Skip to main content

My One Year Student Loan Payoff Update

  January 28, 2022 marked my one year anniversary of paying off my student loans . Reflecting back on choosing to pay off my student loans leaves me with several take a ways that I want to share with you! In September 2020 I decided to become debt free by utilizing the debt snowball method to pay off all my debt. Before this I had struggled to save and really understand basic financial principles. As a first-generation college student, I received a scholarship to attend undergrad for free, but the scholarship did not cover summers. During the summers I took out student loans to cover costs without paying interest rates or how much I was taking out. By the end of undergrad I had amassed a little under $17K. Fast forward to graduate school I received another scholarship that covered my education. At the time I was a teacher in a new very expensive city and I had missed the cutoff to have my paycheck last me throughout the summer. So, I decided to take out a loan for two summers to keep

Summer Courses as a Doctoral Student

 I’ve done several summer themed videos where I focus on the things you should be aware of as a student who takes courses during the summer. Summer courses are a whole other ball game and if you aren’t up for the challenge it’s best to take a breather during the summer or be prepared to give it all you got.  It dawned on me that I hadn’t shared my own course load and how I’m handling things so far. As you know I am a doctoral student pursuing my EdD in Higher Education. This is actually my first time taking a summer course since summer 2018 and I’ve done pretty well so far.


Figure 1: This is a thumbnail of my YouTube video “Summer Courses as a Doctoral Student” where I am holding an SPSS book with a worried face.


I am currently taking Diversity in Higher Education and Advanced Quantitative Research. My Diversity in HIED course involves watching a 3 part series on a PBS documentary called “Race The Power of an Illusion”. After watching the documentary you write a page length discussion post (with references) based on several questions from the professor and you respond to two classmates. The documentary is actually very interesting and has revealed to me a lot of the misconceptions that I had about race. With the emphasis on Critical Race Theory it’s definitely relevant in 2021!


Figure 2: This is a photo with a picture of 3 men that says “Race: The Power of Illusion”.

Advanced Quantitative Statistics… Jesus be a STRONG fence. This is where ALL my time goes. This class has a variety of assignments that are due by the end of the month. They include:

 A quiz: The quiz is untimed and can be taken more than once.

Discussion Post: You answer a topic in at least several paragraphs and you have to respond to ALL of your classmates. You also have to make sure you keep the conversation going by providing suggestions and asking in depth questions. 

Article Critique: You can choose from at least four articles and they are all at least ten pages with most being over 15 pages. There is a detailed APA format to follow which does make things easier.

Research Plan: This is fairly simple being that you only answer two questions based on the statistical measure you learned about and then give an example of how it will be used in your research.

Written Assignment: This is where you actually utilize a program called SPSS that helps you to analyze data for your quantitative research. It is not very user friendly and requires time and patience LOTS of it! By the way, I plan on doing a qualitative research proposal but I still have to take this course.

Now all of these things are not due the same week and you typically have about 2-4 weeks to do everything which is enough time but you still have to stay on top of things. Which brings me to my next point of staying organized. I stay organized by using a planner and reviewing my syllabus every day so I don’t get behind. Another tip I have is to find someone in the course who you can work with. I have a friend who is in this class and it has helped me tremendously. Two brains are always better than one!

 

Figure 3: This is a photo of a planner.


Are you a doctoral student who is taking summer courses? How are things going? What are your thoughts on SPSS? Drop down in the comments and let me know! Be sure to check out my latest video below!

SUBSCIBE: Summer Courses as a Doctoral Student



Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Biden to Forgive Student Loans in August 2022?

  Alright folks I’m back with another student loan update! According to CNBC, Biden is set to make a decision on student loan forgiveness by the end of August 2022. Now while I’m not entirely sold that this is actually happening, there are several things for you to be aware of. First things first there is still no clear information on how much will be forgiven. While Biden did discuss student loan forgiveness of $10K during his campaign trail other sources have reported higher amounts of 50K. Of course, none of this is set in stone and we are all waiting to hear something. This is a thumbnail of my latest YouTube video on “Biden to Forgive Student Loans in August?” I am looking at the camera suspiciously while seated in my office. The background is red. There may also be income restrictions of who may qualify for student loan forgiveness. Single folks may have a threshold of 125K-150K while those who are married may be between 250K-300K. There is also some talk surrounding what typ

President Joe Byron Student Loan Forgiveness Update

  BING BONG! President Joe Byron has made an official statement regarding student loans. One that many of us were not expecting to hear. Well not me because I suspected this all along hence to why I am paying my student loans off. If you have not heard, Mr. Biden is not extending the federal pause on student loans. That means that on February 1, 2022 you will need to begin making payments again and your interest is back in affect. Figure 1: This is a thumbnail of my latest YouTube video “President Joe Byron Student Loan Forgiveness Update” where I am seated in my office while looking at the camera with a suspicious look on my face. I am wearing a black sweatshirt that reads, “They go low we go high.  As you all know I decided to pay off my student loans about a year ago when I started by debt free journey. Thanks to Jesus and all of my hard work, I am almost there and will update you at a later date on what I did to pay off my student loans. Many folks are in an uproar and feel straigh

Fall Refunds are Here for College Students

 It’s my favorite time of the semester…REFUNDS! A few weeks after the semester begins all of your financial aid pays out and if there’s any left over you get a refund! You will know that your receiving a refund if there’s a negative balance on your account. It’s the one time in history where you actually want to see a negative balance!  Figure 1: This is a thumbnail of my latest YouTube video where I am in my office with a surprised look on my face.  This semester I paid $241 in fees and I received a $500 grant for individuals who work at community colleges. Oh yeah  did I mention I work at a community college too part time as a tutor? Anyhoo, since I had already paid off my student account I received the $500 as a refund. If you’ve been watching my YouTube videos or reading my blogs then you already know this money is going to debt.  Figure 2: This is a photo of three $100 bills and three $50 bills. With refunds posting to accounts daily you want to make sure that you are constantly c