Second deposit due in june is 1000, how can i pay this from loan?

[rider06]

I have a second deposti of 1K due in june...is there a way to take this from the laon?  I know it won't be dispersed by then because usually they wait till the semester begins

i also want to buy a laptop over the summer from said loans

is this possible at all?

[rider06]

that is hefty.

i always wonder why they disburse loans so late in the game. dont people need to set themselves up for school?

if i were you, i'd buy the laptop on a credit card maybe 2-3 weeks before school starts, that way you can just pay the bill when you get your money. i plan to live off of my credit card for the first few weeks of my move.

yeah i guess..

thanks

[IluvNY37]

We won't get our loan money until school starts?!?  If this is true, how are we supposed to pay half of our tuition in the summer???  I'm expected to pay like 20K in August!  I thought that you could setup your loans to be funded to you starting in June or July.  Anyone know how all this works?

[J D]

We won't get our loan money until school starts?!?  If this is true, how are we supposed to pay half of our tuition in the summer???  I'm expected to pay like 20K in August!  I thought that you could setup your loans to be funded to you starting in June or July.  Anyone know how all this works?

You won't get your loan disbursement until school starts (i.e., the money you are borrowing in excess of tuition to cover your living expenses).  Typically, the amount you are borrowing for tuition (either through private or federal loans) will be credited to your student account, so you won't have to put down any cash.  If you have any doubts or concerns, call the financial aid office.

[greengrl]

woah--what school has a 1k second seat deposit?? that's one way to make sure you fill your class--INSANE

[JamesD]

While it may seem so simple that it is not worth mentioning...  I think we all need to recognize that this entire process (applying to; getting to; and attending law school) is so much harder for people who lack extensive financial resources.  Most people have at least some small amount of family support in the process... especially at the schools where lots of us will be attending law school... 

Even when people are willing to take out tens of thousands of dollars worth of loans to finance a law school education... and even when such loans are available... there are so many different things that lots of people take for granted...

This week, I got an email about my seat deposit being due by May 1st.  $500.  When I start totaling up all the money I've spent throughout the course of this process, it shocks me a bit.  The LSAT.  LSAC.  Individual reports.  Traveling to visit schools.  Hotel rooms at school visits.  Missing work for school visits.  Seat deposits.  Prohibitive, is the word that comes to mind. 

There are lots of people out there who could never afford all of this.  Even if they had a fee waiver for the LSAT and LSAC... they would still have to pay for score reports... take off time from work to visit schools... pay for these visits... pay their seat deposits...

Lots of us are now facing real logistical issues related to relocating; renting apartments; second seat deposits.... 

I'll send my seat deposit.  It will - literally - bring my bank account balance down to $3.00.  In fact, I may send a check, right at the last minute, in hopes that they will not cash it until the following week....   In part, I'm thankful that I'm in a good enough financial position to actually pay my deposit...  If this were last year, I would have never been able to afford a $500 seat deposit...

I know there are people who will be attending law school next fall - and probably, some people from this message board - who are struggling with the financial aspects of just getting to school next fall.  Sure, loans are great.  But they won't be dispursed until mid-August.  This seems fundamentally and functionally unacceptable; it is yet another example of how low-income people are further disadvantaged in the 'law school process'. 

I'm not bitching or complaining.  I'll work a million hours this summer, and make sure that I've earned enough money to quit my job in mid-July, move, rent an apartment, etc.  But I know that there are people out there who can simply not afford this process...  This is a situation that is unfair, and also easily remedied.  Sure, the trite response, "Life isn't fair" could be given.  But the most apt rejoinder is that things could easily be changed to level the playing field.  And if things can easily be changed to facillitate that fairness... without hurting any of the parties involved... then I don't see why such changes are not implemented.  Perhaps I do not understand the complexities of law school financial aid... and I fail to see why the loans (at the very least, federal loans) cannot be awarded (check in hand) in June or July.... 

If my school has a second deposit due in June, they will be getting a letter from me explaining that I cannot afford to make such a payment, and that I will not be able to make the payment until my loans are dispersed.

Good luck.  I hope everything works out.

[greengrl]

JD--this is an incredibly well thought out post. It does not in any way come off as complaining but as one of the more eloquent simplified examples of how the ridiculous cost of higher education is prohibitive--perfect word choice.

As a HS teacher I watched this same scenario play out with my students time and time again. They didn't have the safety net of parents that could spot them a couple grand to get through the process. For some reason the institution that is federal student aid seems to assume that if we made it through undergrad we have somehow figured out a way to make thousands of dollars in a few months to cover all these expenses.

In an ideal system, preprofessional students would have these expenses budgeted into their financial aid packages for Junior year, thereby increasing their need and in turn their eventual distributions. I'm not sure how you would fix this for us old folks who have been out for a few years other than disperse loans earlier.

Could you take out a small private loan and then repay it when you get your fed check

[IluvNY37]

I agree, JD.  And another factor to consider is that many of us who are graduating from undergrad this year are having to find full-time jobs for the summer to pay our rent!  Not only am I worried about making all of my deposits, but I'm worried about getting a job to pay my bills in the meantime!

[JamesD]

Duke. 

[KillMeNow]

If you cannot afford a tuition deposit you should not go to law school.  It is time you realize that you will not amount to anything in life, and should just accept the trailer park and 1983 Iroc-Z as the good life.

Disclaimer:
I say this in jest as I had to borrow money from my parents for the tuition deposit.  I just feel fortunate that my parents are in a position to help. 

JD, I thought your post was well said and insightful.  The money I borrowed was sent to Duke so I will probably see you in the fall.