Top Law Schools

orko60 wrote:I love Dave! Then again, I obviously don't listen to what he's saying, since I'm borrowing money to go to Law school (I think that's the one thing he says is okay to borrow for, though).

BetterCallSaul wrote:How can you be in UG without health insurance? Virtually every school provides it at a reasonable price and you have to opt out of the plan if you have other insurance. If you've got educational loans you should be able to use them to pay for insurance too...get yourself covered now!

As for your old debt and bad credit--if it's already been sent to collections you can probably settle the debt for a fraction of what you owe. If you haven't paid on it in over a year you could try to settle for 3 or 4k--start saving up some cash so you can do that.

No braces. Your money needs to be so many other places right now.

You are not stuck. You can fix this pretty quickly and patch up your credit for law school and life within a few years--but you need a budget. Google "Dave Ramsey"--and Good Luck!

tasteofred wrote:I've been reading through this part of the forum and it's getting me sort of worried. I'm moving into my Junior year in UG, but I'll be graduating with about 30k in federal loans.

I also don't have health insurance, and it's absolutely ruined my credit. I have about 10k, at least, in ER bills from a few unfortunate instances. Like the ER prescribing me antibiotics that gave me an almost deadly allergic reaction, landing me back in the ER to get that under control, then the gross left-overs of the reactions sending me there 3 MORE times for wound packing, yum. Ugh. Anyway, my credit sucks. All of my other credit accounts are paid on time, including two cars (one isn't mine, I'm just a co-signer for my mom), cell phone, apartment, etc. etc. There is no chance I'll be able to put any kind of dent in this debt by the time I start applying for financial aid. I'm currently looking at $7,000 in dental costs for braces and such so I'll have no free money for at least a year. And I can't put it off any longer. A lot of the debt has been sent to collections, so I can't tell from my credit report if it even specifies that it's medical debt. I definitely don't see it listed obviously, there's just lots of collection agencies and a lot of big numbers.

So, I have two concerns. I'm worried I'll never even be able to get loans for law school. I have no one to co-sign for me, and can guarantee that I never will. Everyone in my family has horrendous credit and miniscule incomes, if they have jobs at all. Assuming I can get through that hurdle, I'm also worried about eventual character assessment for the Bar. I'm not purposefully evading anyone, although I have given up on answering phone calls just to get yelled at. The debts were all sent to different places (separate accounts for each visit, blood test, etc.) and none will accept offers of the little bit of money I can afford. Not to throw a whole sob story at anyone, but the whole "you can do whatever you want if you work hard" bit is starting to sound like a load of bull and I'm considering throwing in the towel, changing my major to something that will get me a job right out of undergrad, and settling for mediocrity. Argh. Anyone been through/going through the same thing? Is my hole just way too deep?

For the record, I'm plenty capable of getting into high-ranked schools. Probably from NYU down if I raise my first LSAT diagnostic 8 or so points. So even with huge debt, I think it would be a worthwhile investment, if the healthcare system hadn't screwed me

Thanks so much for any input.

tasteofred wrote:

HBK wrote:Have you ever considered getting a job? I mean, undergrad is not that hard. I know a lot of people on this site worked and went to undergrad. I did. You can use whatever you earn to pay off the medical debt and to buy insurance so it doesn't happen again.

And why the rush to get braces?

You sound all around irresponsible. You should consider getting out into the real world to gain some maturity before you pursue a JD.

* Also- all hospitals have charity programs. All you need to do is apply. If you qualify, they will knock a substantial amount off that debt.

Have you ever considered asking me if I have a job? Because I do and have since I got out of high school. Unfortunately, I have a car payment, car insurance, phone bill, rent to pay, food to buy, etc. I don't need to tell you the inner workings of my life, but it was unnecessary to call me irresponsible and immature. I have every intention of paying off my debt as soon as possible, and it's next up on the list after getting braces and health insurance. Even when I worked 40 hours, I was below poverty line (target, overnight, $9.40/hour) I'm on food stamps, and I'm trying my best. Now I do legal assisting work, but substantial hours are hard to come by. I'm sure I do need to grow up a bit, also, but I wouldn't call myself irresponsible.

And as I stated above, the rush to get braces is because I need them. My main medical problem was a systemic infection caused by a tooth abscess I'd had since I was 12. And yes, I brush+floss my teeth, but when you have severe crowding and your parents don't bother to take you to the dentist, shit happens. I need surgery to remove teeth, 9 fillings and I need to get braces so it doesn't happen again. Maybe I'm vain, but I want teeth in my mouth at 20 years old. The hospital had a program, I didn't qualify for it because of my mother's income and my being "dependent". But just like with school, her income isn't coming to me, nor do I think it should be.

ughOSU wrote:I was going to make a sarcastic comment about you not being ahead, but yea it seems that you've kinda being screwed by the system. I recommend this for almost everyone, but it really may be worthwhile for you to take a couple years off to make money, pay down debts, and try to bump your credit rating to a respectable level. It would be a shame to have T10 numbers and go to a T30 because you couldn't take out a loan. Of course, if you don't land a job that will make you money, you may end up getting screwed on this plan by the interest accumulating...

