A post grad thread...Lilac, BEG, and anyone else graduating

[Indylady]

Thank you so much SB and BEG; I''m sorry to be writing back so late...I''ve been thinking and thinking, but I just haven''t figured anything out yet to contribute back. I''m really looking forward to hearing back from the rest of the schools I applied to, and then hopefully I''ll have a better sense of what I''m going to do.

 

[Lilac]

I got into NYU. I''m so happy. And now I''m so confused. Do I go to the school that''s ranked higher, has the better name, is in a better location, but costs $50,000 a year? Or do I go to the school that is still a very good program, costs $16,000 a year, but isn''t quite as good and is in a bad location?

 

[HopeDream]

So many law students!

I finished a natural resource science degree in December and am taking a year off before continuing on to some kind of grad school. (maybe policy and planning, environmental law, MBA?, something else entirely? don''t know yet.)

I had been holding off my job search due to a potential placement at a sustainability NGO in my area. I interviewed for it in February and just heard back today that I didn''t get the job I''ve been waiting 3 months for. bummer.

The natural resources/sustainability sector is not hiring in my area due to the economy, so I''m going to apply for a low level banking job...

Any one worked for a bank? tips?

At this point any job is good, but I''m sick of hospitality,retail, and food service (10 years is enough), so I''m looking for Jobs that require a degree.

I''ve taken longer to finish my degree than most people (but am debt free) and sometimes I feel a little bummed that I''m not keeping up with the Jonses timeline-wise. I guess we can''t all be homeowners entrenched in a career in our mid-twenties.

Good luck my fellow grads!

 

[Indylady]

Date: 3/12/2010 3:53:19 PM
Author: Lilac
I got into NYU. I''m so happy. And now I''m so confused. Do I go to the school that''s ranked higher, has the better name, is in a better location, but costs $50,000 a year? Or do I go to the school that is still a very good program, costs $16,000 a year, but isn''t quite as good and is in a bad location?

Congratulations Lilac!

I''ve had the same question on my mind! How long is the program? Will you be able to get through it without much debt if you to go NYU? Will you make more if you go to NYU?

If the program is about 2 years like most Master''s programs, then going to NYU will be about $68,000 dollars more, which is a serious chunk of change! But if its your dream school, and you can afford it with minimal stress, then I think it would be worth it.

 

[Indylady]

Date: 3/12/2010 8:58:20 PM
Author: HopeDream
So many law students!


I finished a natural resource science degree in December and am taking a year off before continuing on to some kind of grad school. (maybe policy and planning, environmental law, MBA?, something else entirely? don''t know yet.)


I had been holding off my job search due to a potential placement at a sustainability NGO in my area. I interviewed for it in February and just heard back today that I didn''t get the job I''ve been waiting 3 months for. bummer.


The natural resources/sustainability sector is not hiring in my area due to the economy, so I''m going to apply for a low level banking job...


Any one worked for a bank? tips?



At this point any job is good, but I''m sick of hospitality,retail, and food service (10 years is enough), so I''m looking for Jobs that require a degree.


I''ve taken longer to finish my degree than most people (but am debt free) and sometimes I feel a little bummed that I''m not keeping up with the Jonses timeline-wise. I guess we can''t all be homeowners entrenched in a career in our mid-twenties.


Good luck my fellow grads!

Congratulations Hopedream! Wow, I can''t believe they didn''t get back to you for 3 months! I know what it feels like though; I applied for a fellowship back in December and didn''t find out till March that I didn''t get it. I hate that feeling of being in limbo, and having to wait to find out that you have to move on anyway. Don''t be bummed for not keeping up with the Jonses in terms of time; having debt would be so stressful in this economy! I think that outweighs taking a little more time to graduate.

 

[Lilac]

Date: 3/12/2010 11:14:57 PM
Author: IndyLady

Congratulations Lilac!

I've had the same question on my mind! How long is the program? Will you be able to get through it without much debt if you to go NYU? Will you make more if you go to NYU?

If the program is about 2 years like most Master's programs, then going to NYU will be about $68,000 dollars more, which is a serious chunk of change! But if its your dream school, and you can afford it with minimal stress, then I think it would be worth it.

Thanks so much IndyLady! I spent all weekend thinking about this. My mom thinks I will be happier at NYU, which I agree with (that's why it was my top choice). My dad wants me to go to NYU because he figures this will be with me for the rest of my life, and if I go to NYU I will always be able to say I went to the best program in the area. He had a similar choice when he was deciding between medical schools - he went with the one that cost more but was the better school and he has never regretted it. Now granted, medical school is different from occupational therapy school, but that is his opinion.

