Older students w/family starting pharmacy

[sdgirl1507]

Were any of you guys older and had a family before starting pharmacy school? If so, how did that work out- juggling family and school? How did you deal with the financial situation? Did you guys loan out some of your living expenses as well?

Thanks

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[kvl1027]

Were any of you guys older and had a family before starting pharmacy school? If so, how did that work out- juggling family and school? How did you deal with the financial situation? Did you guys loan out some of your living expenses as well?

Thanks

I am abou tto start my first year, I'm not old but older than most of other people in my class. My wife and I just had a baby, and I think it is going to be really tuff. I am going to lone out the full amount allowable so that I can help cover living expenses. My wife works full time and makes a decent slalary, but it's not enough for all of us to live off of alone. We moved in with my wifes parents so that we can save a little money, I am not thrilled about it, but i guess you have to do what you have to do. Anyways, good luck to you, it will all be worth it in the end.

 

[josh6718]

Were any of you guys older and had a family before starting pharmacy school? If so, how did that work out- juggling family and school? How did you deal with the financial situation? Did you guys loan out some of your living expenses as well?

Thanks

The night pharmacist I work with is in her mid 40's and she was able to do it. When I talked to her, she said that it definitely caused her to sacrifice time with her family, but she thought in the end it was worth it.

 

[prairie42]

Were any of you guys older and had a family before starting pharmacy school? If so, how did that work out- juggling family and school? How did you deal with the financial situation? Did you guys loan out some of your living expenses as well?

Thanks

I was an older student with a wife and a family and just graduated. As far as the financial aspects go, the secret is to marry someone rich or that makes a lot of money, like another poster bragged about earlier in another thread here. Otherwise, unless you have other resources, you might have to use some loan money for living expenses. The oldest person in our class at graduation time was 50. She was a single parent. As far as pharmacy school goes, it really isn't that hard and does not require much time outside of class, IF you manage your time well. Lots of people in my class worked several hours weekly through the entire six years. You will find out what works best for you early on hopefully. There will also be other people in your class which you can relate to and make friends with, which will be a big help. PM me if you have specific questions.

 

[troutpharm]

I am an older student who is starting as a P1 this fall. My wife and I have two small kids,a house, and one income. I have done everything possible to let my wife stay home with the boys while I was fulfilling the prereqs and working full time and without going crazy into debt. We find it difficult to make ends meet every month, but the sacrifice is worth it. I am attending a state school ( read as INEXPENSIVE TUITION!!!!! @ $12,000 per year) and am borrowing a considerable amount now that I am starting school full time. I also plan on working as much as possible while in the program. Like all things in life, "youz gots ta make choices". Maybe a degree from my state school isn't my first choice, but the amount I am borrowing will help cover some of the living expenses and still be less than the amount of just tuition ( $30,000 + ) at some private schools. Yeh, my social life is pretty quiet and I am always tired, but I figure I can sleep when I am older. It can be done without marrying money, as in my case, all you need is a fantastic wife who is supportive and has a can do attitude. I figure I'll be 100,000 grand in debt when I graduate and the equity we are building up in the house, instead of throwing the money away on rent, as well as any sign on bonus when I get out of school make the loans easier to justify. What better investment that your future? If I was younger and without kids I would of gone to Med School, but the fact is I am not and pharmacy school is a fantastic alternative without all the Med School B### S###. Again, back to choices.
Hawaii will still be there in four years...
Good luck to you and know there are lots of us out there.

 

[aamna929]

As far as pharmacy school goes, it really isn't that hard and does not require much time outside of class, IF you manage your time well. Lots of people in my class worked several hours weekly through the entire six years. You will find out what works best for you early on hopefully. There will also be other people in your class which you can relate to and make friends with, which will be a big help. PM me if you have specific questions.

I think it depends on the school.. some programs are a lot more challenging than others.. most of the students in our program don't work, or they work less than part time.. because everybody is in the library studying their butt off until really late, even on the weekends... throughout the whole semester. for those that have families and have to work, they are usually the ones who end up taking longer than 4 years to graduate (b/c they either flunk a course, or find the coursework too intense for their work schedule and have to take time off). I don't know how they do it, (and i would love to know because we're having our first baby next year) but it's most likely that they have a lot of family support.. i think if you have family support you should be fine.

 

[Nerdgirl]

Hi all,

I'm 30 and starting to have a family. I have one more class left and that is organic chemistry II before I can go off to pharmacy school. I'm planning to have my first child before I go, but unfortuately, I can't
take organic chemistry II until my child is born due to chemicals in the lab.
Pregnant women are not allowed in the lab. How did you gals handle
that situation? Also, since I'm one class away, I'm applying for pharmacy school and I am hoping the admissions will give me a one year delayed conditional acceptance. Do you know if that is possible? What I mean
is if I get accepted in for next year, I want the admissions to extend
my acceptance offer the year after so I can finish my class later and
enjoy a few months with the baby.

Please share your thoughts. Much appreciated.

 

[stevephhs016]

I don't have a family yet. Just 23. But I have a lot of respect for people with families going through pharmacy school. Pharmacy school requires a significant amount of time, money, and work. And to do it with a family, hats off to you guys. But loans hopefully won't be a problem. I also loaned out my 6 years of pharmacy school. Already looking at 100k+. Anyways, good luck to all.

