Where does money from personal expenses come from?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Massachusetts Institute of Technology
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<p>"Consider the families that have worked their asses off to save money for college and then see everybody else get a free ride - that sucks too. "</p>

<p>Not to mention those that have saved for college and then seen half there money disappear since the stock market crashed. They don't qualify for any aid yet their families did plan, and they or their families will be having to get out mega loans now. On top of that just because someone's family makes $XXX,XXX does not mean that they are paying for thier kids college. </p>

<p>Most people that are not poor will be graduating with big loans to pay back while those that qualify for free ride will graduate wth minimal loans.</p>

22

<p>You know, it's a bit discouraging to see some of the post. I won't comment on any directly but understand that my intentions were never avoid working or having others pay for my college. I stated earlier that i was prepared to take out 100k for my education and this option, at least in the long term, is still on the table.</p>

<p>I was simply seeking advice.</p>

<p>Thank you to all those who did help me out.</p>

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<p>and please... keep the discussion relevant to the topic at hand.</p>

<p>...</p>

<p>I aksed the MIT blogger about this today and here is what he responded: (MIT</a> Admissions | Blog Entry: "EA Telethon")</p>

<p>Snively,</p>

<p>where does the money for books come from? Do we have to buy books from our own money or is it included in the student budget & tuition?</p>

<p>Posted by: Carlos '13 on January 15, 2009 10:01 PM</p>

<p>Also,</p>

<p>Can you please explain the purpose of TechCASH. Does MIT give students TechCASH for books?</p>

<p>sorry. I'm a bit confused.</p>

<p>Posted by: Carlos '13 on January 15, 2009 10:05 PM</p>

<p>@Carlos '13
Money for books comes from your own pocket, it's not included in tuition. All that extra money that they estimate you'll spend included books.</p>

<p>For example: $35,000 for tuition
~$15,000 for housing/food/books</p>

<p>MIT will take the $35,000 from you, that's a bill. The $15,000 is just their guess how much you'll spend on other stuff, you decide how much.</p>

<p>A lot of people buy books on Amazon.com, at MIT's bookstore, or just borrow books from friends and dorm libraries.</p>

<p>Posted by: Snively on January 15, 2009 10:06 PM</p>

<p>mmm. Do you know if outside scholarships that are paid to MIT can be used for books? Maybe in the form of TechCASH that can be used at Coop?</p>

<p>Posted by: Carlos '13 on January 15, 2009 10:12 PM</p>

<p>@Carlos '13
TechCash is just an MIT-only debit system. It's a way to have money stored on your ID card that you can spend on campus. A lot of federal loans feed money into your "student account" and student account funds can be transferred to TechCash (they're also used to pay tuition). Thus, loans that cover food and books tend to funnel naturally into TechCash. Otherwise, it's just more convenient to have money on your ID card. MIT doesn't give you any money to put there, you decide how much goes there.</p>

<p>Posted by: Snively on January 15, 2009 10:13 PM</p>

<p>@Carlos '13
Right, a lot of outside scholarships will go into your student account, and then you can decide whether that goes towards tuition or into TechCash for food and books.</p>

<p>Posted by: Snively on January 15, 2009 10:15 PM</p>

<p>Awesome. Thanks</p>

<p>Posted by: Carlos '13 on January 15, 2009 10:22 PM</p>

<p>I think i understood that loans such a Stafford can be transferred and used as TechCASH, which is great because you can use that to buy books and other personal expenses (see: Massachusetts</a> Institute of Technology - Card Services )</p>

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<p>Carlos you are not going to have to take out a $100k loan. You're getting a full ride. You should probably work too. It's not a good idea to "put your education first" because you're missing out on time management skills and you're putting a burden on your family bc they will have to make up what you would have gotten had you worked. You will not be behind everybody else, and if you are, that would only affect you for the first and maybe the second semester.</p>

<p>Also, PLEASE dont categorize the "higher income" people as people who dont have to work and they can do whatever they want. Thats simply not fact. I will probably be getting no grant aid from MIT, and my parents cant afford full sticker price, so I will be the one who is taking out the $100k loan. I already work in high school, 15 hours a week. I guarantee i will be working during college, and I already work full time during the summer. I still won't have enough money. You will graduate with a few thousand in debt, and i will have tens of thousands which my parents cant pay off bc my lil bro is going to college. Plus theres still grad school, which is almost essential to being competitive in the job market, at least initially. and we will be offered the same opportunities when we get out of MIT, but I will just have way more debt, a side effect of the fin aid system. Dont get me wrong, I agree with and love the idea of need based aid, but there could always be a few adjustments for a few factors...</p>

<p>PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE dont ever label or categorize higher income people until you know the individual's situation. Sorry for the tangent, but please dont think its all fun and games for the richer side of life. that isnt always the case.</p>

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<p>Thanks for fixing a misconception i had. That's what i think forums should be for: to learn new things.</p>

<p>:-)</p>

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<p>
[quote]
Plus theres still grad school, which is almost essential to being competitive in the job market, at least initially. and we will be offered the same opportunities when we get out of MIT, but I will just have way more debt, a side effect of the fin aid system.

