The LSAT, which is a half-day, standardized test administered four times each year is a test used as part of the admissions process to get into law school, but when should you take your LSAT?
You should take your test as early as possible before law school deadlines. Many schools request that applicants take their exam by December for admission in the following fall’s entering class.
LSAT scores are valid for five years.
So you are a senior and college and you have decided that you are definitely going to go to grad school next year. The job market is tough and you figure with a little bit more education you can get into your field of choice and increase your earning potential. You know that between the Graduate Stafford loan, Graduate PlUS loan and alternative student loans you will be able to pay for tuition, books and any other living expenses. Now comes the hard part; deciding which school and program to enroll in.
The first decision you need to make is whether you want to pursue a traditional graduate degree or an online degree. If an online degree is something the piques your interest Edvisors.com can help you learn more about this possibility and connect you with the best online schools and programs. If you decide to go the more traditional route GraduateCenter.com can help you explore your options and search for the perfect school.
Another great resource is the school you are attending now for your undergraduate degree. Many schools host graduate school fairs or graduate school information sessions. Your school’s career services office can also help you greatly in your decision.
Choosing a graduate school program is an extremely important decision and it should not be taken lightly. When making your decision you should consider the cost of attendance, cost of living, length of the program, whether or not you will be able to work while you are in school, and admission requirements. Remember that this decision will greatly impact your future career so make sure you choose a program you are going to enjoy.
Below is a list of the average MBA starting salaries at the top business schools according to Admissions Consultants. The University of Pennsylvania (Wharton) has the highest average median total pay package with Columbia University a very close second.
| Rank | Business School | Applicants Accepted |
Median Total Pay Package |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Harvard | 15% | $130,000 |
| 2 | Stanford | 10% | $130,000 |
| 3 | U. of Pennsylvania (Wharton) | 19% | $145,000 |
| 4 | M.I.T. | 20% | $113,500 |
| 5 | Northwestern (Kellogg) | 24% | $133,000 |
| 6 | Chicago | NA | $136,000 |
| 7 | Dartmouth (Tuck) | 20% | $109,000 |
| 8 | UC Berkeley (Haas) | 17% | $118,000 |
| 9 | Columbia | 17% | $144,000 |
| 10 | NYU (Stern) | 20% | $128,000 |
| 11 | Michigan (Ross) | 28% | $104,000 |
| 12 | Duke (Fuqua) | 37% | $114,000 |
| 13 | Virginia (Darden) | 41% | $121,000 |
| 14 | Cornell (Johnson) | 36% | $117,000 |
| 15 | Yale | 22% | $115,000 |
The day you can hoist your graduate degree overhead will be a proud day no doubt, but then the reality sets in. How much did I borrow for this piece of paper exactly?
The truth is most students have no idea how much they borrowed. Grants, federal loans, private loans, work-study, and scholarships fall under one giant umbrella to most. Their philosophy is simple, why worry about it today when I can worry about it tomorrow?
Well, when tomorrow comes knocking it will serve you well to have a game plan. Today we shall focus on federal loan deferment. Keep in mind that deferment is not a means to an end, but rather, a way to stay afloat if you are having trouble making your monthly loan payment.
There are two common deferment types that are utilized. The first one is the Economic hardship deferment. In order to qualify for this deferment type you must fall into one of the following categories:
The second deferment type is loan forbearance which anyone can basically receive. The big distinction between the two deferment types is that while in forbearance interest accrues on the principal and any capitalized interest. Your debt will continually increase while in deferment making your repayment period longer. When you are in an economic hardship deferment no interest accrues on your subsidized loan portion.
You have 36 months of federal loan deferment entitlement regardless of which deferment you take advantage of and must reapply every 12 months if you wish to continue in your deferment state.
Below you will find two sample Graduate Stafford loan Award Breakdowns
Sample 1
Student’s Cost of Attendance is $19,000
EFC is $13,000
Student is eligible for:
$6,000 in subsidized funding, (COA-EFC)
$2,500 in unsubsidized funding
$10,500 in additional unsubsidized funding (same loan as the unsubsidized)
$19,000 total
Sample 2
Student’s Cost of Attendance is $23,000
EFC is $13,000
Student is eligible for:
$8,500 in subsidized funding, (COA-EFC maxes out at $8500)
$12,500 in additional unsubsidized funding
$20,500 subtotal Stafford Loan Eligibility
Additionally the school may suggest a Grad Plus loan for the $2,500 shortfall.
If you’re in need of funds for grad school chances are you’ve already stumbled upon the passage that states that Grad students are eligible for up to $20,500 in Grad Stafford loans, but what you may not know is how much of that $20,500 you can actually get.
The answer is actually pretty simple. If the cost of attendance minus all other financial aid is $20,500 or greater you may get the full amount, unless you have already reached the annual or aggregate maximum amounts. $20,500 is the yearly allotment while $138,500 is the aggregate allotment for Grad students.
Of course the point is to not have to tap into the full $20,500 if at all possible. One way students take thousands of dollars off their tuition every year is by earning/winning scholarships for college. Two great scholarship resources include studentscholarshipsearch.com and scholarshippoints.com.
Scholarshipsearch has over 9 billion dollars worth of scholarships available to qualified students. Scholarshippoints is a site that gives away scholarships every month to registered members. You complete activities to earn points which you then use to enter a monthly scholarship drawing ranging from $500 to $10,000. Monthly winner are selected at random.
