TESC Living Expense Loans

[Derek]

Opinion stated, so if determined to go this route, have you looked into a traditional brick & mortar school with dorms? At 21, you should still be within the guidelines allowed, and they will already have everything related to room, board, and meal plans covered by financial aid without needing to seek additional outside loans. You can resolve the issue with needing living expenses covered, and get a quality education at the same time, for probably less (and lower interest rates) than you would with a private loan.

Understandable, however, I'd be stuck in school for 4 years. milelol:

Not only that, but I do not qualify for any sort of financial aid, so I'd get at most whatever the Stafford loans cover. My parents would still need to do my FAFSA, which would not get me any aid at all.

I know what I'm in for as far as private loans, but it's still my best bet vs. 4 years at a school accruing $25k/year+. Even though it's a private loan, I should still be able to pay it off in 5 years at most. Mind you, I'll have a part-time job until I can find a full time. But don't necessary want to have to rely on working to survive. In essence, this loan would be a life savior and would make my education experience more or a learning experience instead of juggling too many things.

With a cosigner on a private loan, I'll be able to obtain at MOST a 9% APR. which if I was able to scrounge up around 800/month to dedicate to it, I can have it paid off in 3 years. Which is actually less than what I current pay for bills. Although not the best decision credit wise to consolidate, it's much better than losing everything on top of losing my credit.

Anyone know if TESC would accept a loan that high with the overages being mailed to me?

[cookderosa]

Opinion stated, so if determined to go this route, have you looked into a traditional brick & mortar school with dorms? At 21, you should still be within the guidelines allowed, and they will already have everything related to room, board, and meal plans covered by financial aid without needing to seek additional outside loans. You can resolve the issue with needing living expenses covered, and get a quality education at the same time, for probably less (and lower interest rates) than you would with a private loan.

This is a great idea! Seriously consider it.
One last thought, if you do go ahead and borrow, think hard about getting $25,000. To have a "take home pay" of $480 per week ($25,000/52 which you will have when they cut you a check) means the equivalent of earning roughly $550-$650 per week gross. Respectfully, I raise a family of 6 in our home on a country club and drive a Yukon Denali on a take home pay of $600 per week. I have 4 sons and a husband, so most of htat goes to groceries! However, on that income, I paid for my TESC degrees (both of them) and my husband's BA degree, my 16 year old's ALEKS/Straigherline and CLEPs. Oh, since we homeschool I guess I could say that I spend another $500 ish on the other kids, pay $400 per month for music lessons and take frequent family vacations. In other words, we budget.

Seriously, get in a dorm, move back home, or get 40 room mates. Sell the car, borrow $5000 and continue to bust out looking for work. I can't imagine any situation where 12-15 credits at TESC is anywhere near 20 hours per week. You still have like..148 hours a week in which you can continue your job hunt.

Also, don't just think like an employee, think like a business man! Maybe you'll be more successful creating your own small business. My 10 year old started his own business in November of 2010. He bought 2 gum ball machines. I do NOTHING, except drive him to the machines and bank. He orders everything, stocks, shops, prices, etc. I do NOTHING. This is 100% his deal. He paid off his machines in July and for his birthday we bought him 2 more - so now he has 4 machines in 2 different businesses. He makes about $40-50 per month cash profit.
My 12 year old has 4 lawn clients. 2 are regular, 2 are occasional. All 4 pay him $20 for the job, which takes about 2 hours. He can do all 4 in one day. After buying gas, he brings in about $180-$200 per month cash.
My 16 year old has 3 jobs, a regular lifeguard job 2 days per week, a dog client 3 days per week, and a dog sitting client. His 1 dog client pays him $125 per month cash.
My 6 year old (even just tonight) took $5 to the dollar store and bought candy which he resells to his older brothers (who have money to blow). He has already made back $5 and I see he still has half his stash- I'm sure by week's end it will be gone and he will have doubled his money.

My minor children, without ANY help from me (but I'm fiercely supportive) have figured out how to earn about $400 per month collectively. I think you can too!!! Just be willing to try, and trust yourself and believe in your ability to support yourself. You CAN do it and imo- should try.

This momma's preaching is done, lol.

[Derek]

Derek,

I agree with what has already said, but want to add a few more comments. I'm sorry that you're so young to see how difficult life is, but it is TOUGH. There are a few things to keep in mind. If you're applying to so many places and not getting a job, you may be doing something wrong. Yes the economy is tough right now, but you should be getting some sort of response. Most communities have non-profit organizations that will offer career coaching and resume advice. My personal advice would be to have people that you know and trust look over your resume. I've even seen a resume posted here on the forum for review.

