How to pay for school? Suggestions, please. :(

Well, this is going to be long, so I apologize.

My husband lost his job a while ago and we didn't have enough to pay our big bills (including some of my student loans), so our credit is ruined. He can't cosign for me anymore. My mom is on disability and can't cosign, and his parents hate me (they say I'm a poison to their son ) and won't cosign either. This is all for the private loans. I don't know if I'll qualify for the federal loans yet. I did the past couple years, but hubby makes too much for grants. On a good note, my husband now has a job (yay!! a good one too), but he hasn't been there long enough to cosign for a loan for me and it will take a while to get our bills caught back up.

I am just about to start nursing school this coming fall (or so I thought). Now we can't afford it unless we all do some major budget reshuffling. We're thinking I'm going to have to take a year off and save up money. I really, really don't want to do this... I'm afraid I'll never go back.

I've already used all my scholarship money, and this college does not give out scholarships, and I can't apply for more because my pharmacy school grades weren't the best.

So, does anyone have any other ideas? I'm so devastated now. I NEED to get a real degree that will get me a real job that will make me real money... ASAP!!!!! I feel like such a loser... 26 years old, only one (easy-to-get) bachelors and five years of pharmacy courses to show for it. I just don't see how I'm ever going to be able to go back unless I put it off. I'm so mad ... at something... this just sucks. I'm glad I picked nursing instead of pharmacy because pharmacy school was about 32K/year, and nursing is only 9K.

Please help... I want to cry.

(Any wealthy benefactors out there want to cosign?? I'm still the one that has to pay the bills... JK )

I know how you feel. I was going to go back to school and just couldn't afford it and couldn't get any loans. I was only going to take one year off, which has now turned into 3. I keep saying I am going to go back, but don't.

Here we have osap (ontario student assitance program). I will qualify soon because I will be common law with my boyfriend. Do you have anything like that there? Hopefully you figure out a way so that you can go to school.

It feels better to know I'm not the only one who can't get loans anymore.

Here's to both of us going back this coming fall.

Oh, I don't know if we have any programs similar to yours, but there are federally-funded loans with capped insurance rates that you can take out if you're poor enough. If you're even poorer, the government will give you small grants... but hubby makes too much for that. Other than that, since I'm not a minority, I am not aware of any other options. I guess that's why I started this thread.

I was in your position at one time and my only way out was to join the navy so I could go to college. Before you faint, consider the fact that you can join the reserve and only have to serve two weeks a year and one weekend a month and earn your scholarship money. So you can keep your regular job. This is probably a shocking suggestion but you may want to look into it anyway. It was my only way out and it turned out well. (The other services offer similar programs.) I can tell you that MANY people are doing this to get the funds they need.

If hubby isnt working I would reapply for the student loan and put single or unemployed. I have a student loan I am down to 800.00 but I have it cald FASA and they have me on defered do to the pregnancy. It is worth a shot right. Also check with the councelors they have options even BOGS to pay for the books and material.

Are there services you can live without right now? Such as cable, internet (change to dial up instead or use the library?).

That's a start at saving money.

I don't know about where you're at, but around here there is a waiting list for nursing school, so if there is one, try try to go back otherwise you may miss out in the future.

Do you have a 401(k) that you could borrow on?

Play the lottery??? Other relatives that could loan you the money (other then the ones listed?)

ETA: are you signed up with www.fastweb.com? It'll list all the scholarships that you're eligible for.

She can not lose the internet she will go thru TCS withdrawls that is awful I had them it lasted months and was oooooooooooooooooo so not worth it. Dont take the internet away

Thanks for all the advice everyone.

My husband is actually considering joining the national guard. I'm too fat to be in the Guard... and I have flat feet.

We have lived without cable before, and I would happily do it again. We used to have dial-up... the problem is that pharmacy school was nearly impossible without 24/7 fast access to the web (too many LARGE files to download and print), so I assume nursing school would be the same way. My mom won't give up her cable. We take care of her and live with her (she has a terminal illness).

I may look into some of those websites and see what I can find. I just hope something will work out. It looks bleak and I am so devastated.

I don't know if anyone else asked this but, do you have a job?? If not, can you get one? I worked 3 jobs while in college. I would get another job now too in a heartbeat if I needed money.

Why dont you sell stuff you don't need. You know like books and stuff around the house.

Originally Posted by Trouts mom

I don't know if anyone else asked this but, do you have a job?? If not, can you get one? I worked 3 jobs while in college. I would get another job now too in a heartbeat if I needed money.

