How do you actually pay for law school? Forum

[2807]

When I was in UG we just paid at the office every semester (tuition, parking, fees etc..). Is law school the same? I am trying to figure out how to structure some money in preparation to pay. So, say tuition is 35k per year, is it roughly 17,500 every semester? I would be paying cash. I know, I am lucky. Not rich. Lucky.

Thanks

[gdane]

Loans son. Loans.

Its very common for many students to end up with over $100,000 in loan debt after they graduate from law school.

[2807]

Loans son. Loans.

Its very common for many students to end up with over $100,000 in loan debt after they graduate from law school.

I assume you meant this as a response for a different question?

[gdane]

Dont assume. You make an ass out of you and me...

I meant that response for you. However, I didnt read your entire post initially so I can see why youre confused.

[kalvano]

When I was in UG we just paid at the office every semester (tuition, parking, fees etc..). Is law school the same? I am trying to figure out how to structure some money in preparation to pay. So, say tuition is 35k per year, is it roughly 17,500 every semester? I would be paying cash. I know, I am lucky. Not rich. Lucky.

Thanks

Yes, they'll break it down per semester and post a bill on the registrar's website.

You can usually find a breakdown of tuition, fees, etc., on a school's site. Just half that for a rough idea.

Books are usually separate, even though they include them in the estimates. You can buy those wherever, the school doesn't bill for them.

[Aqualibrium]

Dont assume. You make an ass out of you and me...

I meant that response for you. However, I didnt read your entire post initially so I can see why youre confused.

Lol I think you are the one that is confused here...

[gdane]

Dont assume. You make an ass out of you and me...

I meant that response for you. However, I didnt read your entire post initially so I can see why youre confused.

Lol I think you are the one that is confused here...

Thats very likely.

[2807]

When I was in UG we just paid at the office every semester (tuition, parking, fees etc..). Is law school the same? I am trying to figure out how to structure some money in preparation to pay. So, say tuition is 35k per year, is it roughly 17,500 every semester? I would be paying cash. I know, I am lucky. Not rich. Lucky.

Thanks

Yes, they'll break it down per semester and post a bill on the registrar's website.

You can usually find a breakdown of tuition, fees, etc., on a school's site. Just half that for a rough idea.

Books are usually separate, even though they include them in the estimates. You can buy those wherever, the school doesn't bill for them.

Thanks. Any idea on cost for books in a semester??

AND a loan question:
(or 2)
1. Does the interest start right away, but payments are not due till after you grad?
2. I have great credit, and limited income (certainly while in school), do most people qualify for a full amount loan? I could take a loan and then pay it off at a later date if the interest issue was manageable.
Thanks

[Kohinoor]

Turn illusions like it's going out of business.

[gdane]

If you get a subsidized loan, no interest will accrue while youre in school. An unsubsidized, yes. However, you can only receive a maximum of like $20,000 in subsidized loans. So, more than likely the rest will accrue interest while youre in school.

[kalvano]

Thanks. Any idea on cost for books in a semester??

AND a loan question:
(or 2)
1. Does the interest start right away, but payments are not due till after you grad?
2. I have great credit, and limited income (certainly while in school), do most people qualify for a full amount loan? I could take a loan and then pay it off at a later date if the interest issue was manageable.
Thanks

Books - I have 6 classes and a ridiculously large amount of books to buy, and using Half and Amazon, I was done for around $1000 or so.

1) Depends on the loan. Subsidized Stafford loans, interest is deferred. Everything else, starts right away.
2) If you have a pulse, you'll generally qualify for loans.

[2807]

Thanks. Any idea on cost for books in a semester??

AND a loan question:
(or 2)
1. Does the interest start right away, but payments are not due till after you grad?
2. I have great credit, and limited income (certainly while in school), do most people qualify for a full amount loan? I could take a loan and then pay it off at a later date if the interest issue was manageable.
Thanks

Books - I have 6 classes and a ridiculously large amount of books to buy, and using Half and Amazon, I was done for around $1000 or so.

1) Depends on the loan. Subsidized Stafford loans, interest is deferred. Everything else, starts right away.
2) If you have a pulse, you'll generally qualify for loans.

Thanks again for the info.

[JG Hall]

Check and see if your school lets you pay by card. If you can, you should (and I'm jealous).

[2807]

Check and see if your school lets you pay by card. If you can, you should (and I'm jealous).

Hey.. good idea! I have a card that could do that. What a way to rack up miles for a nice grad trip !

I like the way you think

[kalvano]

If they accept credit cards, why wouldn't you be able to pay for it all on the card?

[rundoxierun]

I cant imagine actually already having 100k+ in the bank and giving it to a school. Would literally cause me physical pain.

[im_blue]

Loans son. Loans.

