Supporting a Family with non private loans?

[jorsen]

Hello there,

Currently the primary money maker in my household of 5 (1 wife 3 kids and me). I need to go to school fulltime to get my bachelors and retake some of my pre reqs. Do any of you know anyone or have heard of anyone taking student loans out to provide for a family PRE-med school? I know it's possible DURING but what about before that?

My wife and I have discussed this at length. We have no problem living like paupers as long as we can 'survive'.


Thoughts?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Easy C]

Hello there,

Currently the primary money maker in my household of 5 (1 wife 3 kids and me). I need to go to school fulltime to get my bachelors and retake some of my pre reqs. Do any of you know anyone or have heard of anyone taking student loans out to provide for a family PRE-med school? I know it's possible DURING but what about before that?

My wife and I have discussed this at length. We have no problem living like paupers as long as we can 'survive'.


Thoughts?

One thing is Grant limits have gone up so thats a plus. Possibly helpful if you qualify. When I was doing my undergrad I had a guy that had 2 kids and had his third at school. He sold his house, took his family across country and did 20 credit hours of 6 straight semesters to knock out his nursing degree.

It was tight, he was focused, and he lived off of the little they made off the house, student loans, grants, scholarships, food stamps and WIC, the main thing is his family was focused and was all into 'supporting' this guy in everyway. I know it can be done, I had mad respect for this guy when he came in for open lab nights!

It can be done but I would ask yourself?

Do you NEED to go to school fulltime are there other full year school options that would allow part time work/part time school? Sometimes doing part time school all year long gives you the same amount of 2 fulltime semesters.

On that note some schools only need you to take 12 credits to be 'full time' student status so that way you can get the full financial benefit and with 12 credits a part time job is possible!

Not only can you commit to it but can your Wife?

Just my 2 cents.

 

[Atom bum]

Hello there,

Currently the primary money maker in my household of 5 (1 wife 3 kids and me). I need to go to school fulltime to get my bachelors and retake some of my pre reqs. Do any of you know anyone or have heard of anyone taking student loans out to provide for a family PRE-med school? I know it's possible DURING but what about before that?

My wife and I have discussed this at length. We have no problem living like paupers as long as we can 'survive'.


Thoughts?

Just do what I did, work full time and go to school full time. Once you get over not getting any sleep it isn't so bad.

Seriously though, it really sucks to work full time and go to school full time. Avoid it if possible.

 

[SLC]

It can be done, but it's tight.

I made it 2/3 of the way through undergrad on Financial Aid (loans, scholarships, grants). Two kids myself!

They used to have a "SMART" grant for science and math majors. I was a double major (Health Promotion, and Biology) mainly so i could get te SMART grant. It provided like $5,000 per year. SMART was done away with This year if I'm not mistaken, but I heard they were going to create a new program to replace it.

Best of luck!

 

[Doulos]

I'm 31 years old, have a wife and three kids (ages 6, 5, and 3) and attend the University of Michigan full time. My wife doesn't work.

Right now I am running on my Post 9/11 Montgomery G.I. Bill (full tuition paid + $1,200 p/month rent stipend) and draw down my full subsidized/unsubsidized loans.

We qualify for a large amount of Food Stamps each month, so that covers 90% of the food budget.

I have a small online business as an eBay and Google Adsense affiliate. It generates somewhere between $500 and $1000 p/month. Usually closer to $500 except for two months out of the year.

We get a descent tax return each year which allows us to pay for the non-essentials every now and then. Things like exercise shoes, kettlebells, new healthy cooking equipment, etc.

My wife is the mom-to-mom sale maven. She gets most of the clothes for our kids at mom-to-mom sales and then resells them a year later, take the money and buys the next years worth of clothes. Using this method we spend less than 25% on kids clothes than most other families do.

My G.I. Bill Benefits will run out at the end of August 2012 and I'll still have two years of coursework to go. I'm working on increasing my internet business income between now and then. If I can get it up to $3,500+ (possible) then I can just keep rolling as I do now by financing the tuition with my sub/unsub loans. If not, then my wife will have to go to work for two years.