Opinion Piece – Friday Rant
As anyone who has gone through the financial aid process knows, Pell Grants are only offered to undergraduate students and have a maximum lifetime limit of 18 semesters or its equivalent and are not offered to Grad students.
So let me get this straight. I can toil around in the undergraduate ranks for years until I get my degree but can not attend a four year school, secure my degree in 8 semesters, and then qualify for any grant assistance if I elect to go to Grad school? How is that fair?
What are we doing to help the future leaders of our country? Oh yeah, we are keeping the interest rates on their federal loans at levels well above the federally mandated yield. I think it’s really great that Grad students are paying the mandatory government rate of 6.8% on Grad Stafford loans and not the student market rate of 2.5%. And since the federally mandated yield to lenders for Stafford loans dropped to 2.08 percent, which is an earnings cap for lenders, where does the rest of that money in interest go? You guessed it, back into the pocket of the federal government to spend frivolously.
If nothing else your graduate degree may give you better insight as to why the system is the way it is. Of course that’s assuming you can afford to pay for grad school.
Sound off below!
Budgets; you can’t live with them and you can’t live without them. I hate budgets just as much as the next person, but I have realized that having one makes my life a lot easier. By the time you make the decision to pursue grad school chances are you will be completely on your own financially. Whether you decide to go to school full time or part time while you work, paying for grad school will take a certain amount of financial discipline and budgeting. However, living within your means does not have to be a drag. You can successfully pay for grad school without being strapped for cash.
Here are some tips for creating a budget that works for your lifestyle:
1: Determine your monthly income and your monthly expenses. This is the most important step to creating a budget. The amount of money you bring home on a monthly basis is what you have to work with. Make sure your expenses do not exceed you income. If you are going to school part time and working full time this will probably be a little bit easier for you. If you are living off of savings, determine how much you have for each month. Be sure to factor in all expenses including rent, car payments, insurance, groceries etc.
2: Take out loans to pay your tuition and other school expenses. As a grad student you have plenty of loan options. The Graduate Stafford Loan has a low fixed interest rate and does not require a credit check. The Graduate PLUS Loan is a low, fixed interest rate student loan that is based on your credit. It allows you to borrow up to the total cost of your education minus any other aid you receive. Finally, there are other private loans that can help you cover any and all of your school expenses. Make sure you include all loan funds and tuition payments in your monthly income and expenses. GradLoans.com can help you apply for and secure all of the loans you need.
3: Defer undergraduate loans until your graduate degree is complete. Unless you have the money to start paying your loans back while you are in grad school you might as well wait. Do not kill yourself trying to pay off these loans until you are working full-time and have more flexibility.
4: Use a free online budgeting tool like Mint.com. The days of scratching numbers on a piece of paper are over. This tool allows you to see all of your accounts, including your student loans, aggregated together. It will allow you to see where you spend the most money and where you might be able to cut back.
5: Find a credit card with good rewards. Sometimes using a credit card to make all of your purchases can be beneficial if you pay it off every month and you get rewards points. I have a credit card that awards one point for every dollar spent. Usually I trade in my points for Target gift cards. Since I spend a lot of money there anyway it gives me a little extra wiggle room in my budget. StudentPlatinum.com can help you choose a credit card with a rewards program that will work for you.
ScholarshipPoints code: BUDGETGRAD
Many recent college graduates have fallen victim to the state of the US economy. Although financial experts suggest that conditions are improving, 263,000 jobs were cut in September lifting the unemployment rate to 9.8%. This statistic does not bode well for new job seekers.
It’s sad because after graduation most young adults are itching to enter the workforce. All those years stuck in a classroom really take their toll. Earning some money and gaining independence is the next step in life. However, with so few jobs available some savvy students are choosing to go back to Grad school now.
Going to grad is an excellent way to bide your time while you wait for the job market to turn around, and the good news is that there are a ton of graduate loan options for graduate students.
Another benefit of going back to school is loan deferment on your undergraduate loans. If you graduated in May of 2009 chances are that you will have to start paying your undergraduate college loans back next month. However, if you are in grad school you are eligible for in school loan deferment.
And though you may worry about piling more debt on, with a graduate degree you will increase your earning potential which will benefit you in the long run.
Tuesday Observation
I’ve heard from hundreds of malcontent students about the bailout packages the government has been handing out like beads at Mardi Gras this year. It’s not that they disagree with the plans necessarily, but rather, are asking where’s mine? I even blogged about the cash for clunkers plan last month and how those funds would be better served through the Pell grant program. But it appears some crafty scholars could wait no longer to see if the federal government would throw them a life line. They took the bull by the horns and made their own bailout plan.
Whether by keen instinct, dumb luck, or fantastic legal counsel students in financial peril have watched gleefully as their federal loans have been charged off. So how are they doing it? They are filing for bankruptcy. But that in itself is not the bailout of which I speak. The bailout is tied to the fact that these are currently enrolled students. What that means of course is that their debt is not due while they are in school, but bankruptcy courts have been rolling these good standing loans in with all of their other financial discharges.
So basically these students are getting a free education (or partly free) while their lender receives a bankruptcy claim on their non-defaulted student loan. Schools are not too happy about this because it goes against their cohort default rate, but students are skipping in the streets. In addition, because their loans never officially fell into a default status they remain eligible for more student loans in the future.
These students are clever little devils.
