FASFA & How much loan money received

[kdbaker17]

I've been accepted to UKCOP and their tuition and fees are $27,250. Obviously, that's not including housing and other necessities. My family will not be able to pay any of this, and neither can I as I'm 22 and about to graduate with a BA in Biology with ~25,000 in debt already. My dad will likely continue paying for my apartment, but the rest is up to me. I've applied to FASFA back in October so I should be able to get all the loan money I need but I need to budget for housing and other costs based on how much they give me.

So, I was hoping that if you are in a similar situation, how much money did FASFA give you? As a reference I reported my parent's income (~40K) in order to try and get the medical loan.

Thanks!

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[a student]

How much loan you receive is determined by your school. They will calculate everything and then ask you to accept your loans. Usually they offer way more than you will need.

 

[Niosh]

I recommend taking the least amount possible.

 

[CMUchicka]

I've been accepted to UKCOP and their tuition and fees are $27,250. Obviously, that's not including housing and other necessities. My family will not be able to pay any of this, and neither can I as I'm 22 and about to graduate with a BA in Biology with ~25,000 in debt already. My dad will likely continue paying for my apartment, but the rest is up to me. I've applied to FASFA back in October so I should be able to get all the loan money I need but I need to budget for housing and other costs based on how much they give me.

So, I was hoping that if you are in a similar situation, how much money did FASFA give you? As a reference I reported my parent's income (~40K) in order to try and get the medical loan.

Thanks!

Why not live home and save $$ on living and food? Are you going school in your home state and can you commute? And if you don't want to live home, just get place with bunch of roommates. Schools financial aid office will have different kind of budget options that you can choose from. Contact them!

 

[Monsterdaddy]

Your school will calculate a Cost of Attendance figure that varies based on or off campus housing. You will be able to take out loans to cover all of this.

I recommend taking out the maximum BUT DON'T SPEND IT ALL. In fact save as much of it as you can. Since you and your family don't seem to have any reserves, the extra money can come in very handy to cover professional related activities such as attending conferences, interviewing, etc. When you graduate, you can use the remainder to repay your loans. And the extra interest you would have accrued is a small cost to pay for having the liquidity to address the above expenses (and also for emergencies).

 

[kdbaker17]

Why not live home and save $$ on living and food? Are you going school in your home state and can you commute? And if you don't want to live home, just get place with bunch of roommates. Schools financial aid office will have different kind of budget options that you can choose from. Contact them!

I'm living with my boyfriend and my family lives over an hour away; thus, living with them isn't feasible. I'm attending an in state school (UKCOP) and don't really have to move to another city for it because my undergrad will be completed at a nearby college. Thank you for the information.

Your school will calculate a Cost of Attendance figure that varies based on or off campus housing. You will be able to take out loans to cover all of this.

I recommend taking out the maximum BUT DON'T SPEND IT ALL. In fact save as much of it as you can. Since you and your family don't seem to have any reserves, the extra money can come in very handy to cover professional related activities such as attending conferences, interviewing, etc. When you graduate, you can use the remainder to repay your loans. And the extra interest you would have accrued is a small cost to pay for having the liquidity to address the above expenses (and also for emergencies).

Honestly, this is kind of what I'm doing now. My FASFA (with loans) has covered over my tuition needs for this semester and last semester of undergrad. I used the extra 1,700 dollars to pay my tuition deposit ($500), PCAT resources, drug tests/screening, and some other miscellanious things for pharmacy school. You've made an excellent point. Thank you!

 

[CMUchicka]

I'm living with my boyfriend and my family lives over an hour away; thus, living with them isn't feasible. I'm attending an in state school (UKCOP) and don't really have to move to another city for it because my undergrad will be completed at a nearby college. Thank you for the information.



Honestly, this is kind of what I'm doing now. My FASFA (with loans) has covered over my tuition needs for this semester and last semester of undergrad. I used the extra 1,700 dollars to pay my tuition deposit ($500), PCAT resources, drug tests/screening, and some other miscellanious things for pharmacy school. You've made an excellent point. Thank you!

I wouldn't reccomend taking maximum loans unless you absolutely have no saving of yours or no financial support from your parents. The reason I am saying this because with those loans, interest is going to pile up while you are in school. And when you take out max loans and have excess money laying around, you will spend it. just saying this based on what I see in my class.

