Hi everyone. UIC has already posted up the timetables (class schedules) for Fall 2007 for P1-P3 classes. Of course the one that pertains to us is P1. It is just as Genesis mentions. Three days out of the week we end at 12:30. The rest depends on which group we are in to schedule discussion and lab sections. Here is the link to the page. Notice at the top of the page, you can download a PDF or Word version of the timetables. It also lists the classes are taking. I've already printed it out and put it up. =) I'm excited.
http://www.uic.edu:80/pharmacy/offices/oaa/oaa1/TimeTable.html
In terms of student loans. Federal student loans come in two flavors: Subsidized (interest is paid by the gov't while you are in school) or Unsubsidized (interest accrues while you are in school, and we pay the interest). The more desired is Subsidized. There is a lifetime limit to how much can be borrowed at two levels - undergraduate and graduate. A graduate student in a professional program (which is us) has a lifetime limit of $189,000. UIC seems to also have an additional loan that is related to being in a Health Professional Program. Federal loans DO NOT look at your credit history (believe me, because mine stinks!). Only private lenders would (i.e. Chase, Citibank, or your local bank). Usually private loans are an option for those who do not qualify for more loans with the government, etc. The way that student loan amounts are determined depend on our EFC (Expected Family Contribution). Which is why we fill out the FAFSA (or Renewal FAFSA if you were a student during 2006-2007). The school has a budget - cost of attendance - as outlined by genesis' earlier post. Then they subtract that EFC. And then determine how much in loan money can be requested from the government. If your EFC is high, and you know you won't be making that much in school (since we are full-time students), then you can work with the Office of Financial Aid and request more loan money. If you look through UIC's website, they have a link to the Office of Financial Aid. And there is a PDF of the Financial Aid Handbook for Health Professionals (graduate students) that was distributed in earlier years. It's a pretty good explanation of how it all works at UIC.
Bottom line. You're in the school. They will do their best to get you financed. I also heard that you could work for the school, and get tuition waived. But I bet you'd have to work a lot of hours for that. Since staff gets tuition waived, but the minimum is probably high? I know someone who did that - worked at the outpatient pharmacy, and does not pay for tuition.
If you work for a pharmacy, or other health-related company, they may offer tuition assistance or schoarships. Of course, you'd have to agree to work for them after graduation in exchange for those monies. For instance, I work for Walgreen's and they offer a small tuition assistance program. It wouldn't put a dent in tuition, but could help offset costs like books and/or lab fees.
Sorry, this post is so long. But I hope it helps!
I'm looking forward to meeting you all in the fall! =) Maybe we should all make t-shirts with our SDN alias on them, so we could find each other during school. I'm just kidding (kinda).
Breeze2Baby - finding an apt in the city is not always the easiest. Maybe you could go with a service that helps you find apts, as mentioned in previous threads/posts. My roommate and I were looking, and we live in Chicago, and it was difficult to really find a place that is relatively cheap and liveable. Are you planning on staying the entire weekend after orientation to find a place?
