Can I afford to transfer to a better school?

Paying for College
1

<p>This is involved, but I'd really appreciate new perspectives on this matter. </p>

<p>I've been accepted to UNC at Chapel Hill from FSU as an undergraduate. I want to double major, so I have three years left. My reasons for applying to transfer were mostly academic. (I also think I'll be happier being surrounded by a more motivated student body.) I want to get a PhD in Philosophy from a top school, and it seems that ONLY students who come from top undergraduate schools are accepted to top PhD schools. There could be many reasons for this, but I think it's indisputable that going to UNC for undergrad (where there is a top ten PhD Philosophy program) and learning from some of the best professors in the field, hopefully getting recommendation letters from these professors, and taking graduate classes as a senior would be beneficial to my goal of being accepted to a top PhD program.</p>

<p>But how much debt is that worth? One of my graduate student instructors said that if I could go to UNC with $15,000 - $20,000 in debt, then I should go. My Philosophy professors at FSU cautioned that it'd be unwise to rack up large student debt if I only want to be a professor (which I do). </p>

<p>PhD programs typically pay, so this could potentially be my only loan for school. MAYBE I'd take out a small loan if the stipend given by the PhD program wasn't completely covering it.</p>

<p>Finally, here are the numbers. </p>

<p>UNC's tuition for OS students is almost $27,000. With a UNC grant and FL prepaid, I have $13,000 left to cover that tuition. I've been given three different loans for a total of $8,800. One of those is a Fed. Perkins sub. loan for $3,314 at 5% interest. Another is a fed. direct sub. loan for $3,500 at 3.4% interest. Finally, there is an unsubsidized loan that I can get for $2,000 at 6.8% interest. (Maybe I don't have to take out that loan, but can use the money I mention below instead.)</p>

<p>That still leaves $4,500 left in tuition. My grandmother has a college account for me that is worth $7,500. There is also another account that has $9,000. Hopefully I can use that money for college. Assuming that I can (which hopefully is a fair assumption), I have $16,500 to cover that gap in tuition for the three years with $3,000 dollars left.</p>

<p>As you all know, there is more to college expenses than just tuition. Perhaps I could use that $3,000 dollars to pay for a meal plan for the next three years. (It would almost cover it.) My dorm room is basically paid for through FL Prepaid. (I'll have to come up with a few hundred dollars extra, that's it.) That leaves travel expenses, books, and personal expenses. I plan on getting a part time job (side question, is this crazy if I want to also do research?) and hopefully those expenses will be taken care of.</p>

<p>So according to my calculations (is there anything wrong with them?), I think I'll be $26,000 in debt. With those interest rates, a CONSERVATIVE estimate of future loan repayments is $277 a month for ten years, after I am graduated from a PhD program. </p>

<p>So basically, is this debt doable and smart if I want to be a professor? I'd start off making maybe $35,000 to $50,000.</p>

2

<p>Before we reinvent the wheel, why don’t you start by taking a look at these two threads (same original poster, different forums):</p>

<p>[“What</a> am I missing?” I](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1372195-what-am-i-missing.html][b]"What”>what am i missing? - Financial Aid and Scholarships - College Confidential Forums)</p>

<p>[“What</a> am I missing?” II](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/1372202-what-am-i-missing.html][b]"What”>what am i missing? - Parents Forum - College Confidential Forums)</p>

<p>Your circumstances are not identical, but the considerations remain the same.</p>

3

<p>If you drop one of the majors (or turn it into a minor), can you finish in two years and save some money? That may be worth considering.</p>

4

<p>^Agree, no need for a double major or a minor.</p>

5

<p>I hope you have explored the job prospects for a PhD in Philosophy (in all the Humanities, for that matter). They are quite grim into the foreseeable future. You may be unemployed or underemployed for quite some time, and should take that possibility into account in your calculations.</p>

6

<p>And many philosophy PhD programs (especially top programs) don’t admit directly from undergrad. They require candidates to complete a MA first. Most philosphy MA programs aren’t fully funded so you may have to pay for some of your graduate education yourself.</p>

7

<p>I agree with some of the others. I’m not sure what the purpose of a double major is. My DD is double majoring because she can’t decide what subject she likes better. It seems you have decided to study philosophy. Most academics I know discourage double majoring as it limits you from studying more broadly. With just 2 years, it looks like it could be done with minimal loans. If you insist on 3 years, do another year at FSU and then transfer to UNC.</p>

8

<p>I think you should have a heart to heart with professors in your area of interest (not graduate students, they are already on the road to underemployment and hoping the outcome is better for them let along worrying about what this means to you). Getting a job in any academic field is not easy, doing so in philosophy particularly so.</p>

9

<p>Notwithstanding the above, $27,000 in student debt is about the latest national average, and is considered by many to be “do-able.”
Ideal? No.
Do-able? Probably.
Pretty much what just about ANY student racks up ANYWHERE? Yuppers!</p>

<p>But don’t count on ANY type of job in ANY type of range. You have to decide that you are willing to pay that $277 a month for 10 years NO MATTER WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON :wink: - That’s what you’re committing to with a loan. Eg. even if you work at minimum wage, you need to commit to clearing your debt. This is true for ALL grads these days.</p>