 

[kdbaker17]

I wouldn't reccomend taking maximum loans unless you absolutely have no saving of yours or no financial support from your parents. The reason I am saying this because with those loans, interest is going to pile up while you are in school. And when you take out max loans and have excess money laying around, you will spend it. just saying this based on what I see in my class.

I really won't have much in savings. Maybe 1-2K at the time of classes starting. I won't have a source of income either (not going to work until I'm a PY2). My father will likely pay most of my rent, thankfully, but my mom can't financially help me and my dad can't really either outside of rent. My mom is pretty harsh on cutting me off after I graduate with a BA in Biology. I'm honestly pretty diligent on not spending money as I've lived on a fixed income throughout undergrad.

 

[a student]

I really won't have much in savings. Maybe 1-2K at the time of classes starting. I won't have a source of income either (not going to work until I'm a PY2). My father will likely pay most of my rent, thankfully, but my mom can't financially help me and my dad can't really either outside of rent. My mom is pretty harsh on cutting me off after I graduate with a BA in Biology. I'm honestly pretty diligent on not spending money as I've lived on a fixed income throughout undergrad.

$5000 should be enough for emergency savings while you're in school. The amount of emergency fund only has to last you one year. If for some reason you end up using it, then just take out more loans the year after.

 

[farmdwannab]

Why do you need to take out a loan in case of emergency? If you have an emergency use a credit card, then take out the loan and pay the credit card.

 

[Monsterdaddy]

Student loans are use it or lose it. No other loan is as generous as a student loans when you have difficulties repaying. A credit card? One missed payment and your credit score takes a hit and then the interest rate is murder.

 

[Momus]

Student loans are use it or lose it. No other loan is as generous as a student loans when you have difficulties repaying. A credit card? One missed payment and your credit score takes a hit and then the interest rate is murder.

Are you trying to get this kid in similar situation like yours? Take the max and have jumbo loan for decades? Maybe you spend it all, maybe you won't.

 

[lord999]

I'm going to give what is possibly bad advice, however, I've been in the position where I've had to convince Student Services on multiple students to advance them emergency loans.

If you are not going to work your first year and you have to take loans and you only get one opportunity per year:
DEFINITELY TAKE:
1. All tuition
2. $500 for equipment under IRS standards
3. $1-2k for books and supplies
4. $8k which is the 3/4's of the Federal Poverty Limit of ~$12k
5. The amount for health insurance if you need it from the school

RECOMMENDED TO TAKE:
(I get people mad at me for this, but it happens...)
Whatever the amount you feel comfortable with to survive one of the following incidents:
1. One minor hospitalization (<5 days)
or
2. Have to moveout in a weekend or less and put up another deposit (kicked out of your house or apartment for whatever reason)
or
3. Fly to a distant relative's funeral and stay in a hotel for a week

You do have better terms on student loans than credit cards. You might as well, but I find most students who don't prepare for one incident end up in huge trouble.

(And Momus, there are good tactical reasons to use a loan for arbitrage. I made enough to actually pay off the tuition bill myself in school, but I used my student loans in the pre GWB usury rates to finance my first house while in school. If an idiot is willing to give me a 3% loan when mortgage rates were 5.6% at the time, why not? Rather a student take more out and owe the single digit rates even if not used than burn themselves with credit cards.)

 

[lord999]

By the way, looking at UK's emergency loan rules, I'd think I would definitely take the one-incident buffer loan money instead if I were you:

http://www6.uky.edu/financialaid/content/short-term-emergency-loans

 

[Monsterdaddy]

Are you trying to get this kid in similar situation like yours? Take the max and have jumbo loan for decades? Maybe you spend it all, maybe you won't.

Borrowing the maximum you can is actually a very conservative strategy for a poor student who will go through school in a financially precarious position and graduate in uncertain employment conditions. Of course, the big caveat is the student actually has to fiscally conservative so the money isn't spent unwisely. Let's say our OP is wise.

No amount of fiscal conservativeness can handle a large unexpected financial emergency. Did you know any fellow student who got hurt, had a car breakdown, had to suddenly move, etc? Of course, we hope it never happens to us but we all know it could. Having extra funds can save the day.

I had a large family to support while in school and I had to use up all the loan funds plus I worked up to 30 hrs a week (and pulled money out of my IRA). I never spent any of it to go to Midyear or buy a good interview suit but I'm sure many students could find that worthwhile to do careerwise.

