Archive for the ‘student loans’ Category

H.S.Graduation Is Near: Ready To Put That Ball and Chain Around Your Neck?

Monday, May 17th, 2010

High School Graduation

Graduation is near.  High school seniors are  excited about moving on with their lives.  They and their families are looking forward to a new horizon-the options are unlimited.

In my case, I knew I wanted to be a Doc from my early grammar school years.  Don’t know why, no medical people in my family.

Now my idea of rebellion back in the mid-seventies was to change my major to psychology/pre-law for one year.  I took a few social science courses and realized, I liked “real science” much better than the touchy-feely stuff…..So back I went to my Biology major/Chem minor/pre-med track.

Keep in mind, I was young then-started medical school at age 19, so I really didn’t know what I was getting into.  First day in Anatomy-(cadaver intro)-the smell comes back to me just thinking about it.

The point I  promise I am getting to, is as a high school senior, you are really  pretty stupid, when it comes to life.  And here we are, encouraging these kids to  borrow money. They will then have to pay back it all back, with a lot of interest.  A debt that may be hanging over them ’till forever, and ever, AMEN!!!!

While I give information about where  and how to receive assistance to go to nursing, or any other school, I discourage use of borrowed funds-if at all possible.  If you can get through college without a student loan, you will be  far, far  ahead in life.

So you are ready to expand your education horizon, let’s review  the steps:

Step One -Admission process:

To start college, you must get admitted-by now this process should be well underway.

For an overview of what is going on now in school admission offices, this article in the Wall Street Journal has several great tips, and an interview with an admissions director at Penn State.

Step Two-Paying for School:

This list of links is of a general nature (not just nursing students), and where all students need to start.  Filling out the dreaded FAFSA application.  This is the road that all schools use to start the financial aid/scholarship/grant/student loan process.  So do it quickly if you haven’t yet started…

Seth Godin, has written recently about the train wreck that is occurring in our higher education system.  With students receiving mediocre educations, but huge debt burdens.   I think  the schools who figure out how to provide a quality education, with less money will be the winners of the future.

Nursing financial Aid/grants loans:

Now the following sites are focused on programs for nurses to get aid/grants/loans for school:

Step 3: For those finished with school, paying it all back. *If you are still in school, read this-to be prepared for the future!!!!

Nursing Loan forgiveness-  is discussed in this article from Nursing Link.
It mentions specific programs in California, Florida and Minnesota  have student loan forgiveness programs, specifically directed at nurses.
The qualifications vary state to state, so make sure you check out the rules for your location.  It may pay to work in an eligible facility till you get your loans paid back, then switch to your “dream job”….

The Millionaire Nurse Blog’s Nursing School Posts:

I have written several posts about the federal nurse loan forgiveness programs and paying back student loans:

Congratulations to all the seniors out there!  Please enjoy your new status as graduates of whatever institution you are finishing.  Then begin to plan for tomorrow-the bottom line is-there is no free lunch!!
Do you have any  new grads in your family or are you yourself moving forward with your education?   Tell us your stories, and any recommendations you have to help others with their futures.  Don’t keep your mistakes to yourself and allow others to make the same ones.

Nurses and Nursing Students:

Don’t Forget My Survey and Your Chance to win $150 Amazon gift card and other great prizes-for details check out this post HERE:

To take the survey now, click HERE!

I will be pulling the survey soon, so don’t put it off, and miss your chance to win!

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Posted in student loans | 3 Comments »

Student Loans & Obama Health Care Reform-What’s up with that???

Wednesday, March 31st, 2010

Federally guaranteed student loans were changed substantially with the signing of the two health care bills by President Obama this week.  Now why student loan bills were in the health care legislation,  only  those involved can say.

That is way above my pay grade.  And for me to understand it, it would have to make common sense-also unheard of in Washington lately-regardless of your political affiliation.

The Wall Street Journal had this article about the school loans and the Health care law today.