Its very common for many students to end up with over $200,000 in loan debt after they graduate from law school.

FTFY

[JG Hall]

If they accept credit cards, why wouldn't you be able to pay for it all on the card?

Some schools charge fees for processing card payments. Ours is 3%, which outweighs the points/miles benefit.

But you should take out stafford subsidized loans anyway, then pay them back when you graduate. You'll make far more money off the $37,500 over three years. Actually, you should probably take out unsubsidized staffords too, since your money should grow faster than whatever the Stafford interest is, and keep paying off the interest as it accrues.

[kalvano]

If they accept credit cards, why wouldn't you be able to pay for it all on the card?

Some schools charge fees for processing card payments. Ours is 3%, which outweighs the points/miles benefit.

They can't do that, according to their merchant agreement with the card company.

If they take the card, they have to take it for any amount, big or small, and they cannot assess you a fee for using the card that they do not assess people who pay by cash or check.

[JG Hall]

If they accept credit cards, why wouldn't you be able to pay for it all on the card?

Some schools charge fees for processing card payments. Ours is 3%, which outweighs the points/miles benefit.

They can't do that, according to their merchant agreement with the card company.

If they take the card, they have to take it for any amount, big or small, and they cannot assess you a fee for using the card that they do not assess people who pay by cash or check.

third-party payment processor for CCs

[im_blue]

If they accept credit cards, why wouldn't you be able to pay for it all on the card?

Some schools charge fees for processing card payments. Ours is 3%, which outweighs the points/miles benefit.

They can't do that, according to their merchant agreement with the card company.

If they take the card, they have to take it for any amount, big or small, and they cannot assess you a fee for using the card that they do not assess people who pay by cash or check.

In theory, but not in practice. They use two loopholes: a third-party CC payment processor, and the fact that you can only pay online with CC but not in person (so they're technically charging the 2-3% convenience fee for paying online).

[kalvano]

If they accept credit cards, why wouldn't you be able to pay for it all on the card?

Some schools charge fees for processing card payments. Ours is 3%, which outweighs the points/miles benefit.

They can't do that, according to their merchant agreement with the card company.

If they take the card, they have to take it for any amount, big or small, and they cannot assess you a fee for using the card that they do not assess people who pay by cash or check.

third-party payment processor for CCs

Still can't do it. Part of their agreement is that they have to eat the fees.

VISA states that "you may not impose any surcharges on VISA transactions. You may, however, offer a discount for cash or another form of payment (e.g., proprietary card or gift certificate) provided that the offer is clearly disclosed to customers and the cash price is presented as a discount from the standard price charged for all other forms of payment"

MasterCard states that "A Merchant must not directly or indirectly require any Cardholder to pay a surcharge or any part of any Merchant discount or any contemporaneous finance charge in connection with a Transaction. A Merchant may provide a discount to its customers for cash payments."

American Express states that "You must not accept the Card for costs or fees over the normal price of your goods or services (plus applicable taxes) or Charges that Cardmembers have not specifically approved."

[JG Hall]

Still can't do it. Part of their agreement is that they have to eat the fees.

VISA states that "you may not impose any surcharges on VISA transactions. You may, however, offer a discount for cash or another form of payment (e.g., proprietary card or gift certificate) provided that the offer is clearly disclosed to customers and the cash price is presented as a discount from the standard price charged for all other forms of payment"

MasterCard states that "A Merchant must not directly or indirectly require any Cardholder to pay a surcharge or any part of any Merchant discount or any contemporaneous finance charge in connection with a Transaction. A Merchant may provide a discount to its customers for cash payments."

American Express states that "You must not accept the Card for costs or fees over the normal price of your goods or services (plus applicable taxes) or Charges that Cardmembers have not specifically approved."

the fee isn't for the good in question (tuition), but for the service of processing a credit card payment for a party that does not have a merchant account with the given CC company

[2807]

If they accept credit cards, why wouldn't you be able to pay for it all on the card?

Some schools charge fees for processing card payments. Ours is 3%, which outweighs the points/miles benefit.

But you should take out stafford subsidized loans anyway, then pay them back when you graduate. You'll make far more money off the $37,500 over three years. Actually, you should probably take out unsubsidized staffords too, since your money should grow faster than whatever the Stafford interest is, and keep paying off the interest as it accrues.

Hey thanks for the help/advice. I will certainly look into options now. And, I agree that handing over the money is barfable, but a loan is not a party either..

Ok, one more thing... do all schools have the loan forgiveness programs if you go into the right field of work?

[kalvano]

the fee isn't for the good in question (tuition), but for the service of processing a credit card payment for a party that does not have a merchant account with the given CC company

The school is still supposed to eat the fee.

Not suggesting you go have a cage match with the registrar, just saying that most places ignore this stuff, even though they aren't supposed to do things like it.