The OP stated she has no financial safety net. These loans could save her arse in a big way -- if it does the interest was cheap. And if she didn't need it, well OP will take the money and repay her loans and she's poorer a few hundred dollars in interest but it's still a pretty cheap price to pay for the security it provides. The adage is it's always cheaper to borrow when you don't need it but costly when you do.

 

[Lexington2012]

There were several students in my class that lived more than an hour away. One of them lived 2 hours away and would sometimes couch-surf with the other students. A student at Marshall told me that one of their pharmacy students lived in a camper-van for 2 years.

If you get a fuel-efficient car, an hour commute is definitely doable.

 

[pezdispenser]

Note that Grad Plus loans have a whopping 4.276% origination fee that gets deducted from your disbursement. You pay this fee even if you return the money or pay off the loan within a short time period. Also Direct loans for grad students are unsubsidized so they accrue 5.31% interest from disbursement while you are in-school. So think very carefully about taking out extra money, because the fees and interest are quite expensive.

https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/types/loans/interest-rates

 

[Lnsean]

Note that Grad Plus loans have a whopping 4.276% origination fee that gets deducted from your disbursement. You pay this fee even if you return the money or pay off the loan within a short time period. Also Direct loans for grad students are unsubsidized so they accrue 5.31% interest from disbursement while you are in-school. So think very carefully about taking out extra money, because the fees and interest are quite expensive.

https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/types/loans/interest-rates

Honestly...all those are fair rates for non-need based aid where it is given without hesitation as to the borrower's credit worthiness. No other loans will give you these rates with that kind of leniency. Obviously...be responsible.

 

[pezdispenser]

Honestly...all those are fair rates for non-need based aid where it is given without hesitation as to the borrower's credit worthiness. No other loans will give you these rates with that kind of leniency. Obviously...be responsible.

People always seem to have an excuse to justify their debts by saying things like 'the interest rates are fairly low', etc, but you're just hiding the real danger of these student loans, which is that they can easily compound and balloon out of control. For example, if you borrow $30k Direct unsub + $20k Grad Plus x 4 years = $200k, you'll pay $5k in origination fees and by the time you graduate, they'll add on about $30k in capitalized interest to make your balance $230k. Now if your average interest rate is 6%, you'll have to pay $13,800 in interest per year ($1150/mo) before you even start to pay down the principal. This is already a lot so some people just say phuck it, and go on REPAYE to pay 10% of their income for 20 years, but the payments don't even cover the interest so it just keeps compounding. Who knows if the balance will really be forgiven in 20 years, but it doesn't sound sustainable at all. They are just kicking the can down the road just like Social Security and bankrupt pension plans, until they will eventually have to make some hard decisions on who to give the shaft to.

 

[Lnsean]

People always seem to have an excuse to justify their debts by saying things like 'the interest rates are fairly low', etc, but you're just hiding the real danger of these student loans, which is that they can easily compound and balloon out of control. For example, if you borrow $30k Direct unsub + $20k Grad Plus x 4 years = $200k, you'll pay $5k in origination fees and by the time you graduate, they'll add on about $30k in capitalized interest to make your balance $230k. Now if your average interest rate is 6%, you'll have to pay $13,800 in interest per year ($1150/mo) before you even start to pay down the principal. This is already a lot so some people just say phuck it, and go on REPAYE to pay 10% of their income for 20 years, but the payments don't even cover the interest so it just keeps compounding. Who knows if the balance will really be forgiven in 20 years, but it doesn't sound sustainable at all. They are just kicking the can down the road just like Social Security and bankrupt pension plans, until they will eventually have to make some hard decisions on who to give the shaft to.

Unless you have money to pay out of pocket...you're going to need loans. That's the reality of it...and there are no loans out there that are as good as student loans. These rates are very fair---no cosigners---no credit check---very lenient repayment options. As with everything in life...you have to be responsible. I think you are reading way too much into it...as if students these days...the average students have the option of not taking out loans? Many don't have that luxury...it's the reality of how things are.

Now if your average interest rate is 6%, you'll have to pay $13,800 in interest per year ($1150/mo

And no...that's not true. There are many repayment options that do not require you to pay over X% of your income. There are countless deferrments and even some unique forgiveness programs out there. That's why it's the best loans out there. If you're taking 20 years to pay it off---then really---you have other more critical issues to figure out in your life.

Anyway, FAFSA and student loans are great programs for someone to leverage themselves---to make a bet on themselves---to increase their earning potential down the road. Being short of socialized education and free tuition for everyone---nothing out there beats it.