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Yeah, I worked 40+ hours a week and paid for my tuition, books, fees, rent, car insurance, etc, etc the first time I went to college...If you had to, you could take a semester off and work to save enough money to cover the next semester w/expenses...and then save enough thru that semester to cover the next. That's how I did it!

Originally Posted by Godiva

Well, this is going to be long, so I apologize.


I am just about to start nursing school this coming fall (or so I thought). Now we can't afford it unless we all do some major budget reshuffling. We're thinking I'm going to have to take a year off and save up money. I really, really don't want to do this... I'm afraid I'll never go back.

I've already used all my scholarship money, and this college does not give out scholarships, and I can't apply for more because my pharmacy school grades weren't the best.

So, does anyone have any other ideas? I'm so devastated now. I NEED to get a real degree that will get me a real job that will make me real money... ASAP!!!!! I feel like such a loser... 26 years old, only one (easy-to-get) bachelors and five years of pharmacy courses to show for it. I just don't see how I'm ever going to be able to go back unless I put it off. I'm so mad ... at something... this just sucks. I'm glad I picked nursing instead of pharmacy because pharmacy school was about 32K/year, and nursing is only 9K.

Please help... I want to cry.

(Any wealthy benefactors out there want to cosign?? I'm still the one that has to pay the bills... JK

)

Click to expand...

Sorry, the last comment was funny.

I'm in kind of the same situation. My husband does work, but we make too much for financial aid (it sounds really dumb, but we do). I've been doing the community college route, only 1 class at a time so we've been able to swing it (so far) with no loans. Nursing school's a whole other subject, and if I get into the BSN program, my tuition costs are going to double

I'm going to school for either an associate's or BSN. Don't know which one, I put in an application for a 2nd degree BSN, we'll see how it goes. My 1st degree grades weren't stellar either (I JUST got out with a 2.2). But that was also 15+ years ago and I am just hoping that the admissions directors will look at my performance now. So far only 1 C, and that was in the second half of A&P.

I don't know if you're in the US. or not, but there's a website called Fastweb, it has TONS of college scholarships etc. And you don't have to have stellar grades for many of them. Another option is to look at a hospital scholarship. I've looked at one that will give me up to $15,000 as long as I agree to work for them for the first 3 years of my career. It's not a bad hospital, they've got one pretty close to where I live.

If you do a google search, you'll come up with many more scholarship and grant sites. And since you're looking at nursing that has a huge shortage to begin with, there's money to be found if you look for it.

Originally Posted by Trouts mom

I don't know if anyone else asked this but, do you have a job?? If not, can you get one? I worked 3 jobs while in college. I would get another job now too in a heartbeat if I needed money.

Click to expand...

Yeah, I'm a waitress 5/7 days of the week. I am taking classes now, and that is about the only thing I can fit in with my schedule. My first couple years of college, I worked nearly 70 hours a week... but my grades really suffered. I can't do that again. Also, the fact that pharmacy school is really hard might have contributed to the fact that I couldn't keep up. I suffered a bout of severe depression for 4 years, and I'm just coming out of it this past year. I have discovered I need "me" time to stay sane, and I don't get that with full time classes and a full time job, hence me going psycho for a while.

I just don't know... I'm considering dropping out and working double time to save money, but I can't do both, especially with the nursing school schedule, while it may not be as difficult as pharmacy, it will definitely be as difficult to work around when it comes to jobs.

Originally Posted by Sneakymom

Sorry, the last comment was funny.

I'm in kind of the same situation. My husband does work, but we make too much for financial aid (it sounds really dumb, but we do). I've been doing the community college route, only 1 class at a time so we've been able to swing it (so far) with no loans. Nursing school's a whole other subject, and if I get into the BSN program, my tuition costs are going to double

I'm going to school for either an associate's or BSN. Don't know which one, I put in an application for a 2nd degree BSN, we'll see how it goes. My 1st degree grades weren't stellar either (I JUST got out with a 2.2). But that was also 15+ years ago and I am just hoping that the admissions directors will look at my performance now. So far only 1 C, and that was in the second half of A&P.

I don't know if you're in the US. or not, but there's a website called Fastweb, it has TONS of college scholarships etc. And you don't have to have stellar grades for many of them. Another option is to look at a hospital scholarship. I've looked at one that will give me up to $15,000 as long as I agree to work for them for the first 3 years of my career. It's not a bad hospital, they've got one pretty close to where I live.

If you do a google search, you'll come up with many more scholarship and grant sites. And since you're looking at nursing that has a huge shortage to begin with, there's money to be found if you look for it.

Click to expand...

Thank you!!!!! I forgot to ask at the local hospital networks in town... that's a great idea!