http://damnlefties.wordpress.com/2008/06/03/market-inconsistencies/ Tales from the Left Side Wed, 08 Jul 2009 18:20:42 +0000 http://wordpress.com/ hourly 1 http://damnlefties.wordpress.com/2008/06/03/market-inconsistencies/#comment-38 Claire Tue, 03 Jun 2008 17:35:16 +0000 http://damnlefties.wordpress.com/?p=49#comment-38 On a related note, in my limited grad school experience, funding is minimal at many state institutions. To compound that, students with funding are only paid during the school year in many cases (TA/GA etc.) and have to scrabble to find a summer job along with how ever many zillions of other students. My experience is only in the Arts & Humanities, but from what I hear, this is true at both private and public institutions. I was thinking the other day about what amount I would need to borrow per month (and by extension, per year) in order to cover expenses were I a single grad student renting an apartment, paying for necessities and tuition. Multiply that number by 3-4 years (depending on coursework, availability of work, etc.) and it's a frightening number. I've been paying my undergrad loans for 6 years now, and while I've made a dent, I haven't come even close to half of the original amount borrowed. If I were to take additional loans for graduate school, I'd be somewhere between 45 and 55 before the loans were entirely paid off. What does that say about our culture that the more specialized training one wants to have, the longer one has to pay and potentially work well past retirement age in order to have "enough" when one does manage to retire? On a related note, in my limited grad school experience, funding is minimal at many state institutions. To compound that, students with funding are only paid during the school year in many cases (TA/GA etc.) and have to scrabble to find a summer job along with how ever many zillions of other students. My experience is only in the Arts & Humanities, but from what I hear, this is true at both private and public institutions. I was thinking the other day about what amount I would need to borrow per month (and by extension, per year) in order to cover expenses were I a single grad student renting an apartment, paying for necessities and tuition. Multiply that number by 3-4 years (depending on coursework, availability of work, etc.) and it’s a frightening number. I’ve been paying my undergrad loans for 6 years now, and while I’ve made a dent, I haven’t come even close to half of the original amount borrowed. If I were to take additional loans for graduate school, I’d be somewhere between 45 and 55 before the loans were entirely paid off. What does that say about our culture that the more specialized training one wants to have, the longer one has to pay and potentially work well past retirement age in order to have “enough” when one does manage to retire?

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