When you apply for a job, don't just fill out an application and hand it to whoever happens to be around. Ask for the store manager. Make sure that you're wearing the nicest outfit you have. Wear a suit.. even if you're applying to wash dishes or clean toilets. Shake the manager's hand and ask if he/she has a moment to talk. If not, see if they'll set up an appointment with you or ask for their name and their permission to call them back in a few days to follow up. Make an impression. They will see a bunch of other applicants, but you should stand out and be the very most professional person they should see all month. If you don't have the money for nice clothing or a suit, you can check at your local goodwill, non-profit career center, or even the local church. If you speak to a pastor at a church in a nicer part of town, I bet you can find someone who is willing to donate an old suit.

If you still can't find work like this, you can go to companies that you want to work for and offer to work for free or intern until you can prove your skills. If you still can't find anything, then at the very least get a one-night-a-week volunteer job so that at least you have SOMETHING on your resume. Yes it is harder to get a job when you don't already have one. That's not fair, but it's true, however, there are tons of really interesting volunteer jobs that will look amazing on your resume. Go to VolunteerMatch - Where Volunteering Begins and find something really cool. Once you've got some great experience under your belt, even if it's working for free, getting a real job will be much easier.

Also please PLEASE don't make the mistake of thinking that a degree will ease all of your troubles. A degree won't do much for you other than check off the "degree required" box on the job description. Most decent jobs, even entry-level positions want to see that you have real experience in a related field before they'll hire you. Again, this is where volunteering comes in. I feel so strongly about this that I have done it myself and my older kids are also doing it. My year as a volunteer in a hospital ended up getting me a substantial raise because it set me apart from other people at my old company. No it wasn't glamorous or fun. I did it every single Friday night and believe me, I had a million other things to be doing, but it paid off and then some.

So... sorry for the "mom" type lecture. I do have 5 kids and tend to spend a fair amount of time trying to prepare them for the real world. It's hard for me to lose the mom hat Life seriously is tough as you know and it doesn't get much easier with a degree, so you'll need to prepare.

burbuja

P.S. Have you looked into telemarketing or cold-calling B2B jobs? There are tons of jobs out there where you have a product that businesses want. You may not even make an hourly wage, but you usually get decent commission. These jobs really suck, but it you get a B2B sales job, it's actually not bad for your resume if you're going to end up in business. Look for keywords like "hunter","new business development", "appointment setter," "cold calling," etc.. trust me, you will get hung up on a bunch and it's not fun, but as long as you're selling something that's halfway decent, you'll end up making money.

Didn't see this until just after I posted!

I have performed all of said while applying. I even spoke with store managers and had a great conversation with them. I've had managerial experience since I was 17, too. 3-years of it, until my other job I had at that point began scattering my schedule to make that job difficult to maintain. After that job had ended, I looked to raise myself higher and became a sales specialist position that was offered to me. I was there since March 2010, when the General Manager recognized me in his store from my other job and we had a conversation. I was rather ecstatic.

I do not think a degree will change everything, no. I want to pursue a degree for my future, and for my future family (when the time comes and we are financially secure.) Retail is ok, I suppose. Hours aren't great, but pay CAN potentially be good.

However, I prefer to do something I enjoy. Something I have a passion for (and always have.) That would be computers. I took computer science through high-school as well. Through that and reading of books, like Digital Fortress by Dan Brown, I've loved every second of it. I even took the time to teach myself to program rather fluently.

But as of right now, I just need to know that I'm secure for the time being to further my life track.

[burbuja0512]

I hope that getting into debt isn't going to be tough, but I guess if it's really the only way, 25k is still less than many other students spend at a B&M school.

Just take my volunteer suggestions seriously. B&M schools for the most part are WAY overpriced, but they do offer some advantages that online schools don't have such as opportunity to network and internships. MANY people are hired fresh out of school because of the experience that they gained interning... often times by the companies that they were interning for.

Remember, you don't have to spend a ton of hours at a volunteer job to be able to put it on your resume. Sometimes just a few hours a week is enough.

