I moved to DC for law school with a grant, loans (Stafford and private), and a few hundred dollars in the bank. I lived in a grad student dorm and ate mostly bagels and bananas.

My parents paid for my masters. I had to take 6 classes and work a 3 day a week internship. Working a paid job was not realistic though I know a few who did.

Anonymous wrote:Not Stanford. Stafford .

Can you say Stafford.

I can say both.

I had saved some from working, continued to work 20 hrs/wk for half of my masters program, took out some loans, and spent the 10k I inherited when my mom died. Plus lived in cheap housing and didn't spend on any extras.

Not Stanford. Stafford .

Can you say Stafford.

Can you say "Stanford".

On ramen, beer, and debt.

I worked 3 jobs.

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't enter a PhD program unless your tuition is covered and you get a stipend.

This. I went out of state for grad school, but being a TA/RA gave me in-state tuition (very inexpensive 30 years ago) and my $1100/month stipend afforded me a pretty nice apartment and some spending money.

My son is in medical school. Loans are available for tuition and living expenses. My DH and I currently pay all his living expenses. Once he is a resident, he will receive a salary.

There is no such thing as a program where you "can't work." Maybe you can't work a 9 to 5, but you CAN still work.

The grad students I know where able to borrow all the money they needed, more than what they really needed. My DD didn't want to have any loans to pay back and we were helping substantially. Those with loans were living much better than DD.

Loans, savings, parents, working extra, company covers it, a combo of these things.

Anonymous wrote:I understand you can take out loans for the actual education but food, housing, etc. - if you are in a program where you can't work and do school do they just finance everything thru credit cards? Parents?

When we visited RPI for undergrad, they said their grade students can't be accepted as grad students unless the professor can cover their tuition and pay them a $28k annual stipend. You shouldn't go to graduate school unless you can find a way for it to be paid- mainly because if you can't find the grants and TAs positions, you will not be able to find a job after you graduate.

Anonymous wrote:Sorry, I'm not talking about programs like MAs or PhDs that are likely to be fully funded. Thinking about programs like physical therapy (my kid's area of interest), PA school, med school etc. that are very unlikely to be fully funded.

I was an RA in grad school. I got a plush apartment of my own in the dorm (bedroom, kitchen, living room, etc., not a typical dorm room), and a free full meal plan for the dining halls. Another advantage was that there were a lot of other grad/med/law students who were RAs and DAs, and I lived/was surrounded by a community. My program was intense, and some of my classmates (who were not RAs) found the experience of grad school to be lonely and depressing because their only interaction with others was in class, or nodding to someone in the library. I lived with other grad students, and while I complained about having to "care for" the undergrads, it was a healthy experience to be surrounded by people/involved in something on campus in addition to my program.

My tuition was already covered by my fellowship, and my stipend would not have been enough to afford an apartment in Boston (off campus), etc. Being an RA allowed me to avoid taking out loans, and ended up being an enriching experience.