<p>I rather not take on a loan for this amount. All i can think of is getting a part-time job on campus, but I don’t think that will cover the whole amount seeing as I will be busy being an Engineering Major in a Honors College, therefore not enough room to work much more than 10-15 a week.</p>
<p>Any ideas advice?</p>
<p>And no my parents aren’t an option. The only contribution they can barely afford to make is my pocket money and cost of books/supplies.</p>
<p>If you find a pt time job you can cover your own personal expenses & books /supplies.
are you hoping your school year jpb will cover tuition?</p>
<p>Probably not $4000…if you find a job on campus or off campus it will be closer to minimum wage.</p>
<p>What about work this summer? Once in school, there may be paid internships/other opps and also the following summer too.</p>
<p>Try to line up 2 jobs this summer and work your hiney off. If you’re short $8k towards your school costs, then with hard work, you could net at least $3k over the summer (don’t forget, taxes and FICA will be deducted). </p>
<p>Then take out a student loan for whatever you have left uncovered (probably about $5k per year)</p>
<p>What exactly is your situation? you can’t earn enough during the school year to pay for Direct Costs. money earned during the school year really goes for “day to day” expenses, pizza out with friends, and other unexpected costs. You can’t spend a year without spending any money on some fun or other things. </p>
<p>What is the COA breakdown of your school?</p>
<p>What is the breakdown of your aid?</p>
<p>After freshman year, engineering students are often able to get paid internships (over the summer) for more than the minimum wage. Also, tutoring math/ standardized test prep can pay pretty well.</p>
<p>You would probably be better off using your own money for books and supplies and have your parents pay the school what they would have given you, because you have more flexibility paying for “fun stuff” than you do tuition. Also note that most (all?) schools have a fixed deadline for when the semester must be paid for unless you enroll in a payment plan (which costs $$). </p>
<p>Oh and campus bookstores are rip offs so buy your textbooks elsewhere.</p>
<p>If you work at the food service, you can often get a free meal during the times you work, which can cut those costs further than your pay per hour. It’s also a benefit in that you can work in small time segments. When I was in college, I did that, and I lowered by board bill substantially by working 3 -5 shifts a week, for 1 1/2 -2 12 hour segments. So I worked about 10-12 hours, but got meals for those times, and would eat my main meal of the day on those occasions. It did not cut much into my study time or off time, because that was time that was pretty much allocated for eating and hanging out. Instead, I would go right to business or play instead of hanging around on those meal shifts. I remember I had the horrible Sunday brunch shift which was the only thing that would have gotten me up early on Sunday mornings and that was a big chunk of my work hours. Time I would have been sleeping, I was earning money instead and the meal I would eat pretty much carried me through Sunday in terms of food. The following year when I was not on the meal plan at all and working some shifts, I actually looked forward to the miserable food there, since it was free for me during my work shifts and I could choose the prime pickin’s. Again, that would be my big meal for the day–a big salad bar and huge plate. Didn’t need much more than that.</p>
<p>cptofthehouse – at some schools, you need to be on a meal plan (and usually not the smallest) to be allowed to work in the dining hall. I guess dining hall managers caught on to you!</p>
<p>Hee, hee. I didn’t put much of a dent in their food stores. But any of the all you can eat board plans took a hit when my boys hit those cafeteria. The is a deal I did get out of the colleges.</p>
<p>I will be taking out max Stafford loans (most likely all unsubsidized) all four years. So with those loans, and my small scholarship, I’m still missing 4k a semester/ 8k a year. It seems like too much debt, and I want to cut it down significantly.</p>
<p>Are you basing what you need on your U’s cost of attendance number? If so, there may be ways to shave that by a thousand or more per year. Would a cheaper dorm room situation help too?</p>
<p>I’d guess that as an engineering student you’re probably pretty strong in math – did you do well on the SAT/ACT? Could you tutor kids on the math section over break?</p>