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Best Way to Fund a Master's Degree

post #1 of 22
1/9/10 at 10:56am
Thread Starter 
So I had a midlife crisis moment the other day and fell in love with a Strategic Communications Master's program at George Washington U. It can be done all online, and it looks like I could get in pretty easily, based on my initial interview with the admissions adviser. Based on my management experience, I can even bypass the GRE. The program is aimed at working professionals and would enhance my value and skillset tremendously, I believe, and set me up in a good way for the rest of my career.

The problem is that I don't like the idea of taking on another $60k or so in debt, even if is deferred until two years from now, when I would finish the program. Plus the federal loan program is pretty expensive, currently 6.8%, which I think is high for an education loan.

The best bet is to get a job someplace where the employer pays for all or part of it. But that's not in the offing right now, unfortunately. So I was wondering, are there better alternatives? My wife makes pretty good money, so I don't qualify as a needy student. But at the same time I don't have a pot to piss in.
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post #2 of 22
1/9/10 at 5:23pm
Sell drugs.

Nah, many jobs offer stipends such as: Work for us for 2 years after you graduate, and we'll pay 50% of your school expenses. Years and percentages vary, of course. I am finishing a Master's in May, and this is the route I'm expecting to take.
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post #3 of 22
1/9/10 at 5:25pm
Hold a Bake Sale?

Unless it was for an MD or DO there's no way I'd get into hock for $60K.
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post #4 of 22
1/9/10 at 5:26pm
Tell us again, why isn't your wife going to pay? She'll get the benefit of your higher income for her investment, assuming you don't divorce.

Alternatively, read that post in CE about the government forgiving loans.
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post #5 of 22
1/9/10 at 5:51pm
If you're senior in your role (and it sounds like you are), then you're likely hard-pressed to make the mathematical ROIC work out in your favor (acknowledging that ROIC for a masters degree isn't by any means a perfect analysis). Given that assumption, the pursuit of the degree is to fulfill personal objectives more than professional ones.

That said, I'd dig for gold in two specific areas:

1. Private scholarships - there's a ton of private money out there for education
2. Your current employer - consider nutting up and taking them to the table; if you believe in the value of this degree and your rationale is sound, then they should at least consider it
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post #6 of 22
1/10/10 at 4:05am
Apply for a PhD in said field
Get stipend and school paid for because no one wants to be a PhD
Once you have met the requirements for a masters, drop out and apply for graduation
Send me case of 15 year old bourbon


Its not that hard really
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post #7 of 22
1/10/10 at 4:12am
$60K for an online degree doesn't sound right. Is that figure what it would cost to include living expenses so you can stop working and focus on school full-time for those two years?
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post #8 of 22
1/10/10 at 4:16am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ms244 View Post
Apply for a PhD in said field Get stipend and school paid for because no one wants to be a PhD Once you have met the requirements for a masters, drop out and apply for graduation
I know a few people who got their Master's through this route. But, is there a PhD for Communications? WTF kind of bullshit degree is that? It's like a PhD in talking.
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post #9 of 22
1/10/10 at 4:26am
It works for hard sciences, can't speak for anything else.

I still want my case of bourbon if it works.
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post #10 of 22
1/10/10 at 9:26am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Threak View Post
$60K for an online degree doesn't sound right. Is that figure what it would cost to include living expenses so you can stop working and focus on school full-time for those two years?

I'm just figuring it on a napkin. You are looking at something like $3k per class, so it might be more, might be less than $60k, at any rate it would be a signficant debt and north of 50k payable at 6.8 percent interest added to my already highly leveraged situation. You take one class at a time for 2 years until you are done.
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post #11 of 22
1/10/10 at 12:23pm
scholarships don't exist for a master's? i know they do for law school.
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post #12 of 22
1/10/10 at 7:42pm
Do not pay this much for an online degree.
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post #13 of 22
1/10/10 at 7:44pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by BoilerRoom View Post
Do not pay this much for an online degree.

That's a bargain compared to how much they charge their regulars. IIRC, it's one of the most expensive -- if not the most expensive -- schools in the East Coast.
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post #14 of 22
1/10/10 at 7:45pm
You find yourself in a position that most others are in, in fact a better position given you have marital income to count on. Given that I find it hard to believe you will find any exception to what everyone else has to deal with, e.g. incurring debt.
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post #15 of 22
1/11/10 at 3:37pm
OP, if you're in a mid-life crisis then I assume you're not familiar with what education has become in the last 20, even 10 years. People from the last generation hold education, even undergraduate degrees, in very high regard and think they're worth almost any cost, the more expensive the better. In reality, and I know this is hard to believe, the majority of modern degrees, online or at actual state universities, are scams that intentionally try to extract the most possible money out of their students... and an older or middle-aged person is their prime target because of their naivete. Every white trash yokel can go to college now, it's not what it used to be. Undergrad has become the new high school. Take a VERY hard look to see if this degree will actually help you, in all likelihood, these 'skills' degrees won't, they're just meaningless feathers in your cap. Only the most technical or professional degrees that have some sort of exam at the end (JD, MD) are really worth it, so I agree with this:
Quote:
Originally Posted by willpower View Post
Unless it was for an MD or DO there's no way I'd get into hock for $60K.
BTW, most of us who graduated law school got federal loans at the rate you describe, and are debts are in the vicinty of 110k+. The insane interest rate of the federal loan, which you noted, is just the beginning of the scam...
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