[Derek]

This is a great idea! Seriously consider it.
One last thought, if you do go ahead and borrow, think hard about getting $25,000. To have a "take home pay" of $480 per week ($25,000/52 which you will have when they cut you a check) means the equivalent of earning roughly $550-$650 per week gross. Respectfully, I raise a family of 6 in our home on a country club and drive a Yukon Denali on a take home pay of $600 per week. I have 4 sons and a husband, so most of htat goes to groceries! However, on that income, I paid for my TESC degrees (both of them) and my husband's BA degree, my 16 year old's ALEKS/Straigherline and CLEPs. Oh, since we homeschool I guess I could say that I spend another $500 ish on the other kids, pay $400 per month for music lessons and take frequent family vacations. In other words, we budget.

Seriously, get in a dorm, move back home, or get 40 room mates. Sell the car, borrow $5000 and continue to bust out looking for work. I can't imagine any situation where 12-15 credits at TESC is anywhere near 20 hours per week. You still have like..148 hours a week in which you can continue your job hunt.

Also, don't just think like an employee, think like a business man! Maybe you'll be more successful creating your own small business. My 10 year old started his own business in November of 2010. He bought 2 gum ball machines. I do NOTHING, except drive him to the machines and bank. He orders everything, stocks, shops, prices, etc. I do NOTHING. This is 100% his deal. He paid off his machines in July and for his birthday we bought him 2 more - so now he has 4 machines in 2 different businesses. He makes about $40-50 per month cash profit.
My 12 year old has 4 lawn clients. 2 are regular, 2 are occasional. All 4 pay him $20 for the job, which takes about 2 hours. He can do all 4 in one day. After buying gas, he brings in about $180-$200 per month cash.
My 16 year old has 3 jobs, a regular lifeguard job 2 days per week, a dog client 3 days per week, and a dog sitting client. His 1 dog client pays him $125 per month cash.
My 6 year old (even just tonight) took $5 to the dollar store and bought candy which he resells to his older brothers (who have money to blow). He has already made back $5 and I see he still has half his stash- I'm sure by week's end it will be gone and he will have doubled his money.

My minor children, without ANY help from me (but I'm fiercely supportive) have figured out how to earn about $400 per month collectively. I think you can too!!! Just be willing to try, and trust yourself and believe in your ability to support yourself. You CAN do it and imo- should try.

This momma's preaching is done, lol.

Oh boy! hilarious

Reminds me of what I did in high school with the whole reselling candy... Until the cafeteria people got mad and ended up getting me suspended for 2 days. :toetap:

I truly admire you. You, and pretty much everyone on here, are great influences.

If this economy wasn't in the shape it was, everything would be wonderful. It has hit particularly hard here. Just this year, home values dropped 6% MORE. And unemployment has hit hard as well. A lot of my neighbors are on unemployment now. They range from executives in Philadelphia to Union tradesmen. (I forget how they're ranked.) They've been dropping more and more consecutively, yet property taxes keep going up and up. A wonderful state New Jersey is... I just can't wait to get the hell out and move somewhere more peaceful and nice.

I would sell my car, but that 5,000 I'd ask to borrow is almost as much as I owe... But selling it and buying something a little more fuel efficient would be nice. 12mpg on a Camaro is horrible. :hurray:

[Derek]

I hope that getting into debt isn't going to be tough, but I guess if it's really the only way, 25k is still less than many other students spend at a B&M school.

Just take my volunteer suggestions seriously. B&M schools for the most part are WAY overpriced, but they do offer some advantages that online schools don't have such as opportunity to network and internships. MANY people are hired fresh out of school because of the experience that they gained interning... often times by the companies that they were interning for.

Remember, you don't have to spend a ton of hours at a volunteer job to be able to put it on your resume. Sometimes just a few hours a week is enough.

Oh, most definitely!

I would love to be able to volunteer. My managerial job from 2007-2010 was a volunteer position. I always have the CEO as a reference. :coolgleam:

If I could have the freedom to volunteer for experience without worrying about money, I would march right into Philadelphia Monday morning and find myself an internship or volunteer position.

Getting in debt is always easier than getting out, haha. But a 25,000 investment for a bachelor's and master's appears to be a great investment. Plus the added ability that I know I can focus to do well enough to get into Carnegie Mellon's CS program would make me ecstatic.

Assuming I did get a private loan through Wells Fargo for TESC, do you have any idea how the money would be given to me?

It's a shame I have to do this, but being 21 and having friends graduate college left and right with job opportunities making more than myself with nearly 7 years in customer service experience is also making me nuts. On top of that, women aren't the cheapest people to please :roflol:. And it's getting to the point that a 3 year relationship will be getting more serious, but I'd want to know I'm financially prepared to take on such an obligation.

