Sallie Mae Offers Tips on Financing Graduate School
July 13 2006 - 5:01AM
PR Newswire (US)
RESTON, Va., July 13 /PRNewswire/ -- A college education is an
investment that yields a lifetime of financial returns. According
to the U.S. Census Bureau, college graduates earn an average of
about $2.5 million, or about $1 million more over their working
lives than high school graduates. For college graduates who go on
to earn advanced degrees, the earnings premium increases to about
$1.5 million. (LOGO:
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20030617/SLMLOGO-a ) Depending
on a student's field of study, there are a variety of financial aid
programs available to help pay for graduate school. Many lenders,
including Sallie Mae, also offer various graduate private loan
programs for students attending a graduate business, law, or
medical school. Depending on the lender, borrowers may be eligible
for select repayment benefits for making on-time payments or
setting up automatic debit. Typically, federal loans are the least
expensive way for graduate students to borrow. Other forms of
financial support can include working as a teaching or research
assistant, participating in federal work-study programs (which are
awarded based solely on financial need) and securing fellowships
and grants. Several of these options, such as working as a teaching
or research assistant, are awarded based on the student's academic
merit and may include a stipend, which does not have to be repaid.
Beginning this academic year, graduate students who are enrolled at
least half time will be able to borrow Federal PLUS Loans on their
own behalf thanks to recent legislation, the Deficit Reduction Act
of 2005. As with the parent- focused PLUS Loan program, there is no
aggregate loan limit for a Grad PLUS Loan, and students are allowed
to borrow each year the cost of attendance less any financial aid
received. Under the Graduate PLUS Loan program offered by Sallie
Mae, the nation's leading provider of education funding, graduate
and professional students are eligible even if they have no credit
history; additional benefits in the form of interest rate
reductions and loan balance credits also may apply. For medical
students, Sallie Mae offers a specialized MEDLOANs Grad Loans PLUS
program. Other funding avenues for graduate students to explore are
tuition- reimbursement programs. Some firms, large and small, may
incorporate such plans as part of their benefits package. Usually
these plans cover expenses for tuition and books and may require
that the employee/student's current job position be enhanced as a
result of taking graduate-level classes. "A graduate degree is
something that will pay off handsomely in the long run," says
Michael Katz, president of graduate and professional programs for
Sallie Mae. "By continuing their higher education, individuals are
doing all that more to improve their quality of life, personally
and professionally." To learn more about financing a graduate
school education, visit
http://www.salliemae.com/gradplus/index.html.
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20030617/SLMLOGO-a
http://photoarchive.ap.org/ DATASOURCE: Sallie Mae CONTACT: Erin
Korsvall of Sallie Mae, +1-703-984-5136 Web site:
http://www.salliemae.com/
http://www.salliemae.com/gradplus/index.html Company News On-Call:
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/827187.html
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