These Graduate Programs Leave Students With Heavy Debt — Should You Risk It? 

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Deciding to go to graduate school can be a huge benefit to one’s career, but it can also bring thousands of dollars in debt — some of which might not be paid off in the near future, or ever. 

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According to a study from The HEA Group, the five most popular master’s degree programs in the U.S. based on enrollment are business administration, educational administration, registered nursing, social work, and teacher education. The study showed that the most popular doctoral programs are business administration, clinical, counseling or applied psychology, educational administration, registered nursing and rehabilitation and therapeutic professions. 

In the study, the debt-to-income ratio after graduation mattered less about which program students pursued and more about where they pursued it. Other than in the nursing field, for-profit universities saddled students with a much higher debt-to-income ratio than public universities.

Nevertheless, debt is debt. Should people pursue graduate programs knowing it can be years before they pay off their student debt? Here’s what Ida Salusky, a research associate professor and licensed clinical psychologist at Northwestern University, thinks you should do when considering graduate school.

Know Your Financial Standing

Salusky said it’s important to ask, “How much money do I need to support myself while in school?” This includes tuition, health insurance, housing and everything else that might come up while studying.

“Try to build a small savings prior to entering graduate school. If you can save even a few thousand dollars as a reserve fund, prior to entering graduate school, it can help when emergencies arise so you don’t have to fall back on loans,” said Salusky.

Ask If You Have the Time

A graduate program is not just expensive, it’s time-consuming. Salusky said it’s best to know before attending if money and time are on your side.

“Do I realistically have five to seven years to invest in being a full-time student 50-60 hours a week, 10 months a year? This is the reality of what doctoral training looks like,” she said. 

Evaluate the Funding Structure 

Salusky pointed out that doctoral programs (and specifically those in clinical psychology programs) have different funding structures, some of which can lessen the cost for graduate students.

“Admitted students in a fully funded program are guaranteed a tuition waiver to cover the costs of their course work and training and a living stipend, typically through a paid appointment to provide labor to the university,” Salusky said. “For example teaching undergraduate courses, assisting faculty in their research, working in different administrative offices, etcetera. This is very different from an unfunded program where a student may need to cover $100,000-plus in tuition and living expenses for a minimum of four to five years of training.”

Know If a Program Is Accredited 

“Some doctoral programs are unaccredited and advertise themselves as seeking accreditation,” Salusky warned.

She highlighted that a program’s accreditation status greatly affects what students can do after they graduate. If their program isn’t accredited, job opportunities will be limited, and paying off student debt will be more difficult. 

Look Into For-Profit Schools’ Mentorship and Training Opportunities 

Salusky remarked that for-profit schools tend to accrue more debt for students because their main concern is revenue, which means they’re more likely to admit students who are depending on loans to cover tuition costs.

“At the same time, for-profit institutions attract students who need flexible learning options like online and on-demand courses, but that is not conducive to the close mentorship and intensive training necessary to successfully nurture students through the rigors of doctoral clinical training,” she said.

Salusky said this model leads to students leaving programs without having finished the degree. “This not only means that they have debt related to the years of school they attended, but they do not have the same earning power they would if completing a doctorate and obtaining licensure to practice.”

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