B-Schooling Queries

 

Funding, oh my gosh!

 

Hi Sowmya, Saw your latest blog and read that you had already worked out the finances to fund your edu even bfr u applied. Thats sweet music to my ears. So would the goddess of "Funding Your MBA" give me some gyaan as to what kinda banks I should approach , the interest rates I should look for, any hidden fees I should be aware of, scholarships (not that I would get) I could vie for and any other info you deem fit to share. Aside, once I get my visa, I plan to take off to the North-East or Rajasthan.

Hey Metal, see whether my new post makes any sense to you. Apart from that, the actual loan disbursement will be available to me only after May be once I get the visa etc. Till then, the exact details will not be clear. When I said, that I have worked, I was basically ref to visa thingie, like how I intend to show some finances. About the loan as such, I doubt whether there will be any more hidden things, I am ok with anything!! :-) Cheers!

Hi Simba, First of all congrats for cracking B-schools. I have read your blogs at simba.pagalguy.com and I found them somewhat informative.

I am also planning to pursue MBA abroad and so I was searching for foundations who can sponsor my MBA. I came across "Paras Education Foundation" based in Mumbai and have registered with 2500 Rs. Now to proceed further they are demanding another 22,500 Rs., which is a huge amount for me. Do you have any idea of the reputation of this foundation, I mean is it fraud or trustworthy? Please let me know how are you going to sponsor your MBA. Regards.

Dear Konark, I am replying to this mail as soon as possible. I am not really sure why u have paid 2500 Rs. Can u pls clarify that one?? Register for what???

And yes, last year, I wanted to avail their help but did not as my co-signor was not ready to help me. Also, my co-signor heard a lot of negative things about them & hence decided not to support me. No regrets. If u are going ahead with them, pl tread with caution. I have no idea whether they are for real or fraudulent. Pl ask someone in the US to check out!! Do not invest without much research. Ask them if they can give u details about people they have sent so that u can contact them & ask about Paras!! Also, i found their operations very shady. If they were as good as they proclaim, then how come many people dont know about them?? Personally, I would advice u against them. But its ur call. If u want to discuss ur complete case with me, reg the financing part, u can mail me. I am not that clear either but I can suggest if I can make out something, Cheers & All the Best!

Dear Simba, Thanks for your quick reply. I paid them 2500 bucks because they seem to have a registration process, you can check it out at www.isloan.org. They told me that they would be requiring this money to contact me and my co-signor until we both sign a document with which I can avail the desired loan fromt them. The remaining 22,500 is their processing fee based on the amount of loan desired.

I don't understand, if they are not of good reputation then why do b-schools mention their name in FAQs for international students? I think the only possible way out is to talk to the people who have taken loan from them in the past. Well my finance case is clear. I don't have more than 4-5 Lacs to invest in MBA. Unlike US, Canadian universities don't seem to be revealing the scholarships before admission. I need at least 12 Lacs to get visa and support first year expenses. I believe you must be knowing many people with same problem. I just wanted to know, if you know, how are such people financing their MBA?

See Konark, I really dont know which schools advice PARAS. Some european schools might but everything is way too dicey!!! I havent seen a great US B School asking Indian students to go to PARAS!!!

Which universities are u exactly looking at? First I would advice u to get an admit & then talk about finances. See, for the visa, u need to show first-year expenses but thats not a hard & fast rule!! U can show lesser & work out the logistics about how u would repay money after u come back to India post-mba. And I dont how PARAS will help u,man. See, they will ensure that u pay ur school tuition & other fees but they are no way helping u with visas!! They wont show money for u.. or am I wrong???

last year, I wanted to go to Manchester Biz School but dropped out after I fell short of money. So, this year, I applied to schools only which provides loans for international students!!! Rich people easily finance for any kind of studies but middle-class ppl like me try to do some research & apply to schools which are student-friendly. I would suggest u look at websites of Duke & or Tuck.. see their loan schemes for international students. These schools are great & financing wont be a problem!! But convincing the visa -officer might be a lil difficult but he too knows that these are great schools!!! :-) Cheers!

Hey Simba, Agreed! good US b-schools do not mention the name of Paras. Some Canadian, European, Australian schools do. I have already got admit from a Canadian b-school and that's why I am looking for finances. I have asked Paras to give me a "letter of intent" stating that they are paying USD XXXX to the school on my behalf and that along with my admit letter will be sufficient for visa, I suppose.

