Loan Max Amount

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Has anyone hit their loan maximum for undergrad and is now looking to go back?

I have my ASN and was wanting to go back for BSN or MSN. I changed majors in college for my associate's and hit the maximum in loans before actually getting to where I am not considered undergrad.

If I enroll in the RN to MSN will that make me eligible for the higher loan amounts that go with graduate school? Or would I still be considered undergrad until I get to a certain point in the program?

I want to go all the way to MSN level and then some, but I was planning on doing the BSN first and seeing how it goes. I am totally fine with going straight through to the MSN though as the ultimate goal is to get my NP. I just want to be able to go back to school and would like to be able to use loans to help pay for tuition. Thanks!!!!

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.

Your thread has been moved to our General Nursing Student forum to attract more responses. We wish you the best of luck with your aspirations to return to school.

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There is a limit to how much you can borrow in federal (subsidized and unsubsidized) loans. You'll find the breakdowns per level of education and totals on this website:

Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans | Federal Student Aid

This should give you the info you are looking for. That being said, there aren't any limits to how much you can borrow in private student loans, so keep that in mind.

It concerns me that you are already maxed out on your undergrad limit for an associate's degree, and are willing to take out more loans to continue your education. I would check out the cost of a BSN and or an RN-to-MSN program that you would like to attend, and then do some math. Use a loan calculator online to determine what your monthly payment will be, and how much of your take home pay will be sent to your loan payment.

Becoming an NP is a wise decision that will become decidedly less wise if you end up paying $1000 a month for the next 30 years. I'd strongly advise you to look at the future implications of adding more debt to the amount you already have.

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If you're going for an MSN, you should be eligible for Grad PLUS loans which cover the total cost of attendance.

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Specializes in Neuro, Telemetry.
If you're going for an MSN, you should be eligible for Grad PLUS loans which cover the total cost of attendance.

The he problem is OP is not a graduate student. OP only has an AA but has taken an over abundance of credits. OP will not be a graduate student until they hold a Bachelors degree. I don't know if they will qualify for a grad loan based on credits taken.

OP, honestly, to have taken the max loans for only an AA means you are not being a responsible borrower plain and simple. I find it to be very unwise of you to continue borrowing. Especially because a large chunk of your future RN income will be taken by your monthly loan payment.

And bs before you think about loan repayment programs and loan scholarships and such, please realize they are harder to get then you think and do still usually require you to pay for some amount of time.

Please se make the responsible decision and pay back some of this loan first and just pay out of pocket for your. Using degree. I use federal loans too so I don't judge, but $57,000 is the max for undergrad and I wouldn't even spend that whole amount getting a BSN let alone and associates. Eek!

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It really was not irresponsible borrowing or anything like that. I changed majors and had some other issues while going to school. I was in school 7 years before graduating with my AS, so all considered I have a substantial amount of credits and could have already had a bachelor's in something but I do not have to defend myself. I just wanted an answer on the borrowing situation. I have since learned that until you achieve the BSN that you are considered undergrad and loan limits for such apply, for anyone else who might have wanted to know. Thanks!

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It really was not irresponsible borrowing or anything like that. I changed majors and had some other issues while going to school. I was in school 7 years before graduating with my AS, so all considered I have a substantial amount of credits and could have already had a bachelor's in something but I do not have to defend myself. I just wanted an answer on the borrowing situation. I have since learned that until you achieve the BSN that you are considered undergrad and loan limits for such apply, for anyone else who might have wanted to know. Thanks!

Your question is a tricky one. I would imagine you wouldn't qualify for grad loans because you don't already have a BSN. Do you know which program you'll likely apply to? I think the best think to do would be to give a financial advisor there a call and see how this will work out. You can't possibly be the only one who's been in this predicament.

ETA: If you have maxed out your loans (or even if you haven't and decide you'd rather save), it might be a good idea to pay off the majority of your loan payments before entering grad school. That's my game plan. Graduate with ADN, work for about 5 years and live meagerly in order to pay them back in 5 years or less, then look at grad school options if I still want to. I also figure this will give me time to figure out what specialties I like (or if I'd rather remain at the BSN level if I'm happy with that). Just a thought.

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Specializes in Neuro, Telemetry.

