When you make up in your mind that you’re going to study, you’ve won only half of the battle. The other half is figuring out how to finance your education. Any bet, the reason for making the decision to study was at least one of better job prospects, a job requirement or personal enhancement.
I have friends, who would like to pursue advanced degrees and certifications, but the cry is all the same – they can not afford it. The drive and desire is there, but the funds are not. Yes, there are a few things that you can try, but I think a combination of things could make life a lot easier.
Scholarships
The first thing that pops into mind when thinking about financing education is the scholarship. There are literally thousands of scholarships available, but the problem is finding the ones that you qualify for. Competition is fierce and in this case, the early bird catches the scholarship.
I’ve been trying to tell a family member that whenever he’s going to pursue a graduate degree, try to find a co-op programme, which would allow him to study and work at the same time. In my opinion, these programmes have an edge, because you can get paid whilst you study, which can be used to supplement any scholarships.
Student Loans
The student loan is another way to finance education. If you can get a student loan that will let you study first and pay afterwards, then that’s a safe bet. But if your student loan kicks in from the time you get it, you’re in for a rough time. It means that either you or your family will have to pay that loan whilst you are studying.
It seems as though the best advice that I can give is to start the process early. Give yourself time to research universities, scholarships, the type of programmes that are offered in your chosen field and the student loans that are available. Doing this research is not easy, so you should be prepared to spend time on it.