How to Be Smart About Law School Financial Aid: 12 Tips You Need to Know

A financial assist expert shares her top tips for navigating the complicated earth of police school budgets, borrowing, and more.

Law schoolhouse fiscal aid tin exist confusing. Even if yous sailed through the undergrad fiscal help procedure, there are new things to consider every bit a police student—and lots of questions to answer.

When should you apply? How can you lot make sure you lot have enough in the banking company to comprehend your summer expenses? Should you lot infringe "actress" to pad your savings business relationship? And much more.

Luckily, financial aid expert and Assistant Director of Fiscal Aid at New England Police force | Boston Nicole Bonito is here to share her top tips, tricks, and reminders for navigating the process and paying for law school.

ane. Don't Assume You're Ineligible for Financial Assistance

Bonito says ane of the most common mistakes law students brand is to assume they're ineligible for financial aid. This ofttimes happens to students who were ineligible for certain types of aid every bit an undergrad due to their parents' earnings and assets. Just as a law student, everything is different!

In one case you enter a graduate program like law school, your federal fiscal aid eligibility is based on your information alone. Function of that funding may even be guaranteed. In whatsoever case it's rare for a law student not to be eligible for at least some federal assist, Bonito says.

They only way to encounter if you'll go federal financial aid is to file the FAFSA (Free Awarding for Federal Student Aid). And you should do so equally shortly equally the form becomes available on Oct 1 the year before y'all intend to enroll in law school.

Remember, y'all have nothing to lose by applying.

two. Your Federal Help Package Is Near the Same No Thing Where You lot Become

Once you file the FAFSA and the government determines your federal aid eligibility, that's what it is for the year—information technology's non going to change from schoolhouse to school. "Students don't realize that the loan offers they receive volition be very, very similar at every other police force schoolhouse they apply to," Bonito says.

What is most likely to change is the amount y'all can borrow in Graduate PLUS loans, because that'southward determined by the budget set by each private law school. "The large difference is the cost of omnipresence upkeep that a schoolhouse sets up," Bonito says. "One matter that might exist helpful when comparing constabulary schools is what the nitty gritty details of the cost of attendance upkeep looks like, because that's where you'll see large differences. Besides tuition, of course."

FYI: Institutional merit scholarships and grants will probable vary considerably also, because they're awarded past the private institutions.

three. "Financial Assistance" May Not Include Scholarships

At New England Law, like most law schools, "financial aid" largely refers to federal loans or work-study; merit-based awards and other scholarships are awarded separately. Keep this in mind as yous're reviewing your financial assist laurels letters as you consider what's "gratuitous coin" for law school—and what you lot'll exist expected to pay back.

"It is important to make the stardom that scholarships are granted during admissions at our school," Bonito says. "Our office largely deals with determining the federal loans."

And then if you have scholarship questions, you lot may want to directly them to the law schoolhouse's admissions office.

Related: Expert Tips for How to Become Law School Scholarships

four. Law Schoolhouse Budgets Determine Everything

Federal regulations crave law schools to create and share their total cost of attendance budget, which is used to determine federal loan borrowing limits. But this upkeep tin can be an invaluable tool in your own financial planning also, and Bonito suggests constabulary students budget very thoughtfully.

The New England Police force Part of Financial Aid sets a moderate estimated budget to brand room for a variety of educatee borrowing needs, Bonito says. They develop this budget by looking at the previous yr'southward cost of omnipresence, local toll of living and transportation expenses, and the College Board's recommended budget for the region, which is based on the consumer price index and other factors. So they then conform for the New England Constabulary community as needed.

"We desire this budget to be a existent, reasonable amount," Bonito says, "simply information technology is upwards to every student to decide how they want to spend that money once they have it."

Earlier yous even look at a school's budget, create a budget of your own and compare your estimated living expense to what the school will allow. Study living expense budgets closely too, because they may differ even between nearby law schools, Bonito says.

Create a budget of your own and compare your estimated living expense to what the law school will let. Report living expense budgets closely besides, considering they may differ even betwixt nearby law schools.

5. Don't Forget About Your Undergrad Debt

Like then many law students (or, y'all know, anyone who went to college later 1975), you might have debt from your undergrad days. It's important to make sure your loan servicers know about your current pupil status to pause or prevent your undergrad debt from going into repayment.

During the summertime before your 1L year, in June or July, check on the deferment condition of any prior borrowed federal and individual education loans. Federal loans should become into an automated in-school deferment when classes begin, since each law school is required to report the enrollment condition of its students. But sometimes a individual lender needs boosted deferment paperwork.

Police force students should contact their lenders and/or loan servicers, get clarification on what is needed to evidence their enrollment, and forward any paperwork that needs to be approved to their police force school's registrar.

half dozen. Now Is Non the Time to Live Big

The more conservative you are with your budgeting and spending in law schoolhouse, the better. "Alive similar a student when you are a educatee!" Bonito says. (Free pizza at campus events, anyone?)