 

[CMUchicka]

Unless you have money to pay out of pocket...you're going to need loans. That's the reality of it...and there are no loans out there that are as good as student loans. These rates are very fair---no cosigners---no credit check---very lenient repayment options. As with everything in life...you have to be responsible. I think you are reading way too much into it...as if students these days...the average students have the option of not taking out loans? Many don't have that luxury...it's the reality of how things are.



And no...that's not true. There are many repayment options that do not require you to pay over X% of your income. There are countless deferrments and even some unique forgiveness programs out there. That's why it's the best loans out there. If you're taking 20 years to pay it off---then really---you have other more critical issues to figure out in your life.

Anyway, FAFSA and student loans are great programs for someone to leverage themselves---to make a bet on themselves---to increase their earning potential down the road. Being short of socialized education and free tuition for everyone---nothing out there beats it.

Gradeplus is only loan that has no set limit but requires good credit history. And there is another loan (unsubsizded/ subsidized ) that doesn't require credit history but there is set limit on the amount, I think it's about 12 K/year. Majority of time students have already used their unsubsidized/ subsidized loans during their undergraduate unless they went to community college or their parents paid for undergraduate.

 

[Lnsean]

Gradeplus is only loan that has no set limit but requires good credit history. And there is another loan (unsubsizded/ subsidized ) that doesn't require credit history but there is set limit on the amount, I think it's about 12 K/year. Majority of time students have already used their unsubsidized/ subsidized loans during their undergraduate unless they went to community college or their parents paid for undergraduate.

All graduate loans have limits---the cost of attendance as determined by the school...you're probably talking cumulatively...which I don't think there is one. There is no credit worthiness required...a credit check is peformed I believe but a good credit history is not required so long as there are no adverse ones.

 

[pezdispenser]

Unless you have money to pay out of pocket...you're going to need loans. That's the reality of it...and there are no loans out there that are as good as student loans. These rates are very fair---no cosigners---no credit check---very lenient repayment options. As with everything in life...you have to be responsible. I think you are reading way too much into it...as if students these days...the average students have the option of not taking out loans? Many don't have that luxury...it's the reality of how things are.

My point was more about borrowing too much. Not whether student loans are better than other loans. In fact, you could say that there are many negative outcomes to the government giving easy access to student loans and repayment programs, such as causing the explosive rise in tuition and the number of pharmacy schools.

And no...that's not true. There are many repayment options that do not require you to pay over X% of your income. There are countless deferrments and even some unique forgiveness programs out there. That's why it's the best loans out there. If you're taking 20 years to pay it off---then really---you have other more critical issues to figure out in your life.

you'll have to pay $13,800 in interest per year ($1150/mo) before you even start to pay down the principal.

You cut off my quote and took it out of context. I meant, until you pay the first $13,800 in interest per year, you won't even touch the principal. Not that you have to be on such a payment plan (fully amortizing). In fact, I then mentioned the REPAYE plan as well, which is 10% of discretionary income x 20 years, and is usually around $500/mo. And since that's going to be a negative amortizing loan, you will be making payments for the full 20 years.

 

[Lnsean]

My point was more about borrowing too much. Not whether student loans are better than other loans. In fact, you could say that there are many negative outcomes to the government giving easy access to student loans and repayment programs, such as causing the explosive rise in tuition and the number of pharmacy schools.

That's with everything in life...not just loans. You're not saying much really. If you're arguing if people are borrowing too much...that's a separate debate.

But back to the point...student loans are much better than other loans...I mean this isn't a debate. Just google it up. lol. Again, if you're arguing if people are borrowing too much that's a separate discussion.

 

[phuong123]

Just borrow the max allowed when you still can and if you know what to do with the money you don't spend, like putting it in stocks (or index funds?) to earn some money to pay for fees and interest. When you're out of school and need the money, you can't borrow any more.
The max allowed covers tuition, rent, food, transportation and books/computer. Hope you don't spend it all.
I know BP stock is pretty good. Its dividend is 6% or so, not to mention its value rarely goes down.

 

[Monsterdaddy]

Well, you can't really look at the total interest, it's the incremental interest on the max borrowing to create the emergency fund. The OP is going to have to borrow a minimum amount.