My mom told me this weekend that she has been saving up some money for me to help pay for grad school. My father offered to pay for the whole thing (my parents are divorced). I feel extremely guilty taking that much money from either of them even though they tell me they can easily afford it, but they really *want* to do this and have told me for years that they want to help pay for grad school because I went to a very inexpensive city college and they saved a ton of money there that they had expected to spend. They always said they would rather pay for grad school than undergrad, but I figured once I got married I would be on my own for the tuition (which is totally fine and expected, but that would make me heavily swing towards Downstate for $40,000 rather than NYU for $90,000).

So now I don't know what to do. Go to my dream school and accept all that money from my parents, or go to the cheaper one? My parents honestly would be happier if I went to NYU and they paid for it, but I don't know how I would feel accepting all of that given how generous they have been in the past towards me. I'm so torn. But at the same time, I'm so grateful to have the choice.

ETA: The program is two and a half years. Downstate total cost would be around $40,000 and NYU total cost would be around $90,000 (before books, transportation, etc.) I would likely make around the same when I got out, although NYU is the top rated school in the area so I think it's easier to get the first job out of school.

 

[Indylady]

Your parents sound just like mine! You would think it makes the choice easier, but I think it makes it that much harder. I''m at a state school with a full ride, so my parents and I haven''t had to pay anything but living expenses (which can be a lot, but significantly less than if I had had to pay tuition also). My parents really want to help me pay for law school, but its just so much (around $50,000 a year for 3 years). For law school, it does depend to some extent, but going to a better program should more or less get you a higher paying job. Of course, big disclaimer, it does all depend on what you go into, but the average starting salaries of UCLA law and St. Thomas University School of Law (an unrated, tier 3 law school) are significantly different; UCLA''s is listed as $160,000 and St. Thomas University is listed near $50,0000.

How about going to the dream school, and taking out some of your own loans and accepting help from your parents as well? If you were going to pay for Downstate yourself, maybe you could put in $40,000 and your parents could put in the rest.

 

[MsP]

Date: 3/14/2010 5:17:29 PM
Author: Lilac

Date: 3/12/2010 11:14:57 PM
Author: IndyLady

Congratulations Lilac!

I''ve had the same question on my mind! How long is the program? Will you be able to get through it without much debt if you to go NYU? Will you make more if you go to NYU?

If the program is about 2 years like most Master''s programs, then going to NYU will be about $68,000 dollars more, which is a serious chunk of change! But if its your dream school, and you can afford it with minimal stress, then I think it would be worth it.

Thanks so much IndyLady! I spent all weekend thinking about this. My mom thinks I will be happier at NYU, which I agree with (that''s why it was my top choice). My dad wants me to go to NYU because he figures this will be with me for the rest of my life, and if I go to NYU I will always be able to say I went to the best program in the area. He had a similar choice when he was deciding between medical schools - he went with the one that cost more but was the better school and he has never regretted it. Now granted, medical school is different from occupational therapy school, but that is his opinion.

My mom told me this weekend that she has been saving up some money for me to help pay for grad school. My father offered to pay for the whole thing (my parents are divorced). I feel extremely guilty taking that much money from either of them even though they tell me they can easily afford it, but they really *want* to do this and have told me for years that they want to help pay for grad school because I went to a very inexpensive city college and they saved a ton of money there that they had expected to spend. They always said they would rather pay for grad school than undergrad, but I figured once I got married I would be on my own for the tuition (which is totally fine and expected, but that would make me heavily swing towards Downstate for $40,000 rather than NYU for $90,000).

So now I don''t know what to do. Go to my dream school and accept all that money from my parents, or go to the cheaper one? My parents honestly would be happier if I went to NYU and they paid for it, but I don''t know how I would feel accepting all of that given how generous they have been in the past towards me. I''m so torn. But at the same time, I''m so grateful to have the choice.

ETA: The program is two and a half years. Downstate total cost would be around $40,000 and NYU total cost would be around $90,000 (before books, transportation, etc.) I would likely make around the same when I got out, although NYU is the top rated school in the area so I think it''s easier to get the first job out of school.

I went through this for undergrad--and grad to some extent. My parents said pick whatever school you want--we''ll pay. This sounds very off, but I didn''t want my parents having anything to hang over my head. Instead of picking in the Ivy league at full cost, I picked a nationally reputable public school--with nearly everything covered in scholarships. For my master''s, I received full funding and a stipend, and now for my PhD I have gotten a national fellowship that will cover my costs(tuition, computers, professional development, living expenses, etc) for up to 5 years.

My SO and I are in similar situations--and the thought of coming out of nearly ten years of schooling for each of us with NO debt is quite comforting.

I think the question I''d be asking myself if I were in your shoes is... am I going to make MORE if I go to the most expensive school? I suspect in that field that the answer is no--unless you plan to go into research or academia(which will likely require more schooling). I''ve been on the receiving end of lots of physical therapy and occupational therapy treatment(years of it, actually) and my impression is that school reputation has little to do with it unless you went to some completely "horrible" school. My assumptions could be waaaay off.

Good luck.