Student Loan Changes in the New Health Care Bill:

  • The money for guaranteed school loans will, as of this fall, be from the Federal Department of Education-no more shopping around at different banks.
  • The maximum amount of repayment/year will  gradually decrease from 15 % of income to 10%,over the next 4 years. (Already true for nurses working for non-profit hospitals and clinics.)
  • The amount of money available for Pell Grants-(which don’t have to be repaid) will go up-although applications are up 20% this year due to the economy.  So apply quickly if you or your parents income levels qualify -(usually less than $50k/yr-but is based on family size.)
  • Provisions for debt management education, for low income recipients, was made to the tune of $750 million……
  • Private loans may still be available between you and your bank-but they will not be guaranteed by the feds.-so good credit will be required-especially in this economic environment.
  • A decrease in annual interest rate of 7.9% under the direct program, compared with 8.5% under the old program.

Finaid, a student loan website,has  good information about the status of student loans of all types, so check it out if you have questions.

Student Loan recommendations from me:

If you have questions or comments, let me hear from you.  Hit the comment button….

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Posted in student loans | 6 Comments »

Student Loans: Income Based Repayment-Is it For You?

Saturday, February 27th, 2010

Student loans have become almost the norm in our society.  I have blogged about it several times-so this is not another rant about the dangers of going overboard on student loans…..

Last year the government began a new program called Income Based Repayment-to assist those whose student loan repayment plans were taking up so much of their income each month-that they couldn’t afford them.

I have identified a few helpful links to assist you in determining if you are eligible.

I have been told by several readers that my investing blog posts are difficult to understand-(even though I try hard to make them easy/simple)  Not your fault, I just need to get better at   ‘splaining.

But the student loan world is so complex, dark, and difficult-that I keep thinking Darth Vader is going to come at me with his light saber!!!!  For you young people, who don’t remember Star Wars-Let’s see……-maybe the villain from Twilight-”James”…..(yes, I had to google that, no I haven’t seen the movie, or read the books…..)

So anyway-the student loan universe is difficult to maneuver through-because there are so many different programs, options, acronyms-oh my!

But in short, the Income Based Repayment calculator is available to help you determine if you qualify for this plan.

The second part is that if you do qualify for Income Based Repayment, then you may also qualify for loan forgiveness after ten years of paying back your loan-if you work for the government, or certain 503-C based organizations.   Public health nurses would certainly fit here, along with school nurses-again if you meet the income guidelines.  So any money remaining after 10 years on the program are forgiven….

Again check this resource developed by the Feds, to help determine whether you may qualify-remember even if you work for a loan forgiveness eligible job, if you haven’t  been placed on the IBR (income based repayment) program-you are out of luck.

This link will help to direct you to the bank, Sallie Mae or whichever place you got your loan’s website for info…..

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Student Loans: The Great Lie-5 Ways to Avoid Them!

Tuesday, February 16th, 2010

Student Loans:

Student loan patter:

Student loans are worth the investment.  You will earn a lot more money, with your degree, and it will be no problem to pay back.

These are just a couple of the lies, or at best,  mis-leading statements about student loans.

In this article, in the “Wall Street Journal”,  Mary Pilon reports the case of a student loan, that had ballooned to $555,000.  Yes, that is a cool 1/2 million plus.   The loan belongs to a family doc, so what’s the big deal, they are all rich aren’t they??

Well the average salary for a family practitioner is $145,000 bucks a year-great salary, way above the national average for salary.

However, with a loan that size, with interest accruing, even if half her salary went to pay back the loan, it would take more than 10 years to pay that back.  So great salary, ain’t so great if half of it goes to pay back your student loan.

Do I think it is evil to borrow money to go to college.  No, of course n0t.  Do I think it can be stupid to borrow $100,000 to pay for tuition, room, board, and beer, for a degree that pays on average 40, or 50 grand a year or less-yes!

So, before having a  knee-jerk reaction and borrowing money to go to school.  Check out ways to decrease your burden:

  • Go to a less expensive school.
  • Go to school part-time.
  • Drive a clunker, and use car payment money to pay for food, or books.
  • Join the service, and let them pay for your education.
  • Get your employer to help pay the bill.

The good news is that you can get an associates  (which usually takes 3 years)  RN degree at a public institution for very little investment.  Even a four year BSN at a public school is a good investment-but it can be a great investment, if you limit your borrowing.