Say the OP figures she needs all but $10K. So $10K would be the potential emergency fund if she maxes out. Is paying upfront $400 for $10,000 on hand worthwhile? I would think so, most of us if hit with a $10K disaster would think paying $400 upfront is a bargain. Now each year it costs $750 (the 7.5% interest) to maintain the $10,000 emergency fund. Still seems cheap to me. And again as Lnsean pointed out, the terms are friendliest you will ever find.

Heck, right now Chase bank will pay you $150 to open up a savings account to hold your $10K emergency fund. You've just gotten back some of your disbursement fees for free! (And some banks have even better offers)

 

[Momus]

There are 2 sides on interest. The getting side and the paying side. You never want to be on the paying side. Remember this, you will be rich. Ignore this at your own peril.

 

[Dred Pirate]

I really won't have much in savings. Maybe 1-2K at the time of classes starting. I won't have a source of income either (not going to work until I'm a PY2).

error number 1 - get a job now - and bust your a$$ - work 20 hours a week during school and 60+ during breaks. You will have a better chance of getting a job when you graduate, and you will borrow a lot less money - and since you will have limited free time, you will spend less money on stupid stuff

 

[Dred Pirate]

Just borrow the max allowed when you still can and if you know what to do with the money you don't spend, like putting it in stocks (or index funds?) to earn some money to pay for fees and interest. When you're out of school and need the money, you can't borrow any more.
The max allowed covers tuition, rent, food, transportation and books/computer. Hope you don't spend it all.
I know BP stock is pretty good. Its dividend is 6% or so, not to mention its value rarely goes down.

are you effing crazy??!?!?! This type of logic is what lead to the great recession -if you are pre-pharmacy like your profile says - I am not surprised - this is some of the worst advice I have seen on here

 

[phuong123]

Work 20hrs/week while attending school? To earn $200/week (before tax)? and fail the class that costs ~$40,000-50,000 plus 6.31% of interest?
What kind of "investment" is that?
Btw, I have kid and I'm a mediocre student but quite good with money. So that's what I'm going to do -borrow ~$160K for tuition and ~$90K (max allowed) for living.

 

[Monsterdaddy]

Work 20hrs/week while attending school? To earn $200/week (before tax)? and fail the class that costs ~$40,000-50,000 plus 6.31% of interest?
What kind of "investment" is that?
Btw, I have kid and I'm a mediocre student but quite good with money. So that's what I'm going to do -borrow ~$160K for tuition and ~$90K (max allowed) for living.

Working as an intern is the BEST investment as my fellow poster mentioned. It's way beyond the money (which isn't bad at $20-$30/hr) but the experience is synergistic with pharmacy classes in so many ways. Internship taught me more about pharmacy than classes ever did = better grades (or less studying if you're so inclined). A good boss will be your best preceptor/professor. And you can't build a better network nor build a better resume than with internships.

I was a 12 hr a week Safeway intern and then got a second job as a hospital tech/intern (my Director was very flexible) on top of that for another ~20 hrs/week. That Director's name got me the interview that got me my first staff pharmacist job at a busy hospital.

P.S. In school, I supported a wife and 5 kids.

 

[phuong123]

I used to look for a job as a pharm tech and it took me a year to get one. Is it quicker to find a job as an intern nowaday?
I really want to work as intern to build a network, but not for the money (because, as I said, I want to make sure I put enough time for study and do not fail any class and spend some of my time for my kid.)
I will definitely try the internship.

 

[Dred Pirate]

Work 20hrs/week while attending school? To earn $200/week (before tax)? and fail the class that costs ~$40,000-50,000 plus 6.31% of interest?
What kind of "investment" is that?
Btw, I have kid and I'm a mediocre student but quite good with money. So that's what I'm going to do -borrow ~$160K for tuition and ~$90K (max allowed) for living.

. If you fail a class because you worked 20 hours a week you have no business being in pharmacy school. Sounds harsh I know. But it is the truth. 14 years ago I made 26k while in school. And that was at $10 an hour.
Do the math. That is almost 50 hours a week year round. Best investment. Not to brag but now I am successfully and hiring residents one of my biggest judgement points is woej and grades.

 

[Dred Pirate]

Hours in a week 168


Sleeping hours 49

Classroom hours 17

Studying hours 17

Eating, showering, cleaning etc 21 (64)

Commuting to and from school/work (varies) 10.5 (1.5 hours a day)


You still have 53.5 hours – you can’t carve 20 hour to work????

 

[owlegrad]

20-30 per hour is about double what I made as an intern. I would have loved 20/hour!

