Terrified by Loan Debt

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I'm new to this forum, but it seems everytime I look up anything related to fellow AuD students, this forum comes up-- so I figured it was about time to join! Anyway, I am a first year AuD student at a pretty expensive school. My reasons for choosing this school were not the best-- it's close to where I grew up, and close to where my whole family lives. Also, when I was applying, it seemed that the cost of out-of-state tuition vs. the cost of a private school was not too different, and there was not much selection with in-state schools. AND my school offered me a $20,000 grant and a 1 year research assistantship. Here are my issues-- I feel that they led me to believe that the grant was not a one time deal, and that the assistantship could possibly be extended so long as I kept my grades up-- I maintained about a 3.7 average for my first year, but found out about a month ago that there will be no additional funding beyond this point, regardless of my grades or performance. I'm at a school that costs about $45,000/year in tuition with no way to pay for it other than loans and menial jobs that I can (hopefully) get. I will have well over $100,000 in debt when I get out of here, and there's no way that I'll be making over $100,000 to start (or really ever). I'm nervous that I simply won't have enough money to repay these loans, even living VERY modestly and working VERY hard (which I've done for the last 5 years, so I'm sure I could do it for longer if necessary). Does anyone have any advice? Am I panicking for no reason? Also, telling me I was stupid to get myself into this situation is not really necesary, since I'm well aware of that already.

sounds easy, go to a cheaper school, i can guarantee rankings and school prestige will have no effect on how much money you can make, an aud from middle of no where can bill the same as an aud from vanderbilt etc, there are plenty of cheaper aud schools in the us, look them up

on another note you shouldent have assumed, you need a straight yes or no answer regarding funding

I'm already here. If I transfer now, I'll definitely lose most of my credits that I've gotten. If dropping out of this program is the only option, I'll do it-- I mainly just wanted to hear from other people in similar situations to see what they're doing. Prestige of the school doesn't really matter to me at all.

You can enroll in the special consolidation direct loan program before the 20th of this month I believe. That docks a half percent of your interest. I also plan to enroll in the Income Based Repayment (IBR) plan upon graduation. It seems tailor made for newly minted audiologists (crazy amount of loans, salary that doesn't match up to it), especially if you take a federal job. I believe VA audiologists would qualify. Outstanding debt is forgiven after 10 years and the remaining amount is not taxed. For non-federal jobs, it's 20 years and the remaining amount is taxable. That's not bad considering the lowered monthly payments. There's a lot more information out there.

State jobs also fall under the 10 year umbrella. (i.e. school based audiologist).

AuDly, what year in your program are you? We have had several students transfer after their first year and have not lost all their credits.

Originally Posted by cmc271

AuDly, what year in your program are you? We have had several students transfer after their first year and have not lost all their credits.

I second this; just contact the department you'll be applying to transfer to and they can tell you what the situation would be like.

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You should be able to transfer without losing any credits. Most AuD programs are the same the first year or so, especially going from a semesters program to another semesters program.

I would jump ship even if it means waiting a year. Student loan debt is no joke. If you got into a great private school and with your current GPA you should be able to get into a state school.

I'll probably get murdered for saying this, but here is an option if you have to be waitlisted for a year somewhere cheaper.

Get your hearing aid dealers license in whatever state you reside in and work as a dealer. You will gain valuable audiology work experience and can bank some cash while waiting to get back into the AuD courses somewhere.

I'd check the fine print on the program. I believe you have to make the normal payments and not income based repayments and pay every payment for 10 years which usually means you are paying the bulk of the loan. I know on mine if I paid it off in 10 years it was about 300 more a month, but if I paid it off in 15 years, it was only 100 more a month.

I'm hoping by working at a non-profit and at a VA that I will be able to qualify for some loan debt reduction, but I'm not holding my breath since they just voted to up the loan interest rate for undergrad government loans.

The student loan debt bubble will be the next big debt issue. Higher education is becoming way too costly for students and the cost is starting to outweigh any benefits or extra earnings over your lifetime for several programs.

Here is the website for the student loan forgiveness program

They actually recommend using the income based repayment plan otherwise your loan is paid off in 10 years.

What is a qualifying repayment plan?

To maximize your PSLF benefit, you should repay your loans on the Income-Based Repayment (IBR) Plan or the Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR) Plan, which are two of the repayment plans that qualify for PSLF.

Other PSLF-qualifying repayment plans are the 10-year Standard Repayment Plan or any other repayment plan where your monthly payment amount equals or exceeds what you would pay under a 10-year Standard Repayment Plan.

Before deciding which repayment plan you want to use to repay your Direct Loans, it is important that you understand the implications and costs of that decision. The longer you make PSLF-qualifying payments under a 10-Year Standard Repayment Plan, the lower the remaining balance on your loans will be when you meet all of the PSLF Program's eligibility requirements. In fact, if you make all of the required 120 monthly payments under the 10-Year Standard Repayment Plan, there will be no balance left on your loans to be forgiven.