So before you call Aunt Sallie Mae, to borrow a hunk of cash, think about it.  Make sure there is not a better way.

And if you do borrow, there are ways to help pay back the money-see this post about one of the federal loan repayment programs -(NELRP)-  for working in an under-served hospital or clinic-as a nurse.

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Posted in Personal Finance 101, Uncategorized, student loans | 1 Comment »

Nursing School Loan Forgiveness-NELRP-Yes, That is Something Millionaire Nurses Would Do!

Monday, February 8th, 2010

Student Loan Forgiveness For Nurses

Student loan forgiveness for nurses, from the feds, is available for 2010.  The deadline for funding in this years program is March 4th.  So if you know any nurses who may need this assistance, please send them a link to this post.

Loan forgiveness programs have been around for years.  I took advantage of a state program, similar to this, years ago-practicing 5 years in a rural community, for loan payback-They got their money’s worth-as I never left!!!!

The Nursing Education Loan Repayment Program or NELRP, as it is know by acronym loving bureaucrats, is a loan repayment program funded by the federal government to help with nursing shortage in under-served areas.

An overview of the program can be found here at the Federal Governments Health and Humans services site. A few points about the program:

  • You receive 30%/year of your eligible loan forgiveness for the first two years of service.
  • If you agree to serve an additional year, they will pay another 25% of your loan off-so if you serve three years, they will have paid 85% of your loans for you.
  • You have to work for what is known as a Critical Shortage Facility-these are public non-profit institutions that meet certain criteria.  They have to serve a population that is high in medicaid/medicare, critical access,  or indigent population.
  • The money you receive is wired to your account, and then has to be used for loan repayment.
  • Many types of student loans, such as Stafford, and private loans qualify.  Student loans for parents, do not qualify.

Cautions if you decide to apply:

  • If you hate nursing, and quit, the money with interest will have to be paid back within 3 years.
  • The money is considered income, so you will definitely need to be prepared for a higher tax bill-don’t wait to April 15th and realize your taxes are double what you thought.
  • If you transfer or move to another eligible facility, that is not a problem, but must be approved-IN ADVANCE!

A pdf file, with application and frequently asked questions, is located here. Like most government programs the application appears complicated.  So make sure you start your application process well in advance of the March 4th deadline.

You may want to talk to your nursing school, your student loan holder, and your potential place of employment to get additional information. Now if anyone has taken advantage of this program, please leave us a comment with your opinion about the program.

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Posted in student loans | 3 Comments »

Student Loans: Blessing, or a Big Drag?

Wednesday, October 28th, 2009

I have recently written an article about student loans.  The gist of the article is that in this economy, more and more out of work people are going back to school.  Many of them are choosing student loans to pay for their education.  And a great number of them are choosing nursing.

The value of additional education is rarely challenged.  Most studies show an increase in average salary and lifetime pay for those getting a college degree or finishing a technical program.  However, getting out of school, with an above average paying job, like nurses, with a college loan debt of $100,000-would that be smart?  Of course not.  It will take years of struggle to pay those loans back, with enormous stress along the way.

So what do Millionaire Nurses do when faced with this sort of situation?

  • Check out all scholarship opportunities.  These can include hospitals that will pay for school for a work obligation, financial needs type scholarships, military scholarships, and good student scholarships.
  • Work and school part-time. Pay for school as you go along.  Many folks have worked nights, and finished their education during the day-how is that for dedication.
  • Take a year or two off from school, work, live on nothing, saving up, then going back to school.

All of these options take sacrifice and dedication. But isn’t that what being a nurse is all about. 

I want nurses to excel in their personal finances and begin building wealth as soon as possible.  That cannot happen unless you get out of debt as quickly as possible and learn to begin saving, investing, and growing your net worth.  So student loans are not always a blessing.  But with smart planning you can minimize your student loan debt and make progress towards your goal.

Let me know your thoughts and student loan stories-successes and horror stories alike.  And for a copy of my free e-book, “Emergency Money Resucitation” go to my website.  Signing up will also provide you  with a free mini-course on managing your personal finances.

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Posted in personal finance, student loans | No Comments »