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G920A using SDN mobile

 

[morrison18]

Working as an intern is the BEST investment as my fellow poster mentioned. It's way beyond the money (which isn't bad at $20-$30/hr) but the experience is synergistic with pharmacy classes in so many ways. Internship taught me more about pharmacy than classes ever did = better grades (or less studying if you're so inclined). A good boss will be your best preceptor/professor. And you can't build a better network nor build a better resume than with internships.

I was a 12 hr a week Safeway intern and then got a second job as a hospital tech/intern (my Director was very flexible) on top of that for another ~20 hrs/week. That Director's name got me the interview that got me my first staff pharmacist job at a busy hospital.

P.S. In school, I supported a wife and 5 kids.

What pharmacy internship pays 20-30 an hour? At my hospital it's more like 12. I made sterile products for 5 years at just over $12 an hour. That's for making chemo and acting as purchaser for my department.

 

[pezdispenser]

Working as an intern is the BEST investment as my fellow poster mentioned. It's way beyond the money (which isn't bad at $20-$30/hr) but the experience is synergistic with pharmacy classes in so many ways. Internship taught me more about pharmacy than classes ever did = better grades (or less studying if you're so inclined). A good boss will be your best preceptor/professor. And you can't build a better network nor build a better resume than with internships.

I was a 12 hr a week Safeway intern and then got a second job as a hospital tech/intern (my Director was very flexible) on top of that for another ~20 hrs/week. That Director's name got me the interview that got me my first staff pharmacist job at a busy hospital.

P.S. In school, I supported a wife and 5 kids.

I second all of that, and would also like to add that you pay little to no federal income tax as a student. There's the $6,350 standard deduction, $4,050 per person exemption, and the $2,000 Lifetime Learning Credit which will take care of taxes on the next $16k of income. So already that's $26k tax free. You will still have to pay 6.2% SS, 1.45% Medicare and possibly state income taxes however.

 

[phuong123]

Hours in a week 168


Sleeping hours 49

Classroom hours 17

Studying hours 17

Eating, showering, cleaning etc 21 (64)

Commuting to and from school/work (varies) 10.5 (1.5 hours a day)


You still have 53.5 hours – you can’t carve 20 hour to work????

My class will be 8AM to 2PM, Mon to Thurs, and on Friday students will have to be at somewhere, like a pharmacy.
So classroom hours: 35
Cooking/groceries shopping: 14
For me, study will take at least 21 but I will put more than that.
I don't work much in my life. I rarely work 40hrs/week because I don't have enough energy for that. People are different. I used to take 16 units/semester for pre-reqs and worked 24 hrs/w and I could do that for only one year and sweared I wouldn't do things like that again.

I used to major in electronic engineering and struggle to graduate. People say pharmacy is way easier but needs more time because repetition is the key!
So yes, I'll try pharmacy and won't work 20hrs/week. I'll save most of those to relax and be with my kid.
The reason I choose pharmacy because I saw pharmacists at my CVS can work part time, and when you leave work, you don't think about it any more. It's not like when being an engineer, you will think of work when you eat and sleep too.

 

[Monsterdaddy]

What pharmacy internship pays 20-30 an hour? At my hospital it's more like 12. I made sterile products for 5 years at just over $12 an hour. That's for making chemo and acting as purchaser for my department.

My Safeway internship started at $18 as P1 and grew to $26?? as P4, so it's even more now. I can only speak for Arizona but most internships automatically started paying more as you progressed in school and you were definitely paid more than techs.

I second all of that, and would also like to add that you pay little to no federal income tax as a student. There's the $6,350 standard deduction, $4,050 per person exemption, and the $2,000 Lifetime Learning Credit which will take care of taxes on the next $16k of income. So already that's $26k tax free. You will still have to pay 6.2% SS, 1.45% Medicare and possibly state income taxes however.

Good point so I'll add one more. When you work and you wind up owing no taxes you are eligible for FREE MONEY in the form of the "Additional Tax Credit" or "Earned Income Credit", whichever is higher. I had a negative 30-40% tax rate thanks to this (not a joke, and easy to do as a student with family).

 

[phuong123]

My Safeway internship started at $18 as P1 and grew to $26?? as P4, so it's even more now. I can only speak for Arizona but most internships automatically started paying more as you progressed in school and you were definitely paid more than techs.


Good point so I'll add one more. When you work and you wind up owing no taxes you are eligible for FREE MONEY in the form of the "Additional Tax Credit" or "Earned Income Credit", whichever is higher. I had a negative 30-40% tax rate thanks to this (not a joke, and easy to do as a student with family).