 

[rocketman0314]

Hello there,

Currently the primary money maker in my household of 5 (1 wife 3 kids and me). I need to go to school fulltime to get my bachelors and retake some of my pre reqs. Do any of you know anyone or have heard of anyone taking student loans out to provide for a family PRE-med school? I know it's possible DURING but what about before that?

My wife and I have discussed this at length. We have no problem living like paupers as long as we can 'survive'.


Thoughts?

It depends on the school. Each school has an estimated cost of attendance, which is the maximum financial aid someone can receive. However it is only built for a single person, not a family. Most schools offer budget-add-ons to increase the cost of attendance, though.

If you can find the cost of attendance on the school website, subtract the tuition and fees from that, and whatever is left is what you have to live on.

Your best bet is to take a visit to the financial aid office of the school you are hoping to attend, and speak with a counselor. They can give you a specific breakdown.

We (2 kids and wife) have done just fine for the past 4 years, albeit we have had to limit the vacations and extra stuff we would like to do. But hey, we get to go to medical school this August, so it's all starting to pay off.

Don't let money get in the way of your dream.

Good Luck.

 

[kirurgilaakari]

I can agree with some of the other posters about how "not easy" it is to support a family throughout undergraduate schooling. I did it with two kids. My wife worked part time, and I worked full time. I agree with the last poster........I would not recommend this at all. I went through med school with 3 kids, and a 4th during 4th year. To put to rest the idea that life in medical school with a wife and kids is nice, and its easy to get money..............couldn't be further from the truth. Its almost impossible to make ends meet through med school with the money the schools will give to students (If, of course you dont have rich parents, and wife does not work). You will be living on the exact amount than your single classmates. You used to be able to get non-certified private loans, but you cant get those anymore. The only way you can get qualified for more than your cost of education is to prove that your costs for a specific budget (ie: your rent is more than what the school will allocate toward your cost of education, utilities, etc). Other than that, its very very very difficult to be comfortable throughout med school. I constantly felt stressed, and I would never go back and do it again. Make sure you research all of your options when you get to the medical school part, because its not all peaches n' cream like some people think.

Good Luck.

 

[gatorfann14]

I don't mean to be insensitive but I am just looking to understand my fellow man a bit. But why is it that all of you seem to be killing yourselves to provide for your families while attempting to achieve your dreams and provide a better life for your family but not getting much income support from your wives. Is there a reason I, as a single 22 yr old that can barely care for myself nevermind an entire family, am not seeing? Does it make more financial sense this way? Sorry if my questions bother anyone I am truly just 100% trying to understand my older colleagues.

 

[painmd87]

I don't mean to be insensitive but I am just looking to understand my fellow man a bit. But why is it that all of you seem to be killing yourselves to provide for your families while attempting to achieve your dreams and provide a better life for your family but not getting much income support from your wives. Is there a reason I, as a single 22 yr old that can barely care for myself nevermind an entire family, am not seeing? Does it make more financial sense this way? Sorry if my questions bother anyone I am truly just 100% trying to understand my older colleagues.

Your question is kind of unclear, so I'll just answer a few ways I think you're aiming at.

Some people with multiple kids get "no income support from wives" because the cost of daycare exceeds the income. For my family, my wife works because one kid's daycare only takes up half of her post-tax income and her benefits save a few hundred $$ a month. If we had a second child, it would make little sense for her to work.

Other wives don't work because they can't find jobs or can't find a job in their field. Still others voluntarily keep themselves out of the job market because that is the type of relationship they have (some people value things different. I don't always understand it, but to each their own).

If you're asking how a family of 4 can afford to live on the COA and a single person struggles, it's a complex answer. Generally they have a more structured budget. You'd be surprised how much eating one meal a week out devastates a budget. If you've got $1,200 to spend a month, and you're blowing $9 at Chipotle every Thursday, you're putting yourself in a hole. Cutting out all of my extraneous eating and drinking padded my savings account quite a bit. It's often something not a lot of people think about until they are forced to view it as a choice between a burrito for himself and an entire meal for the family.

Of course, it's very difficult for anyone to survive on the COA living expenses alone. For my family, we chose the least-expensive school, saved every penny possible from before school started, and my wife will continue to work. I also have a highly marketable credential that can allow me to work one day a week to significantly increase our family income, if I choose to.

It's not going to be easy. It takes a lot more planning than just signing the MPN and marveling at the $15,000 deposit after loan disbursement.

