Quitting Work and Starting Nursing School...

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Hello Everyone!

I currently work 43 hours a week and am finishing up my last semester of core classes. I'm turning in my nursing school application this week, and I hope to be accepted for Fall 2012 admission.

I'll find out in June whether or not I get accepted. I feel pretty good about my chances because I spoke with the admission specialist at the school where I'm applying (Georgia Highlands College) and she told me that if I make A's this semester again then I'll have a 1352. They accepted scores of 940-1400 last Fall.

My biggest concern is paying for school if I get accepted! I have been using Hope Grant and paying out of pocket up to this point and working full time, but once I start the program, I'll have to quit my job.

Our credit is not very good right now :( and I worry that I won't be able to get student loans to cover my half of the income.

My mom used student loans to supplement her income and go to Nursing school, but that was a long time ago. I know people have done it, but I don't know where to start looking! Every time I talk to someone at the school, they tell me to wait and see what the FAFSA says... But the FAFSA considers your income from the previous year for eligibility. The thing is- we always make too much to get Pell Grant or anything, hence the paying out of pocket, but once I quit my job, our income will be cut in half!

I can't even describe my stress about this...

Is there anyone out there who has a mortgage and other financial expenses that had to be covered while going to nursing school? How did you do it?

HELP! :uhoh3: I can't imagine what it would be like to make it into the program and not have a way to afford it!

Thanks for listening!

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Is it possible to postpone a year to save up the money?

I've been saving for over a year and I have enough money to cover tuition and extras. We have trimmed down our living expenses so that we are living on my husband's paycheck. My income goes into my 401k and my nursing school fund.

I just did my taxes/FAFSA this past weekend and yeah our EFC is pretty high. I'll be lucky to qualify for any loans. I'm not sure but I'm not sure what type of credit you need for the stafford loans so you may still qualify for those.

I know it is going to be tight when I quit my job but our savings will provide some cushion.

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Specializes in Hospitalist Medicine.

You might want to consider looking into a private student loan, instead of the public route. Many financial institutions offer private student loans. I currently work in the financial industry but will be going back to school this year to start my career in nursing...I'm so excited! :) I finally get to do what I set out to do over 20 years ago!

Write down a cost estimate of tuition, fees (labs, clinicals, etc.), books, supplies (stethoscope, scrubs/uniforms, etc.) and any other nursing education expenses you can think of. That will give you an idea of how much you'll need to finance through the program.

Also, if you have the means to do so...look into the option of getting a student loan where you pay the interest on the loan while you're going to school. They're usually pretty small payments and you can get a lower interest rate on your loan if you choose this option. It also means less you have to pay back when you're done with school (only principal left). Lenders are more inclined to do student loans with this option if you're choosing a private student loan.

I would caution you on trying to get a student loan to cover non-educational (living) expenses. While it seems like it would be a good idea....you'll end up paying more in interest later than if you tried to budget or use your savings while in school. If you can't make a budget work or don't have enough savings, then you might have to go this route.

Best of luck to you! I hope you get what you're looking for and that you have a successful time in school :)

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I am in the same boat right now. I plan on applying to Georgia Highlands Spring 13. I am working on getting my CNA at Lanier Tech so that I can work through school. I'm thinking about getting certified in Phlebotomy too. My biggest concern is losing my health insurance. I'm hoping I'll be able to find a job that pays decent, has a flexible schedule, and provides health insurance for me and my family. We have a mortgage and daycare expenses that need to be covered, but one thing I did do is pay off both of our cars so my husband's income can go a lot farther now.

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Yeah my car will be paid off in November and we're going to put my car payment amount towards my husband's car to pay it off early, so that should help. We also just applied for a home loan modification to try and get a lower monthly payment. We'll see!

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Specializes in Medical-Surgical, Pediatrics.

I am in the same boat as well. I work as a teacher so I plan on teaching for another while saving up. I also plan to get my CNA license so I can work while going to school. It would be so nice if I could work for a facility that would pay for me to go to school :)

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Verify with your shool, but I've seen posts from others who contact their financial aid office and petition to have their FAFSA revised to show what their income will be as a student so they are eligible for more aid.

Make sure to apply for tuition waivers and any private scholarships throught your school or through other organizations that offer nursing scholarships.

Your nursing program may also be able to offer other suggestions. In my area several hospitals will pay tuition if you pledge to work for them after graduating. The rate is usually 1 semester of tuition for 6 months of work. There are rural and indigent health programs that make similar offers.

Make sure when you budget for school that you also keep in mind most nursing schools require their students to carry private health insurance. If you get that from your job now, it can be an additional expense.

Frankly, I'm willing to take the gamble with student loans, since I will make substantially more as a nurse than I do in my present job. I'd rather have a job that I love and pay off the loans.

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And if you can cut expenses, any way you can, it will help. My husband and I have paid off our cars but one of our cars is starting to get on its last legs (it is 12). I've been looking at possibly going down to 1 car during nursing school which would decrease various costs like car insurance. The only reason it'd be doable is my husband will probably switch to working at home and I'm hoping to use public transportation to go to school. On days I'd need a car, I could use our shared car.

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Specializes in hospice, HH, LTC, ER,OR.

Have you tried for the wellstar scholarship that is available at GHC? I am unsure about which campus it applies to but take a look into that. GOOD LUCK! I start the bridge program in midmarch..woohoo!

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Specializes in NICU.

If you can, I would use the next few months to do whatever you can to raise your credit and save as much $$ as possible. Maybe that way, you'll have some to put toward school and get the rest covered by private loans. Our credit is good but I still want to take advantage of the time I have before I need to quit my job to get as much cash in savings as possible in case anything comes up. We have also started budgetting hardcore (eating in, cutting the cable, etc.) and you may try doing that if you haven't already? I also agree that you should take advantage of scholarships and make sure you fill out your FAFSA by March 2 to see if you qualify for any kind of gov. loans.

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Do NOT take out private loans for nursing school. Go the fed loan route (Stafford). Depending on where you go to school (is it community college or university?) your school will calculate your tuition and cost of living. Most likely (and I say most likely b/c I am not familiar with community college borrowing), you will be able to get $12,500 (in Stafford) per year if they classify you as a "junior". Government loans are more flexible in repayment, can be deferred, and also forgiven in some cases. DO NOT go straight to the bank or private lender here---- they will give it to you, but you will be sorry. I have a ton from law school and they are the bane of my existence and I wish I knew better when I signed the papers. Go online and Google "Federal Direct Loan". It will take you directly to the government site and will explain everything you need to know about borrowing. Also, talk to your school. But be careful--- not all schools are forthcoming about being an educated borrower. They sometimes get kickbacks from private lenders like Sallie Mae, etc. if their students borrow their private loans. Just be educated and you will be able to do it!

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