A testimony from No Debt MBA
When I graduated from college a few years ago, I was pretty sure I wanted to go to business school after gaining some work experience. Through scholarships, work, being a resident assistant, and the generosity of my family I had graduated with no student loans from my undergraduate degree.
That taste of freedom was sweet and I loved doing my job search without minimum payments hanging over my head. So I challenged myself with a big goal — when I went to get my MBA I wanted to go to the one of the best schools and avoid student loans, graduating completely debt-free.
I started saving and researching as soon as I got my first paycheck. I knew that I’d have to continue living like a student to reach my goal. I’ve been budgeting carefully and tracking what I spend while slowly putting money away to build a nest egg that could help defray the costs of the expensive degree I wanted.
I’ve hit my first big payoff: this summer I’ll be getting the bill for the first of two years at my top MBA program. I’ll pay that bill in cash.
But the hard work isn’t done yet. Going forward I’m going to be maintaining the same frugal habits that have served me so well over the last few years:
- I’m living on half of my school’s estimate of living expenses — groceries for two are $25 a week and we live in a very small apartment to save on rent.
- I’m working all the way up until the first day of school and will work next summer to give my nest egg all the padding it can get.
- I’ll reapply for financial aid this spring.
- I’ll continue to pay cash for everything.
I know I have a lot of work ahead of me, but I feel so thankful and fortunate to be able to pursue a top-notch education without taking out a dime in student loans. By challenging myself with a goal I really didn’t think I could reach at first, I’ve achieved more than I thought I could.
No Debt MBA is a 20-something professional who will graduate from a top business school in 2013. You can read more about how the goal of graduating debt-free is progressing at NoDebtMBA.com
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I opted to work for a university full-time that allowed me to attend an MBA program part-time. I finished in three years and was able to take part in a winter session study abroad program to Europe too. All of the classes were free. Approximate value of this education was $50,000.
That’s something to be very proud of! I worked for a company years ago that offered free reiumbursement as long as you received a C or better but the only catch is that while we were employed there they always had “mandatory” overtime! Sounds illegal but there was high pressure to put in so many overtime hours when they mentioned it right before your shift was up. Maybe some companaies are much better than others as understanding your trying to achieve higher education. I guess with the economy Overtime sounds so funny huh? People are lucky to have any job when we were putting in 30+ hours a week in overtime alone.
That is amazing! My husband is in MBA school right now, it is not a cakewalk by any means. Very tough, he is in Business Law right now.
Not sure if this is true today, but many employers will pay for your education, even an undergrad degree. When I worked for one of the largest companies in the world, I went to graduate school at night to get my MBA while working full-time. They paid my tuition each semester and many fees as long as I got at least a B (graduated with a 3.86 GPA!). I paid for my books. Many of my coworkers were getting their undergrads this way.