For the original question, the suggestion to work part/full time and go to school part time is excellent. The thought of interest compounding over your years of undergrad AND med school (provided you even get in!) gives me chills. The key to financial success is leveraging "smart" debt and limiting frivolous debt.

 

[kirurgilaakari]

I don't mean to be insensitive but I am just looking to understand my fellow man a bit. But why is it that all of you seem to be killing yourselves to provide for your families while attempting to achieve your dreams and provide a better life for your family but not getting much income support from your wives. Is there a reason I, as a single 22 yr old that can barely care for myself nevermind an entire family, am not seeing? Does it make more financial sense this way? Sorry if my questions bother anyone I am truly just 100% trying to understand my older colleagues.

Why are we killing ourselves to provide for our families, so that we can pursue dreams and provide a better life for wife and kids? Uhh......Not sure that needs an explanation. One thing most everyone will learn when they commit to marriage and especially children, is that its not about you anymore. Being a 22 year old single person just couldnt understand, which is why you posted. People's priorities in life are different. To me, my wife and kids are way more important that my medical degree, but it just so happened to work out that I was blessed to pursue it, so they can have a better life than eating Smack Ramen for dinner, and the infrequent hotel visit for a vacation. Whats the difference in struggling to have money while pursuing a professional education that result in a large annual income at one point, v.s struggling to have money while working some $15 per hour job for the rest of my life having nothing much to look forward to, ever. Apples n' Oranges, my friends. The best part, is that im nearly done. So its all water way under the bridge for me and mine.

 

[gatorfann14]

Your question is kind of unclear, so I'll just answer a few ways I think you're aiming at.

Some people with multiple kids get "no income support from wives" because the cost of daycare exceeds the income. For my family, my wife works because one kid's daycare only takes up half of her post-tax income and her benefits save a few hundred $$ a month. If we had a second child, it would make little sense for her to work.

Other wives don't work because they can't find jobs or can't find a job in their field. Still others voluntarily keep themselves out of the job market because that is the type of relationship they have (some people value things different. I don't always understand it, but to each their own).

This was the answer to the question I was asking, sorry I was unclear. This makes more sense now though I didn't really take child care costs into account.

 

[Prncssbuttercup]

OP, I'm going to make some suggestions that haven't been made yet. Firstly, check with your school to find out if they have a daycare that is available to students. I attend a 4-yr university, and it allows for students to enroll their children in the daycare. People with lower incomes and single moms are admitted first, faculty last. Check into this because it could help with kid expenses. Second, talk with your school to make sure your financial aid reflects the fact that you would not be working, and so your taxable income won't exist. Third, look for a decent part time job, and maybe one for your wife. It is possible for two people to work part time and not have to pay for childcare. Fourth, I have been working full time and taking full time classes, which sucks, but isn't out of the question. Fifth, look into taking some of the courses at a CC to save costs, it seems you're working on your first degree, and things like history, etc (non-med prereqs) could be taken there to allow that money to stay in your pocket for your living expenses. To do this effectively, make sure the courses will transfer back to your degree. Sixth, live like paupers.... College students don't get to live high on the hog. Even those of us working full-time and getting financial aid don't live high on the hog, so make a lifestyle change and see what can go and what NEEDS to stay. Food, shelter, car, are necessities, cable, cell phones, etc aren't... I know several people who have opted for netflix's download DVDs instead of cable, one is less than $20/mo, one isn't... just a thought... Best of luck...

 

[vandyam]

I go to school full time at a top, competitive school and work full time at the hospital and I'm just 21, so theoretically your focus might be even higher than mine w/ kids on the line. I've made straight A's the past few semesters and definitely find it do-able if you are really focused. I even do research/other stuff too. I'm only taking 15 hours, which I think is a lot more manageable than 18 hours (that extra class can really weigh you down). However, this is possible b/c I do 12.5 hour shifts at the hospital so my work time is crammed into just 3-4 days a week, so the rest of the time I can be 100% focused on school. It sucks, but it's manageable. With working full time and my extra money from scholarships/grants I get each semester (like 6.3K, which is a lot) and my husbands work I live really well (not rly what I'd call the bare minimum). I bet you can make it work out (If I can, you can).