Trying to get out of grad school debt-free

This is official: I am going to try to graduate MBA without taking on any loans.

Part of this is sheer oversight + laziness on my part (not unlike maxing out my 401K in 7 months): I forgot to fill out FAFSA form that’s required of all students for this year. I had thought that in lieu of applying for 2013-2014 loans, I could just accept the 2012-2013 school loans already available to me (and which I didn’t take last year), but then I reread my loan information sheets and realized that I only had until April of this year to accept those loans.

And now is… not April.

So there’s that. Then I crunched some numbers and realized that I’d rather hustle and scrimp than go through the pain of filing out the FAFSA (hated doing that. Seriously. I even enjoy filing out tax forms more than the FAFSA). Plus, graduating debt-free will really help us reach our other big-ticket goals: buying a house, possibly having a baby, paying CB’s tuition if he so chooses later on. In the meantime, I am trying REALLY hard not to think about all the money I have spent / will spend in the name of higher education.

Here is my tentative goal for getting out to graduate school debt-free.

As you can see, I am PRETTY DARN CLOSE. Before I started my grad program, I had expected to take out a $35,000 personal loan from my family. Fortunately, that number doesn’t look necessary. The most I may have to borrow is $3,000. I’m lucky: My grandma’s estate turned out an extra $10,000, so instead of the $40,000 I had been expecting would be available for school, I got $50,000 total. Plus, CB paid for the car down payment out of his savings, and he’s covering the car payments + insurance while I’m in school.

Additionally, while I am not for counting my chicken before they hatch, I am hoping for my internship to turn out really well which could be the answer to meeting that monetary gap. If I get an offer (and I accept) from my summer employer, I will receive a signing bonus that can take care of that $3,000 shortfall, fund my Roth IRA for 2014, and maybe leave some extra cash for a bit of post-MBA travel. *Knock on wood*

I also have gotten a part-time position at the school that will probably net me $8-$10/hour after tax. I’m not doing the job for money, but I won’t lie – the money does not hurt! At this point, if I work 5-10 hours  a week, I’ll be making $200-$400 a month. Which will be enough to cover several trips to the greasy spoon down the street from my apartment. Whether you’re going back for a masters in communications, or an MBA, grad degrees can be expensive. Plan out your finances to minimize the debt you accumulate.

Debt-free degree, I’m coming for you!