this previous summer, they did not. In-state and out-of-state really matters if you have no other person to support you. Then evaluate your expenses. Some of my expenses are indeed unique. I had a auto loan that will magically be paid the month I graduate. I also carried in some credit cards into this, something I would NOT suggest. What are you going to do? Pay the interest only for the duration of school? Very unwise. I took my sign-on bonus and paid off my credit cards and subsequently burnt them in a joyous ceremony.

Trust me, if I can make it, then you and the rest of the SRNAs can too. It is just now the mandatory cap on outside loans got reduced for me by $7,000 and that is the problem I have. Loans are there, just don't carry additional burdens like credit cards into the journey and you will be fine.

jb147 · Oct 3, 2005

Husband is 10 months from graduating... I have worked PT throughout (also an RN ), but it is hardly enough to live on.

Here is my advice...

1. Search this site for related posts. It has been discussed at length and there is a lot of good advice out there on the best private tuition loans.

2. Sign on with a group if you can. They will/ can offer payment of loans, a stipend or a combination of loans.

3. Max loans for grad students is 18,500 a year not including summer tuition. factor that in.

4. Working is probably not going to be an option after the first semester or so. In our experience ( Us and people going through the same program before and after) your life will be so all encompassed by school that working won't even cross your mind. My husband puts in about 60 hours a week between school and clinicals, and that is not even starting to count study time. The program he is in has no "breaks" ( unless you count christmas day) and I don't know anyone that would hire just for spring break or christmas break or whatever, so look at your school schedule carefully before you count on this. In my opinion you will sorely need any break as a break, not feel like you have to go work in a unit somewhere.

In regard to #1...Sallie Mae's Tuition answer loan seems to be the best alternative. Max $40K per year. Try to apply before you quit your job. However, as of this year they are no longer requiring proof of income, so you might have better luck.

Feel free to PM if you want more info.

michewa · Dec 1, 2005

Take the max on federal school loans - $18,500 a year. My in-state friends got a refund this semester for $6,100. Due to being out of state, I got $3,300. I paid some for this previous summer, they did not. In-state and out-of-state really matters if you have no other person to support you. Then evaluate your expenses. Some of my expenses are indeed unique. I had a auto loan that will magically be paid the month I graduate. I also carried in some credit cards into this, something I would NOT suggest. What are you going to do? Pay the interest only for the duration of school? Very unwise. I took my sign-on bonus and paid off my credit cards and subsequently burnt them in a joyous ceremony.
Trust me, if I can make it, then you and the rest of the SRNAs can too. It is just now the mandatory cap on outside loans got reduced for me by $7,000 and that is the problem I have. Loans are there, just don't carry additional burdens like credit cards into the journey and you will be fine.

i just got accepted to a program in tennesse and am incredibly freaked out about all this loan crap. after looking up the max amount allowed to be borrowed by the school, it works out to only being left with less than 700 bucks a month to live on. how-in-the-world do you make that work?! am terrified that even though i got accepted there's no way i'm gonna be able to go because i don't--and won't--have enough cash in the bank to cover living expenses for the 28 months i'm in school. crap crap crap!

i do have credit card debt and was planning on getting it paid off before starting school, but am now wondering if i need to just keep the cash in the bank and pay the minimum (*cringe*) amount just so i have enough to hopefully buy ramen noodles and keep the electricity on in whatever shack i can afford (a tent down on the riverbank, perhaps...)

how do y'all do it? really.

any suggestions before i sign up to be a proud member of the armed forces, because that seems like the only verifiable option at this point...

jenniek · Dec 1, 2005

In addition to the amount allowed by federal stafford loan, you can take out private loans, above the cost of school, to be dispersed right to you. It is recommended to apply and receive the money prior to quitting your job, so you would not need a cosigner. Do a search on the CRNA forum for alternative loans. That thread was just brought up recently, so should be on the first few pages.

It is recommended to not sign up for the military plan for the money alone....maybe look for a stipend at a local facility.

Jennie

i just got accepted to a program in tennesse and am incredibly freaked out about all this loan crap. after looking up the max amount allowed to be borrowed by the school, it works out to only being left with less than 700 bucks a month to live on. how-in-the-world do you make that work?! am terrified that even though i got accepted there's no way i'm gonna be able to go because i don't--and won't--have enough cash in the bank to cover living expenses for the 28 months i'm in school. crap crap crap!
i do have credit card debt and was planning on getting it paid off before starting school, but am now wondering if i need to just keep the cash in the bank and pay the minimum (*cringe*) amount just so i have enough to hopefully buy ramen noodles and keep the electricity on in whatever shack i can afford (a tent down on the riverbank, perhaps...)
how do y'all do it? really.
any suggestions before i sign up to be a proud member of the armed forces, because that seems like the only verifiable option at this point...

michewa · Dec 3, 2005

thanks for the tips...very helpful :)

In addition to the amount allowed by federal stafford loan, you can take out private loans, above the cost of school, to be dispersed right to you. It is recommended to apply and receive the money prior to quitting your job, so you would not need a cosigner. Do a search on the CRNA forum for alternative loans. That thread was just brought up recently, so should be on the first few pages.
It is recommended to not sign up for the military plan for the money alone....maybe look for a stipend at a local facility.
Jennie

CRNA70 · Dec 4, 2005

Hi. Another thing to consider==certain employers will fund your schooling up front or afterward with loan reimbursement if you sign on to a contract to work with them for x number of years, for example. You can approach them and ask for this.

You can also take out what's termed "alternative" loans from Citibank, for example, to add to the 18,500 that is max for traditional student loans. I did this. I then worked at a place that paid me 10K a year extra for three years to cover my loan expenses.

TennRN2004 · Dec 12, 2005

Does anyone know about federal grants different schools offer? I know the school I am interested in is on a list of schools the federal government gives funds to for certain programs such as nursing. I can't remember where, but I know I have seen a website before that even lists the amounts different schools have for nurse anesthesia concentrations. Has anyone been able to get grants from their school to help offset loan costs? I don't find my financial aid office much help when trying to research ways to help pay for school.

I know for myself I am already in the hole $30k for undergrad degree b/c of taking out extra loans for childcare, living expenses during that time when I only worked part time. I know short term sacrifice will pay off in the long run, but I'm just not that eager to sign on for more loans to pay off.

Do the CRNAs who have finished with heavy loan debt honestly feel like biting the bullet and signing up for more loans to get through is the best way to go? I know the little stash I've saved to help with expenses won't last long when the paychecks stop.

jenniek · Dec 12, 2005

TennRN,

The grants are not guaranteed money. I wouldn't count on it to supplement your tuition. I received just under $200 this past semester, and was told that the same amount will come in the spring.

As far as loans, I would try to minimize as much as possible before moving forward. Pay off CC, downsize, ect. For school loans, you should be able to defer payment as long as you are taking a certain number of credits.

I'm hoping I will only need loans to cover tuition (spouse's income will cover the rest), but paying off loans can either be negotiated for with new employer for payoff over a certain number of years, and interest is faily low.

It's daunting, but it has been done.

Jennie

airinc2003 · May 17, 2007

loans, loans, and more loans. that is how everyone i know does it. also, there aren't many breaks in this grad program so don't expect to supplement your income much with that. if your single you will be fine. if your not, then you will need to take out supplemental loans to make it. it can be done though. a lot of us are doing it right now.

Just curious how do you take out supplemental loans? I did not have to do that during my undergraduate degree but will need to for CRNA school. Thanks for any information!

jackson74 · May 19, 2007

Check out this thread on alternative loans:

https://allnurses.com/forums/f227/alternative-loans-heres-what-ive-found-103967.html