Paying for Graduate School

A very important piece of information to find early on in your school evaluation is the cost of each specific program. If the cost is way beyond your financial goal, then it is most likely not worth spending too much time and energy researching that program. Of course, understanding the financial aid process will be extremely helpful here as there are many ways to finance your graduate education.

Graduate Degree Financial Aid Options

1. Research Free Scholarships
2. Program Specific Aid (varies by college and program)
3. Graduate Stafford Loans
4. Graduate PLUS Loans
5. Graduate Private Loans

Estimating Graduate School Expenses

For program comparison purposes and future reference, you will definitely want to create an “Estimated Expense” list for each school that would look something like this:

Expense	Estimated Cost
Tuition/Fees	$30,000*
Books/Supplies	$1,500
Rent, Food, Personal	$15,000*
Health Insurance	$2,000
Transportation	$700*
Total Estimate	$49,200*

* Costs may be significantly less for a graduate online grad degree program