Under the IBR and ICR plans, your monthly payment amount will likely be lower than under any of the other PSLF-qualifying repayment plans and your repayment period will likely be longer. Because of the longer repayment period, additional interest that will accrue on your loan, and the smaller monthly payment amount, you will be left with a higher loan balance that could be forgiven. However, if you ultimately do not meet the eligibility requirements for PSLF, you will be responsible for repaying the entire balance of your loan, including all accrued interest.

What kinds of employment qualify?

Qualifying employment is any employment with a federal, state, or local government agency, entity, or organization or a non-profit organization that has been designated as tax-exempt by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC). The type or nature of employment with the organization does not matter for PSLF purposes. Additionally, the type of services that these public service organizations provide does not matter for PSLF purposes.

A private non-profit employer that is not a tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the IRC may be a qualifying public service organization if it provides certain specified public services. These services include emergency management, military service, public safety, or law enforcement services; public health services; public education or public library services; school library and other school-based services; public interest law services; early childhood education; public service for individuals with disabilities and the elderly. The organization must not be a labor union or a partisan political organization.

Generally, the type or nature of employment with the organization does not matter for PSLF purposes. However, when determining full-time public service employment at a not-for-profit organization you may not include time spent participating in religious instruction, worship services, or any form of proselytizing.

So you have to make 120 payments, i.e. 10 years and if you do the IBR you have paid less than the standard 10 year plan and save whatever the difference is.

IBR payments are based on household AGI, which includes your spouse's salary. Your payments are modified annually from changes in earnings, demographic, and family size..

IBR Calculator

Standard/Extended Repayment Calculator

Thanks so much for the info. about loan forgiveness-- I'm assuming you're talking about the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program? I need to talk to a financial adviser and find out exactly what loans I have-- I thought that I had Stafford loans, and I thought that Stafford loans WERE federal direct loans, but on for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, it talks about William Ford federal direct loans. So I'm all sorts of confused.

I AM a first year, I just heard from the program that I'm in that they rarely if ever accept transfers. I don't know what it's like at other schools, but I guess I could find out.

I didn't explain my full situation before, but another big reason that I chose this area was that I spoke to my fiance and asked where he'd like to be-- I didn't want to just pick a school without consulting him, since we were planning on living together. He liked this area because he went to undergrad and grad school here, so he had already done some decent networking. He recently got a job here as an energy engineer for a small company-- so there's virtually no hope for him transferring to another location. We did long-distance for 4 years in undergrad... and I feel like I'm just whining a lot, but I never want to do long-distance again. Not if I can help it, anyway.

Do you think with a dual income, income-based repayments and HOPEFULLY a public service job, it should be okay? I mean, I don't want a mansion and a lambo, or anything fancy.

Also, some of the girls in my program are talking about getting a dispensing license and working as dispensers while in school-- our clinic director seemed not so sure about it, but he tentatively said that it should be okay.

I've been freaking out about this, but I don't want to do anything drastic without considering every angle.

you better be terrified about the loan....
have you ever wondered what happens at the end of 4 years? if were flipping burgers for thoese four years you have a shot at a C-Suite in mcDonalds...
but not with audiology... please audioogy is loosing steam even in the capitol hill
no laws to support proper funding... etc
salary continues to be in the DUMP.will NEVER EVER rise.. thats for sure...

all the data for salary shows 70K 80K etc but alas they are for folks who have grey hair (60 year old) and been in the industry for 30 year.

yes, i am back and being vocal.,, DO NOT TO TO GRAD SCHOOL FOR Au.D
you will end up as a hearing aid seller DUH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
CHECK ALL THE OTHER OPTIONS out there

Come on loosers hit me and try to shut me up so that I cannot spread the REAL hoRROR story of AUD degreee.. a worthless 4 years or 3 spent

Hey, Hey ya, the troll is back!



Every single one of my classmates that just graduated has a job. Everyone is doing fine. They make extended repayment plans also. There is plenty of money to be made, no you probably won't be making as much as physician, but you can be pretty comfortable. Be an advocate for yourself and your profession.

I can assure you I am not a 30 year member of this field and I already pull down a lucrative salary and have an amazing work/life balance. I'm very happy with what I do. If i won the lotto today I'd still go to work tomorrow for free. I love what I do Mr. Troll. I am completely honest with students what the drawbacks of our field are, but it's not all doom and gloom.

And CMC is right we will never make what a physician makes, but I don't have nearly the education or headaches they do. I don't have to learn 50 new medications every month and performed med reconcilliation constantly. I don't have an expensive malpractice insurance and I don't have to worry about getting a huge lawsuit slapped on me. I'm never on-call and I usually know within +/- 30 minutes the time I will be off work each day. I love what I do. Trust me I know what I am talking about because I was in nursing and I know the difference. Yes I could have made double what I make in audiology in nursing with the same years of schooling as a nurse practitioner, but work would be my life. I'd always be on call, always one mistake away from a lawsuit and my license being revoked. No thanks.