 

[Megas]

I was really really really old! with two kids and an extremely supportive spouse. Mentally prepare everyone in your life for what you and they are in for, give them the "I may be busy now but a few years you can have a flatscreen" pep talks frequently. Money does bu a little happiness! Took the Duquesne weekend route, which was great but isn't an option for most people. Even in a traditional program, try to meet other peers with similar lifestyles-they are in most classes, and it makes life much easier to know you're not alone worrying about classes, daycare, and showing up for a med chem exam on time when you've been puked on three times in three hours and keep having to change your clothes.

 

[Megas]

Sorry, didn't finish (senior moment?). Took out loans (subsidized and PLUS), spouse employed, I worked part-time during the week. Am in for $115, but not worried, my starting salary will cover loans (and leave enough for a big flatscreen).

 

[tempofast]

I was going to post a new thread, but I found this old one and figured it applied to my situation.

I have a family and have recently been accepted into pharmacy school. I have worked full time for the last 10 years and now will have to stop work to go to school full time.

Does anyone have any advice for paying the bills, spending time with family, etc?

When filing for fafsa, does it matter how much money I have in my checking/savings, etc? We have quite a bit saved, since we were planning on buying a house, but that was until I got accepted to pharmacy school. Should I transfer funds out before applying?

I have a pretty secure job right now (not pharmacy related), and all of the horror stories of not finding a job after graduating have me a little unsettled. I currently have zero debt and after graduation will have over $100k. Do any of the "older" students have similar concerns or advice?


Thanks.

 

[Farmercyst]

I was going to post a new thread, but I found this old one and figured it applied to my situation.

I have a family and have recently been accepted into pharmacy school. I have worked full time for the last 10 years and now will have to stop work to go to school full time.

Does anyone have any advice for paying the bills, spending time with family, etc?

When filing for fafsa, does it matter how much money I have in my checking/savings, etc? We have quite a bit saved, since we were planning on buying a house, but that was until I got accepted to pharmacy school. Should I transfer funds out before applying?

I have a pretty secure job right now (not pharmacy related), and all of the horror stories of not finding a job after graduating have me a little unsettled. I currently have zero debt and after graduation will have over $100k. Do any of the "older" students have similar concerns or advice?


Thanks.

Where are you going for school, what is the cost of attendance there?
I had sold a condo in CA prior to the start of pharm school and had >$100K in assets. (Which turned into about $60K due to stock market issues in 2007) Now I'm $237K in debt. Because my parents made too much I did not qualify for Perkins/HPSL (despite that I was married with 2, now 3, kids). Our cost of attendance at USC is around 60K/year currently, but COA is caclulated for a single student living on/off campus. As a married student with family mine was obviously higher. As such, my assets didn't affect my ability to get loans. I'm still not sure if I managed my finances correctly, but I used my savings up front and GradPLUS to fill my needs on the back end. The benefits are that I saved the 8.5% interest for the first 30 months and that GradPLUS loans after Summer 2008 get the same 6 month grace period as other federal loans, whereas prior to that they would have been in repayment immediately after school. The only downside is that using GradPlus earlier would have allowed me to have a greater cushion now that I'm ending school and need to find a job and possibly move. I have about $15K to last until I get a job. Based on my current rate of spending, that should last about 6 months.(provided I stay in CA)

 

[Twiggy1]

I'm 41, just had a second child (well, my wife did), and will be starting pharm school in August. Unfortunately, when filling out the FAFSA, they do ask about checking/savings/401K's. So, while being responsible in my previous career by maxing out my 401K, I've screwed myself regarding loans. I hope you have better luck!

 

[Dr Wario]

I'm 41, just had a second child (well, my wife did), and will be starting pharm school in August. Unfortunately, when filling out the FAFSA, they do ask about checking/savings/401K's. So, while being responsible in my previous career by maxing out my 401K, I've screwed myself regarding loans. I hope you have better luck!

Good luck in school Twiggy and btw, you picked an excellent place to learn

 

[jnmnh]

I'm 41, just had a second child (well, my wife did), and will be starting pharm school in August. Unfortunately, when filling out the FAFSA, they do ask about checking/savings/401K's. So, while being responsible in my previous career by maxing out my 401K, I've screwed myself regarding loans. I hope you have better luck!

Your retirement accounts are not included in your assets. If you reported anything in your 401k or IRA, you might consider contacting your school to correct that.

Tempofast, if you are not currently contributing to an IRA, one quick way to reduce your assets would be to open a Roth IRA for you, and one for your wife, and put the max of $5000 into each for 2011. Since it is before April 15th, I believe you can contribute $5000 each for 2010 also. Regardless, that's a way to stash $10-20k.

(I recommend the Roth IRA because you can remove your original contributions -but not any profits- at any time, so if you want the money for a down payment you can take it out at any time.)

 

[Twiggy1]

Your retirement accounts are not included in your assets. If you reported anything in your 401k or IRA, you might consider contacting your school to correct that.

Yep, thanks for that. I filled out the FAFSA a while ago....taking a look back at it I did exclude the 401K. But, I put money in other places (mutual funds, CD's) that are hurting me when it comes to the financial aid. It'll all work out in the end.

 

[Naidim]

42 when I started Pharm school last Fall, have 4 kids, work full time to pay the bills.

It can be stressful, but I set my expectations and make sure my weekends are family time. It's all about prioritizing. Do what you need to for work and school, but family is the raison d'etre.