I'm not a tax expert and I'm not sure what FREE MONEY you're talking about.
But I know if you work, you'll definitely pay SS tax, Medicare tax, and state disability tax. You can't take this back in any way unless you retire/ become disabled...
If you earn money through investment, you won't pay these 3 kinds of tax.
About tax credit, I think I can only get credit if I pay some tax, equal to or more than credit allowed. For example, I can get $1000 for child tax credit if I pay more than $1000 in tax. Last year the total fed tax I paid is $500 so I can get back $500 max, not $1000, in child tax credit.
So I guess the amount of tax credit you can get cannot be greater than the amount of tax you pay?

 

[phuong123]

Note that Grad Plus loans have a whopping 4.276% origination fee that gets deducted from your disbursement. You pay this fee even if you return the money or pay off the loan within a short time period. Also Direct loans for grad students are unsubsidized so they accrue 5.31% interest from disbursement while you are in-school. So think very carefully about taking out extra money, because the fees and interest are quite expensive.

https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/types/loans/interest-rates

These loans don't require credit check? or any other requirements, am I correct?

 

[phuong123]

Gradplus is only loan that has no set limit but requires good credit history.

I thought it's the other way: there's a limit and doesn't require credit history?
It doesn't require that you have a Bachelor's degree either, does it?

 

[Monsterdaddy]

Let me introduce you to the amazing concept of....

REFUNDABLE TAX CREDITS

These are tax credits that if you don't use it all, the remaining amounts are paid out to you. Additional child tax credit is one of those but with the qualifier that you actually have to work some to earn it all.

Earned Income Credit is actual better, a $3400 maximum credit for one child. Look it up.

 

[phuong123]

Interesting!
It benefits certain group of citizens, like Earned Income Credit applies to married couple only?
It changes from year to year. What applied to someone a few years ago may not apply to you now. I recognize it now bc I remember I got $9,000 tax credit for purchasing first home in 2009.

 

[CMUchicka]

I thought it's the other way: there's a limit and doesn't require credit history?
It doesn't require that you have a Bachelor's degree either, does it?

I just did it last year and it does require good and clean credit history and from I heard it has no set limit over life time. Of course the award is going to be based on your cost of attendance.

 

[pezdispenser]

These loans don't require credit check? or any other requirements, am I correct?

Direct loans don't have any credit criteria, but the limit is $30k/yr I think for pharmacy school. For Grad Plus loans, you can't have an "adverse credit history" and that is defined here: https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/types/loans/plus

 

[Monsterdaddy]

Interesting!
It benefits certain group of citizens, like Earned Income Credit applies to married couple only?
It changes from year to year. What applied to someone a few years ago may not apply to you now. I recognize it now bc I remember I got $9,000 tax credit for purchasing first home in 2009.

EIC applies to anyone who's responsible for a child.

 

[Dred Pirate]

I used to major in electronic engineering and struggle to graduate. People say pharmacy is way easier but needs more time because repetition is the key!
So yes, I'll try pharmacy and won't work 20hrs/week. I'll save most of those to relax and be with my kid.
The reason I choose pharmacy because I saw pharmacists at my CVS can work part time, and when you leave work, you don't think about it any more. It's not like when being an engineer, you will think of work when you eat and sleep too.

this line- you are in serious trouble - not to be mean - but it is NOT easy - you have a MAJOR misconception about what you are getting yourself into with 200K debt

 

[phuong123]

this line- you are in serious trouble - not to be mean - but it is NOT easy - you have a MAJOR misconception about what you are getting yourself into with 200K debt

I plan to take one semester and borrow ~ $40K. If I see school is harder than I thought and than I can do, I'll drop out immediately with 40k debt.
From P1 of my school, they said no one drops out after finishing 1st year. So if I can stay 'til the end, I'll have about 250K debt. But as I said, I won't spend all the amount I borrowed so I'll have some savings. I've had some savings before I enter school but I won't take it out to spend for school. Instead I borrow max and don't mind loans fee of 4.3% & interest of 6.31%. It was hard for me to borrow in the past bc I worked on & off, so I'll borrow max when I can.
Do you think I'll have trouble working as a pharmacist (if I can graduate) and paying off 200K debt bc the work is not easy?

 

[PharmDBro2017]

That is ludicrous tbh, please tell me you're trolling^