May 11, 2010
Financial Aid | What Kind Of Financial Aid Is Available To Medical Transcription Students?
One of the biggest challenges facing many potential medical transcription students is paying for their course. A good training program isn’t cheap, and most of the best schools aren’t a part of the Pell Grant program. How are you supposed to pay for it?
Costs for a good training program run from about $1800 on up. There are cheaper programs out there, but most are not of the quality you need if you want to actually work as a medical transcriptionist.
There are a few options beyond hauling out the credit card or committing a significant chunk of savings to pay for your classes. You can do that if it’s within your financial reach, but it’s not the right choice for everyone.
The first thing you should look at is what the school of your choice offers. Many have a payment plan available. Some have Sallie Mae loans available. Some programs offer their own tuition reduction for students who need the financial help.
You should also check with your state’s Department of Education website. They may have grants or other aid available to you. Some will one work with Pell Grants, but check to see what is required in your state. There may be assistance available for students of occupational and vocational programs.
The school may be able to help you find aid in your state as well. Check their website for information on programs they’re approved for in your state.
You can also check with your bank to see what kinds of loans they offer. These aren’t as nice to have as a grant or money off your tuition, but learning a skill like medical transcription is an investment in your future.
An important thing to remember is that you may be able to pay back the money you spend on your education fairly quickly once you have a job if you worked hard in your studies. A good medical transcriptionist will earn back their tuition easily. The pain of spending the money should be only a temporary issue.
What If You Don’t Get a Job Quickly After Graduation?
Not everyone finds their first transcription job immediately after graduation. That’s something you’d face no matter what kind of job you’re looking for. How often do you really find a challenging job within the first few positions you apply for?
You should be prepared for the possibility of a job hunt that takes several months. If you stretched yourself just paying the tuition this isn’t a pleasant aspect to deal with. If you have loans to pay back after graduation, it can be even more painful.
Have a backup plan for if you don’t start working right away. If you don’t need it, great, but if you got a loan, need to pay back your credit card or need to keep up on your payment plan, you’re going to want to have some idea as to how you will manage all that. If you’re married, this is something to discuss with your spouse so that expectations are realistic. If you have family who are willing to help you if you need it, talk to them. If you might have to get a lower level job for a time while you hunt for a good transcription job, do it.
Stephanie Foster runs http://www.medicaltranscriptionbasics.com/ for people who want to know more about medical transcription schools. Learn more about accredited medical transcription programs at her site.
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7 Comments on Financial Aid | What Kind Of Financial Aid Is Available To Medical Transcription Students? »
May 3, 2011
Helene @ 9:10 pm:
Joe-
Actually, Emily is not in the wrong. Yes, SHHS “participates” in the Archidiocese's financial aid program- however, I have never heard of anyone receiving any substantial “financial aid” if any. However, if you read through the entire Financial Aid webpage, it also states:
Financial Aid
Sacred Heart High School, as a private, independent school is funded by tuition payments. There is no government or Church support. As education costs continue to rise student financial assistance becomes increasingly more important. The school relies on the contributed services of a dedicated staff of religious, on parent and alumni contributions and on fund-raising efforts. The generosity of those involved in these efforts has made it possible for Sacred Heart to offer limited financial aid.
Yes, Sacred Heart is a Catholic school, but lets be clear- it's the Diocese's dime. Financial aid and funding are two different things.
May 14, 2011
Anonymous @ 7:33 am:
To answer your question,
if you or your parents DO NOT have the money to pay for the entire cost of your schooling and are going to have to take out a student or parent loan to cover the costs then YES, you need to fill out the FAFSA and the CSS.
If you DO have the cash saved, then no need to do the fafsa or the CSS. Be aware however, that some scholarships will have a "need' component to them and will ask for your EFC number or proof you filled out the fafsa. In other words, they not only want to know that you have a great GPA and admission test scores, they also may give a higher priority to those who come from a poor family. You can choose to skip applying for those or go ahead and do the fafsa and apply for those scholarships anyway and hope for the best. It's up to you.
PS: don't make the mistake a lot of parents and kids do when choosing and budgeting for college. Don't forget you will be in college for FOUR years so choose a school that relates to how much they have saved. Example: Mom and Dad have 40,000 in your college savings account. Since you will be in school for FOUR years, this means you can afford a school that costs 10,000 a year. Many people make the mistake of choosing a school that costs 40,000 for ONE year and don't quite grasp the concept of not blowing it all on their first year. Kinda stinks to see them spend that kind of cash for the first year and then have nothing left for subsequent years.
July 1, 2011
delicious @ 7:12 am:
http://www.instanteasyloan.com/3847… Payday Loan Debit Card – Secure Financial Aid
July 22, 2011
» College Financial Aid @ 11:09 pm:
[...] svsashank wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptThis is a great time to start thinking about College Financial Aid for your Juniors and a good time to start implementing strategies which can increase your eligibility for need based financial aid. Many middle income families are still eligible for aid in various amounts. Why is the junior year a great time. Its simple if we implement strategies now the impact on income and qualifying assets will have been put into effect for a previous tax year and will not impact the FAFSA Application. Waiting until senior year means that you have limited ability to impact the EFC for the students freshman year and will take a larger hit in the EFC. With some allocation stategies in place it may well be possible to increase the amount of financial aid a middle income family is eligible for and reduce the amount that you have to pay out of your own […] [...]
August 13, 2011
International Scholarship @ 9:19 am:
Overview University of Oulu International Master’s Scholarship Programme 2012-2013 (Finland) 1. University of Oulu International Master’s Scholarship The University of Oulu International Master’s Scholarships provide EURO 2.4 million in financial aid to academically talented international students in architecture, business, economics, education, engineering, and sciences. The scholarship is aimed at students studying…
Please click on each scholarship title for more detail….
September 26, 2011
Suddenly Human @ 12:38 am:
You would be limited by the school's published "Cost of Attendance" for the years you are currently enrolled. For example, your first year your school's cost of attendance is $15,000 for a full time graduate student. The second year it's $18,000. So the max amount of financial aid you would be able to get (from all sources) would be $33,000.
Note: You may not actually GET this much, but this would be your limit. As your question stated. Perhaps what your question should be is "What is the max amount of graduate Stafford loans can I get?" Because that is a totally different answer. Good luck.
October 18, 2011
??????? @ 2:04 pm:
Get Bailed Out with the New Federal Mortgage Loan Modification Program