I wanted to comment on this, partially due to quarantine boredom and partially due to my experiences kind of on "both sides" of the debate:
I graduated from undergrad in 2014 with absolutely 0 idea of how graduate programs worked. I applied to programs that appealed to me based on location, and I did not care about the price tag. At the time, I had the idea that all student debt was worth it (first generation college student--my parents, bless their hearts, always encouraged me to do what I needed to do to get a good education, and I assumed that a doctorate meant hefty debt). At the time, I truly believed that I needed to get into a graduate program right away because I was eager to start my career.
Because I had no idea what I was doing, I was rejected from all but one (very pricey) master's program. I ended up accepting and attending. I won't say I regret this, primarily because the program was actually very good and allowed me to complete a master's thesis and research practicum, but I will say for 100% certainty that I wish I would have looked more critically at the price tag. Between my undergrad and my master's, I have a little over 6 figures in student debt that I really, truly wish I understood the weight of before accepting my master's offer out of desperation. The only reason that it is not affecting me as much as it could is that I live in a dual income household, and my partner does not have any student debt whatsoever and is able to work and help pay it down. If he were not in my life, things would be way more stressful.
I applied to funded-only programs after my master's program. I had 3 interviews but ultimately 0 offers. I felt devastated because, again, I was eager to start my career and for the first time in my life I wouldn't have school. I remember feeling horribly jealous of other people in my program who ended up in great programs! And here I was, doing everything I "should" be doing and not getting anywhere.
I ended up working full time for 3 years. My full time job was as a master's level clinician (minimal research), and I took on a second job as a research assistant at a major university near where I lived. I spent months looking for a paid, full time research position but ultimately I had bills that needed to get paid, and since I still wanted to get into a funded program eventually, I knew some unpaid or minimally-paid research experience on the side was better than nothing. While working as a master's level clinician (at a location which also partially served as a captive APA internship site for 2 local programs), I worked with some clinicians who had their PsyD, including my supervisor. Some were great clinicians with a solid research understanding, others...not so much. However, I did notice a trend in that of all the PsyDs I worked with, all but 1 complained of being unable to buy a house because of their debt to income ratio. They were making standard psychologist salary for our area (give or take 100k), but with student debt 200k+ (creeping towards 300k+ because of interest), they could not get approved for a loan even with a sizeable downpayment. For their student loans, the monthly interest alone was over 1000. They had bills to pay and unfortunately were not able to put the sizeable dent in their student debt they were expecting to once they became licensed and worked as a psychologist. They all also put off kids, despite wanting them, because they legitimately could not afford the costs while paying down their loans and saving for a home.
While working, I spent 2 years studying diligently for my GRE, working part-time in research, and submitting my master's thesis for publication. 3 years later and with more research experience under my belt, I ended up getting accepted to 4 great, completely funded programs. I am somewhat older than most people in my cohort, but I don't mind. I certainly did not have a "golden ticket" to any of these programs, and I had no prior connections. I really, really hate any sort of "boot straps" argument--but I want to highlight that you absolutely do not need any special connections or credentials to attend a reputable, funded program. Those three years were arduous but I would do it again in a heartbeat. I just wish I could go back in time and tell my fresh-out-of-undergrad self that the world will not end if I do not attend a graduate program immediately, that people will not treat me any differently, that just because I didn't get in this time doesn't mean I don't have potential, and that the delayed gratification of attending a reputable program is a million times better than getting saddled with student debt that will seriously limit my goals of owning my own house and having a family at some point.
This ended up being longer than intended, but I do hope it is helpful for folks who think that just because the only offer they got is to a really expensive (though maybe great) program, that they have to take it. There are other options, and though they might not look appealing, they are absolutely worth considering.
