How I Paid For Grad School
Patrick: I graduated from my Masters course about 6 years ago now, and I am happy to say I am debt free from that! Um, I’m still paying back my loan from my first degree, but for my Masters I’m in the clear.
Patrick: Um, I- I would have preferred to go straight into grad school from finishing my undergraduate but I- well, I couldn’t afford it.
Patrick: So, I worked for a couple of years and saved up and then, I was also working throughout my course as well. Um, in fact I studied part-time so that I could keep working whilst I was studying.
Patrick: It made the course stretch out a bit but it worked well for me.
Patrick: Uh, I looked into some scholarships to see if they could help me cover the cost of the fees. Um, and I applied for a few but unfortunately I guess there were people who were needier than me so I wasn’t able to tap into that resource.
Patrick: Uh, it was important that I didn’t take on too much debt because, well, firstly, as I said, I’ve still got lots from my undergraduate degree. Um, but also I’m not in a very high-paying field.
Patrick: Uh, and adding to the mountain of debt that I already had was, yeah, definitely not a good idea.
Patrick: I mean, it’s a bit difficult because I do actually need a postgraduate degree for my job, but, having it is not really going to help me financially.
Vocabulary:
Masters course – a program of study at a university for an advanced degree (Master’s), taken after completing a bachelor’s degree, “She enrolled in a one-year Masters course in international business.”
debt free – having absolutely no money owed to banks, people, or credit card companies, “After working two jobs for three years, he was finally completely debt free.”
loan – an amount of money that is borrowed from a bank or government and must be paid back in the future, “The bank approved his student loan so he could pay for his university textbooks.”
in the clear – (idiom) no longer in debt, trouble, or facing a difficult situation, “Once I pay off this final credit card bill, I will be in the clear.”
grad school – (short for graduate school) a division of a university for advanced study after receiving a first degree, “He decided to apply to grad school to study advanced chemistry.”
undergraduate – a university student who is studying for their first degree (a bachelor’s degree), “As an undergraduate, she lived in the university dorms and studied history.”
afford – to have enough money to pay for something comfortably, “I really want to buy that new laptop, but I cannot afford it right now.”
stretch out – (phrasal verb) to make something last longer than usual or take more time to finish, “He chose to stretch out his vacation by adding two more days to his hotel stay.”
scholarships – amounts of money given by a school, university, or organization to help pay for a student’s education, “The university offers excellent academic scholarships to top international students.”
fees – money paid to an institution (like a school or university) for its services, classes, or exams, “Tuition fees have increased quite a bit over the last few years.”
needier – poorer, or in greater need of financial help, support, or basic necessities, “The local charity provides free meals to families from the needier parts of the city.”
tap into – (idiom/phrasal verb) to access, use, or take advantage of a resource, supply, or funds, “The online startup was able to tap into a massive new market of young customers.”
resource – a useful supply, amount of money, or source of support that can be drawn upon when needed, “The internet is an incredible resource for learning new languages for free.”
take on – (phrasal verb) to accept, agree to do, or become responsible for a heavy burden, problem, or debt, “You shouldn’t take on too many credit cards if you don’t have a steady job.”
field – a specific area of work, study, profession, or business activity, “She is a highly respected expert in the field of medical research.”
mountain of debt – (idiom) a very large, overwhelming, and stressful amount of money owed to others, “They found themselves under a mountain of debt after their restaurant business failed.”
postgraduate degree – an advanced university qualification (like a Master’s or PhD) studied after completing a bachelor’s degree, “Obtaining a postgraduate degree can often lead to higher positions in school administration.”
financially – in a way that relates to money, income, or economic situations, “The small family company was financially successful during its very first year.”