[/quote]

Two good things:
1) You actually can make enough from UROPs to help your parents pay for MIT, even above and beyond your self-help requirement. This will obviously reduce your loans.
2) If you're in a graduate program which pays a stipend (which most science and engineering graduate programs do), you can start paying back your loans in grad school. During the time that you're in grad school, your federal loans will be in deferment (so you're not required to pay them), and if you have any subsidized loans, they do not accrue interest.</p>

<p>I'm paying back my student loans while in graduate school, and since mine are half-subsidized and half-unsubsidized, it's like I'm paying them back at half the interest rate. I'll be done paying them back when I finish my PhD.</p>

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<p>I want Brain and cognitive sciences, so that probably requires med school... we'll see. but i did see that in one of your other posts and it intrigues me...</p>

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<p>
[quote]
I want Brain and cognitive sciences, so that probably requires med school...

[/quote]
</p>

<p>What?! No, you go to med school to become a physician, not to become a cognitive or neuroscientist. BCS is a fine premed major, but if what you want is to become a scientist in that area, you go to a PhD program.</p>

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<p>Sounds good to me. lolz</p>

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<p>An important point here might be that both Jessie and I majored in brain and cognitive sciences, and neither of us is currently in med school, nor do we plan to ever attend med school. :)</p>

<p>I study the development of the cerebral cortex as a PhD student, and I get paid $30k a year to do it.</p>

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<p>Well Mollie you're much more amazing than me, so yeah lol.<br>
But seriously, thats awesome...</p>

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<p>
[quote]
I don't want my family's income to be a burden on me. If i was part of the higher income crowd, I wouldn't have to work.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>A lot of students work. I work 4 jobs (not full time of course, lol), I get good financial aid but certainly not full tuition, my parents pay my tuition, fill my tech cash account on the occasion, and I pay for everything else with the money I make. Food, trips, anything else. My parents have a very fluid bank acct arrangement with me, we don't make a big deal about who pays for what, but this is something that I've taken upon myself in order to ease their load. I think you need to throw away your misconception that work is for poor people and you will be disadvantaged by it somehow. Actually, if your personal expenses are covered by scholarship, you're better off than a lot of kids here.</p>

<p>LOL already been said, my bad.</p>

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<p>Actually being helpful:</p>

<p>Here are some jobs I find really rewarding. Sure, I could get paid sitting somewhere for an hour a day doing homework, but personally, I like to find things that actually make me better in some way, develops a skill, helps my studies, makes me feel good, all that:</p>

<p>1) Teaching. TA'ing classes is probably my favorite. It's great review of basic material (8.01(2) & 8.02(2) will be useful in studying for the physics GRE's, 5.111 for chem, 7.01(x) for bio, 18.0(x) for math, etc), you get to learn by teaching, and you get to help other people learn. And being able to communicate new information well is also a skill that someone aiming for graduate school and academia should practice. Someone told me the other day it looks great on a grad school app / job resume... I'm not too sure why.</p>

<p>2) UROPs - this goes w/o saying. I've been paid up to $12 / hr for UROP work, as low as $9, currently $11.50. People have already said why UROP's are good.</p>

<p>3) MIT Admissions - bloggers get to write, and it's fun, and though it's not the ideal venue for saying whatever you want, it's not just money, it's highly rewarding also. When this gig ends I'll probably start a real blog. </p>

<p>4) Grader - I'm a grader over IAP and I don't like it as much as teaching, but it is still fine review of material.</p>

<p>5) Tour Guide - helped me come out of my shell a bit. Nothing like having to talk for an hour straight to a half circle of complete strangers to get you comfortable with public speaking. </p>

<p>Actually, I think that might be it. In conclusion, do something you'd like to do even if they didn't pay you, and when they pay you, it just makes it that much more awesome.</p>

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<p>You dont want to work because you shouldnt have to in order to get the same education as the high income crowd? Plenty of students who are paying full tuition or close to it, need to work (and want to work) both in and out of term to help pay their way through, and not just for personal expenses. There is honor in working for what you want. Your comment speaks volumes.</p>

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<p>Haven't i been I been reprimanded enough?</p>

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<p>
[quote]
3) MIT Admissions - bloggers get to write, and it's fun, and though it's not the ideal venue for saying whatever you want, it's not just money, it's highly rewarding also. When this gig ends I'll probably start a real blog.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>I didn't realize the student bloggers got paid. Interesting. Just in case the OP didn't know, people make money from their own (non-school affiliated) blogs. You might be able to make more money with an independent blog (but you also might have to put in more time).</p>