This is particularly important to remember if you're borrowing money—which most law students are—because it's piece of cake to go overboard. What's some other $1,000 when you're borrowing $50,000, right? But that coin comes at a toll: interest payments, which tin really swell over a 20-five-year repayment plan.

In improver to living well within your ways, Bonito recommends constabulary students examine their cost of attendance upkeep and accommodate their expenses based on that guide, erring on the side of under-borrowing initially if they can. You can always borrow more later on in the academic yr if you lot need it. That beingness said…

"Yes, you could borrow more," Bonito says, "but should you?"

7. Exist Actress Careful Your Starting time Twelvemonth of Police force School

Your first twelvemonth of constabulary schoolhouse sets an important financial foundation, equally you're learning the true costs of being a law student. For some students, specially those coming direct from undergrad, it may be the showtime fourth dimension they're living off campus and abroad from home.

"Apply your 1L twelvemonth as a exam," Bonito recommends. "Later on a few months, you tin can see where your budget has gone."

Go along a close eye on your real-world spending and price-of-living needs that first semester. These findings should inform your hereafter choices, particularly when information technology comes to educatee loan borrowing. "Assuming that you haven't borrowed your full loans, you can ask to borrow more a bit for the spring," Bonito says. "That manner yous've saved a little, interest-wise." Conversely, if you overborrowed in the fall, y'all'll know to scale things back for the leap.

Keep in listen that the starting time year of law school is potentially the most expensive too. If you're traveling across the country for school, y'all may have boosted costs, like a security deposit on a new flat or other moving expenses, which are typically non included in the official academic twelvemonth budget.

8. Go along Tabs on Timing

When planning your police force school finances, timing is critical.

Law schools aren't immune to release any federal funding prior to the start of classes, and so if your upkeep is dependent on educatee loans, you need to plan accordingly. Confirm when you'll get your fall semester financial assist refund check, especially if you programme to use it for living expenses and books.

"When y'all are accepting loans, the request is processed for the total year, with funds dispersed in equal amounts each semester," Bonito says. "You lot can talk to the fiscal aid office in Nov or December if y'all need to improve your spring disbursement in any way."

9. Gene in Summertime Spending

Bonito warns constabulary students to call up the summer months in their law school budgeting. That'southward considering schools' official budgets only account for the academic year (ordinarily 9 months) for the time you're enrolled in classes. Planning your finances for the summer is upwardly to you lot. Bonito recommends breaking the official law schoolhouse budget into twelve months and stretching your money—student loans, earnings, savings, or otherwise—to fit.

Subsequently all, you don't want to pass upwards an amazing unpaid or low-paid summer internship because you had to take a part-time job over the summer to make ends meet. (Fun fact: all New England Law students can participate in our Summer Fellowship Program, which comes with a $3,500 stipend for "unpaid" legal positions.)

Utilize your 1L year as a test. After a few months, you tin can come across where your budget has gone.

10. Don't Borrow Money to Put in Savings

Saving coin in preparation for law school is a groovy idea. Yet, deliberately over-borrowing isn't the way to practice it. While it might seem like a fine way to give yourself a financial cushion, information technology's better to plan your budget carefully (including your summer expenses) and borrow but enough to cover your needs.

"The interest you're going to get off that savings is nothing compared to the interest that'south accruing," Bonito warns. "It's non really the wisest thing."

The best strategy is to borrow conservatively during the academic year, Bonito says. The financial aid office volition give you lot the chance to borrow whatsoever remaining funds in your budget before the finish of April each year. This would be a proficient time to infringe more to help cover summer expenses, if you think yous'll need it.

xi. Enquire for Assistance

Money stuff can go confusing fast. Don't be shy about reaching out to the financial assistance folks if you need help, even before you become to law schoolhouse.

"It'southward never too early to phone call and ask a question," Bonito says. Just be sure to mention what you want to exercise with your law career, and so the financial assist office at your law schoolhouse can tailor their recommendations to what will benefit y'all nearly down the road.

Y'all can enquire for help every bit an alumnus too. Bonito says they get a handful of alumni each year asking for financial recommendations and advice. "If they're having trouble with their loan servicer, they might not know where to turn, and we can signal them in the correct direction," she says.

The New England Law Office of Financial Aid as well connects graduates to their partner arrangement, AccessLex Institute, which offers free comprehensive financial resources and communication for constabulary students and alumni. Speaking of which…

12. Take Reward of Free Resources

Your police force school will almost certainly have helpful fiscal aid resources available to you, both as a student and after yous graduate. And even though they're typically free, you lot ostensibly "paid" for them with your tuition, and then you lot might as well utilise them!

For example, Bonito and her team host fiscal literacy workshops every yr, covering everything from budgeting basics to "financial psychology" tips to student loan strategies for soon-to-be graduates. "Everyone can benefit," she says.

Desire to learn more than about law schoolhouse fiscal help? Take a look at the offerings at New England Police | Boston.