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While my primary impetus for returning to school was - admittedly - a desire to earn more money, it took a leap of faith and a very large chunk of change up front in order to finance my master's degree. Since re-enrolling in school meant that an awful lot of cash would be flowing the "wrong" way initially, I took steps to prepare for the financial impact of earning a degree in order to ensure that the payment process was a painless as possible. Here's how I was able to finance a graduate degree and complete school while working full-time, all without breaking the bank.
I Planned How I'd Finance
I did not have $25k hanging out in my bank account, so the decision to return to school meant finding the best way to finance my degree. I looked into student loans and eventually settled on a government-funded direct loan as my best option for several reasons. First, all payments on the loan were deferred as long as I remained enrolled in school at least half-time; this enabled me to spend the year and a half I was in school saving money, budgeting, and "practicing" for repayment. Second, a direct loan offered a number of repayment options, including a "graduated" plan that would allow me to make smaller payments up front, but larger payments down the road after my salary increased as a result of my degree. Lastly, a direct loan offered an extremely low, fixed interest rate, and I paid all interest accrued while I was in school to prevent it from compounding.
I Planned How I'd Attend
Because there are various rules governing the borrowing limits for each semester and stipulations about when repayment must begin, I arranged my course load to be as financially advantageous as possible. I took as heavy a class load as I could completely finance each semester, since the fewer semesters I was in school meant fewer pesky university fees and fines and surcharges. I also took almost all of my classes online, which allowed me to continue working full-time during the day and to eliminate the incidental expenses associated with driving to school on a daily basis, like buying food and paying for parking.
I Planned for Repayment
In my particular case, financing a $25k master's degree meant a $200/month payment starting 6 months after I finished school. To prepare for this, I adjusted my budget and spent the time I was in school preparing and saving. I started making "practice" payments into my savings account while I was still in school, and I put the money I saved up toward an extra-large first payment toward the loan, which meant I'd pay less interest in the long run. I was fortunate in that I was quickly promoted after earning my degree, so my salary increase more than offset my monthly loan payment. Nevertheless, I'm glad I planned ahead and ensured I could afford to foot the bill for the loan even on my previous budget.
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