It took me 6 years to get my ADN ( I was part time for pre reqs and took all the BSN pre reqs as well before hand). I still am not close to the loan limit. And this is with me using grants and loans so that I could pay for child care while in nursing school. You do not have to defend yourself to me or anyone else. And you dont have to respond to me if you dont want. But the point still stands that if you have maxed out your loans getting an AA, then you really need to not keep borrowing for your nursing degree. Whether ADN or BSN becasue it will make your nursing paycheck pitiful after paying the monthly loan amount.

My monthly payment will be around $450 I believe wihtout having maxed my loans out. Thats a car payment or two each month. M income isnt the only income, so I will still make good money after loan payment is deducted. But too much higher of a payment, and the net income starts looks dismal.

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I have no other debt. I rent at a measly $500 per month and have no car payment. I did not qualify for anything but loans while in school even with being a single parent, single income household. I am paying on my current loans and still want to go to grad school as doing so will almost quadruple my income. I plan to pay for the bulk of it out of pocket, but I am still interested in loans to help offset some of the cost.

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@carlra, as someone somewhat in your situation, what my research has shown, you will have to pay down the loans under your undergraduate amount. Then your aggregated loan limit for undergraduate will decrease, then you can apply for more loan limits. which seems a little backwards. :banghead: so the best thing is to pay out of pocket, get some specialties added on to your current RN license. Work over-time, save up money quickly ($1000 emergency fund), and pay down your loan amounts, with "gazelle intensity" as our famous Financial guy would say. :)

Next, use a part of that savings, to take your classes needed for your transition to a Master's course. Once you get into your Masters, you would then qualify for the Grad Plus Loans. What you have to be careful of here, is going to a school that has a cheap cost of their grad program. The reason being, is your situation is different from others. Even though you had been using that money from your OT to pay down your loans, you will be nearing the maximum life-time loan amount described below. Now, their are federal loans that have a different loan amount of which is $224,000, but none of the nursing fields apply for that field, but believe it or not, but the MHA (masters of public administration) does.

n e l n e t - financial aid

The reason the MHA is in there is because many medical and law programs have a dual degree in the MHA.

Maybe a course of action for you is to find your graduate level program in nursing, and add on the MHA degree as a dual degree, then you would be able to attend your program, work on a higher degree, and you can work the WEO option to earn money.:)

I hope this helps someone.

I copied/pasted the info from the federal loan website. Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans | Federal Student Aid

How much can I borrow?

Your school determines the loan type(s), if any, and the actual loan amount you are eligible to receive each academic year. However, there are limits on the amount in subsidized and unsubsidized loans that you may be eligible to receive each academic year (annual loan limits) and the total amounts that you may borrow for undergraduate and graduate study (aggregate loan limits). The actual loan amount you are eligible to receive each academic year may be less than the annual loan limit. These limits vary depending on

what year you are in school and

whether you are a dependent or independent student.

If you are a dependent student whose parents are ineligible for a Direct PLUS Loan, you may be able to receive additional Direct Unsubsidized Loan funds.

The following chart shows the annual and aggregate limits for subsidized and unsubsidized loans.

Year

Dependent Students (except students whose parents are unable to obtain PLUS Loans)

Independent Students (and dependent undergraduate students whose parents are unable to obtain PLUS Loans)

First-Year Undergraduate Annual Loan Limit

$5,500—No more than $3,500 of this amount may be in subsidized loans.

$9,500—No more than $3,500 of this amount may be in subsidized loans.

Second-Year Undergraduate Annual Loan Limit

$6,500—No more than $4,500 of this amount may be in subsidized loans.

$10,500—No more than $4,500 of this amount may be in subsidized loans.

Third-Year and Beyond Undergraduate Annual Loan Limit

$7,500—No more than $5,500 of this amount may be in subsidized loans.

$12,500—No more than $5,500 of this amount may be in subsidized loans.

Graduate or Professional Students Annual Loan Limit

Not Applicable (all graduate and professional students are considered independent)

$20,500 (unsubsidized only)

Subsidized and Unsubsidized Aggregate Loan Limit

$31,000—No more than $23,000 of this amount may be in subsidized loans.

$57,500 for undergraduates—No more than $23,000 of this amount may be in subsidized loans.

$138,500 for graduate or professional students—No more than $65,500 of this amount may be in subsidized loans. The graduate aggregate limit includes all federal loans received for undergraduate study.

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