[mrs.b]

Yes the economy is tough right now, but you should be getting some sort of response. Most communities have non-profit organizations that will offer career coaching and resume advice. My personal advice would be to have people that you know and trust look over your resume. I've even seen a resume posted here on the forum for review.

If you still can't find work like this, you can go to companies that you want to work for and offer to work for free or intern until you can prove your skills. If you still can't find anything, then at the very least get a one-night-a-week volunteer job so that at least you have SOMETHING on your resume. Yes it is harder to get a job when you don't already have one. That's not fair, but it's true, however, there are tons of really interesting volunteer jobs that will look amazing on your resume. Go to VolunteerMatch - Where Volunteering Begins and find something really cool. Once you've got some great experience under your belt, even if it's working for free, getting a real job will be much easier.

The post also prompted my mom hat to kick into overdrive, so I'll also apologize. It took more than a few minutes to sit back and tell myself I don't know all the circumstances. It's been a mistake for myself and many others, but only you know your specific situation and can evaluate all the options.

Either way, the quoted bit above is fantastic advice. This forum has hiring managers and HR personnel within its membership. Help galore is at your fingertips, whether you go the loan route or not, to adjust the resume for better response (though, of course, for internet protection, remove personal info if you take up that offer) as you continue the job hunt.

Also, working as an intern is an excellent idea. If you're going to do TESC, it's designed to work with someone at a full-time job, so if you're working part-time, using that additional time to get in the door as an intern can establish a good relationship to give your resume more weight when you apply to for-pay jobs. If not that, putting a volunteer job on your resume will look fantastic. It shows you're not sitting on your hands when you're not working, and that you're an active participant in your community (which will make a lot of HR types giddy). It also gives you another avenue for a genuine reference that may be more current. And hey, charities you might volunteer for have paid employees as well. Volunteering might end in a paying job.

Excelsior954's suggestion about temp/employment agencies is also great. My company uses temps (maternity leaves, etc) and personnel that fill in have a fairly high hire ratio into other positions that come open, because hiring managers are more likely to hire those they know to be good workers, whether they were in their own dept or someone else's that will give them an honest evaluation. They treat it with the same preference as an internal transfer.

Lastly, no, I don't know the answer to the original question. It's something fairly specific. You'll probably need to call the Financial Aid department directly to see what their policies will allow.

[burbuja0512]

After I logged out of the forum for the evening, I had one more thought

If you can't get a loan or if you decide you don't want to be 25k in debt, consider becoming a pharmacy technician while you finish up TESC:

http://www.degreeforum.net/off-topic/129...technician

By just buying the pharmacy tech books, studying, and sitting for the pharm tech certification, you can easily get a job making 13-16 bucks an hour depending on your location. It's not bad work, though you'll definitely want to finish college, but it could help you get a job right away. Healthcare jobs are in demand and being in the pharmacy = no blood and guts & relative schedule flexibility. Not to mention that if you live in a city or suburb, you probably have several pharmacies within walking distance. Almost all grocery stores have a pharmacy and there are often 24-hour standalone pharmacies nearby too (think Walgreens or CVS).. you may even work at a hospital.

If you are quick at learning and dedicate enough time, I bet you could study for and pass the exam within a month or two at most.

[sanantone]

If you aren't getting support from your parents, you might want to consider filling out a form with the college's financial aid department so that you can be considered independent. When I moved out and got my own place, my mother was not supporting me or claiming me on her taxes. Western International University told me to fill out this form (I can't remember if it was the independent verification form). If you can manage to be considered independent, then you will qualify for grants and work study on top of Stafford loans.

[laoshijeff]

One piece of advice that I see that hasn't been offered here is putting your computer skills to use. Look on a website like odesk.com and search by different projects available.

Even with just a little bit of web savvy, you can find some good positions being a virtual assistant to set up blogs, email marketing campaigns, organizing writers to create content for someone's blog, or so many other possibilities. Then, when you build up your portfolio and create relationships, you can put up a site of your own and use testimonials from those projects to establish credibility.

The good thing about these positions is that you can often get paid higher (for a Virtual Assistant you can get around $25/hr) since people really need the skills.

Or you can research software companies that have partner programs and you could find businesses in your area who could benefit from that software. For example, there's a web marketing software called HubSpot that has an excellent partner program. You can help companies implement it and get their websites running.

I even came across MobileDataForce who helps businesses develop mobile applications to manage the workforce and you could help companies set those up and add on consulting fees.

When I was in a bind, I would write articles for Constant-Content.com, AssociatedContent.com (now owned by Yahoo!) and more.