Also, I have a bit of experience dealing with paying debts in our medical system. Have you called the hospital's billing department? They may not have turned the bills over to a collections agency yet, it which case there may still be time for you to take out an educational loan to pay off your bills. Educational debt is much better than medical debt. You can also ask for an extension on the time before they turn your bills over to a collections agency. I think most hospitals give you 6 months initially.

Kiersten1985 wrote:

ughOSU wrote:I was going to make a sarcastic comment about you not being ahead, but yea it seems that you've kinda being screwed by the system. I recommend this for almost everyone, but it really may be worthwhile for you to take a couple years off to make money, pay down debts, and try to bump your credit rating to a respectable level. It would be a shame to have T10 numbers and go to a T30 because you couldn't take out a loan. Of course, if you don't land a job that will make you money, you may end up getting screwed on this plan by the interest accumulating...

Also, I have a bit of experience dealing with paying debts in our medical system. Have you called the hospital's billing department? They may not have turned the bills over to a collections agency yet, it which case there may still be time for you to take out an educational loan to pay off your bills. Educational debt is much better than medical debt. You can also ask for an extension on the time before they turn your bills over to a collections agency. I think most hospitals give you 6 months initially.

I'm sorry but this is NOT being screwed by the system. $128/month for medical insurance is as necessary as the car payment and rent - you FIND a way to make it happen, espeically if you're taking out student loans. I was on food stamps, too, and I had insurance. It's a matter of personal responsibility.

Kiersten1985 wrote:OP, you obviously have a lot of financial stuff on your plate right now and to answer your original question bluntly: yes, stop while you're ahead. Do not plan on going to law school in the next year, maybe not even the next two years. Work, save, repeat until you're in a comfortable situation or can at least start to build your credit back up.

I understand that $128/month isn't cheap, but how is it that you can't get your loans to cover this? Something just isn't adding up. I financed virtually all of my UG with loans, including insurance. And I also had car payments and rent to pay. Isn't adding that extra $128/month worth not being on the edge of bankruptcy? How much are you paying in car payments and rent? Can you get a cheaper car or smaller place/more roommates?

Another think you could consider is taking a year off from UG to work and then go back and do your senior year. If you're situation is as dire as you say, this might be the better thing to do for yourself. You'd of course have to see if loans will start to go into repayment or not (if they're currently deferred) and check what that means for your school.

Lastly, I understand why you're getting braces and from what you're saying it doesn't seem like you have any other option, which is fine. But with that said, you need to work your life around that necessary expense. Maybe taking some time off from school to work full-time is one way to do that. My intention isn't to judge you so I don't want to call YOU irresponsible, but the act of going without medical insurance as an adult when I'm SURE there is a way you could get state insurance or get student loans to cover it is irresponsible.

Kiersten1985 wrote:

ughOSU wrote:I was going to make a sarcastic comment about you not being ahead, but yea it seems that you've kinda being screwed by the system. I recommend this for almost everyone, but it really may be worthwhile for you to take a couple years off to make money, pay down debts, and try to bump your credit rating to a respectable level. It would be a shame to have T10 numbers and go to a T30 because you couldn't take out a loan. Of course, if you don't land a job that will make you money, you may end up getting screwed on this plan by the interest accumulating...

Also, I have a bit of experience dealing with paying debts in our medical system. Have you called the hospital's billing department? They may not have turned the bills over to a collections agency yet, it which case there may still be time for you to take out an educational loan to pay off your bills. Educational debt is much better than medical debt. You can also ask for an extension on the time before they turn your bills over to a collections agency. I think most hospitals give you 6 months initially.

I'm sorry but this is NOT being screwed by the system. $128/month for medical insurance is as necessary as the car payment and rent - you FIND a way to make it happen, espeically if you're taking out student loans. I was on food stamps, too, and I had insurance. It's a matter of personal responsibility.

HBK wrote:Have you ever considered getting a job? I mean, undergrad is not that hard. I know a lot of people on this site worked and went to undergrad. I did. You can use whatever you earn to pay off the medical debt and to buy insurance so it doesn't happen again.

And why the rush to get braces?

You sound all around irresponsible. You should consider getting out into the real world to gain some maturity before you pursue a JD.

* Also- all hospitals have charity programs. All you need to do is apply. If you qualify, they will knock a substantial amount off that debt.