Well even I am from a middle-class family and my job does not fetch me enough money, so I am totally dependent on loans. Unfortunately, the schools I chose don't offer scholarships before the scheduled joining. I am trying my level best to find about the reliability of Paras, if you come to know anything please let me know. Best of luck.

Hey Konark, Tread with caution. And pl take care!! :) All the best!!

Hi Simba, All the best for your MBA! I'm an IT consultant with around 5 yrs work ex, currently in the USA. I would like to start b-school next year. I was keen to know how you are managing your finances.

I am apprehensive about taking huge loans ($100K) what with the volatile polical and economic scenarios. Scholarships from a top 20 seem hard to come by. Did you receive some kind of scholarship from Fuqua ? I understand there are quite a few aid opportunities available to women. I am basically looking for some insight into scaling this peak, which currently looks ...well unscalable.

Thanks for your time. If there is any information you need about the USA (and got already, feel free to drop a line). Again, wish you the very best. DD

LOL DD, Hmmm.. being apprehensive about 100K$ just makes it more difficult i guess!! :-) Nope, no scholarship, nothing for me.. I am roughing it out thro loans etc!! Thanks for offering help!! Will surely look up if I need something... Take care!! :-)

“being apprehensive about 100K$ just makes it more difficult i guess!” - Touche.

and hey did i provoke a post ? Financing an International MBA. Godspeed, dear friend, you have good things waiting for you. and yes. I will put in a word with the BIG GUY for you. (No, not the Visa Officer, my reach is kinda limited... )

Hi Simba, hope u remember me, i have written to u a couple times earlier too, i have got an admission into Boston Univ, now i am kind of stuck with the financial part, they have offered me a scholarship of $15,000, but its not enough to cover the expenses. Do you know about any institution which offers a student loan without a co-signor? Regards, Manish.

No Manish. I dont. When you apply to universities abroad, you should be well aware of what goes into the funding part! Hope it helps.

Hi Simba, I was introduced to your blog today by a friend, I had read each article you had posted and I am surprised with the type of hard work you have done. I had also joined PG community today. It is a vast knowledge base.

Simba I need a small help form you, since you know all US schools don't offer loans to students. I had applied to schools some of which don't have this facility. I have got admission offer from Georgetown univ's McDonough School, with a partial scholarship. To cover up my rest of tution fee I need student loans, I had written to the school's department, they told that they require US cosigner for international student loan. Since you had a rich experience can you provide me some info regarding regarding alternate ways of funding my education. I want to make taking education loans from Indian banks as my last option. Thanking you in Advance. Deepak

Deepak, Sorry to say that there are not many ways to fund an US education. I applied only to the schools which had loan programs free of collateral & free of cosignors! Pl do read my blog where I have written - Financing ur mBA! Hope it helps!

Thanks Simba, Actually I had applied to two such colleges, awaiting there results, but it is very competitive to get into such colleges as they are few.

Deepak, Where there is a will, there is always a way - cliched but true! :-)

Hi there, This is Aarthi here. I got your ID from your blog. Actually since you're already in the US and with an internship in hand, you might not remember your old posts...but I found your blog when I googled "Paras Education Foundation"....rings a bell? Like you were sometime ago, I am looking for a loan for my higher studies. I have received admission in this Ad School called Miami Ad School, its basically a PVT. American school with branches across the world. And I have been admitted in the Hamburg Branch for thier copywriting program.

I really wanted to knw what you thought of Paras Foundation and if they helped you with the loan...I am looking for about 20 lakhs and they have assured me the amount. Do mail back....i went to about 15 banks including nationalised and Pvt. ones but they refuse to give loans without security ( both our flats are mortgaged). Coincidentally, I am from Bangalore too, now in Mumbai :)

Sorry Aarthi about the late reply. Have been real busy with too less time! Paras.. I didnt trust them. Period. I dont know how good or bad they are, but didnt get the right feeling about them... And Yes, I do remember every single post I have written here! Banks are not flexible wrt funding studies abroad. Canara bank is the best I know but they too have a lot of limitations. No bank will give u a loan without security in India.. for a huge amount. You might want to try again next year so that you also get a scholarship. Business schools give out loans without security & thats how I got here.. worked too hard for it! :) Good Luck!

hi simba , i have seenyour blog and thought to ask you few questions, well abt myself: exp - 5.5 yrs, age -28 gmat - 710 profession- fashion designer. I have some problem, regarding the financing the MBA, can you please advice about the financing option , or you have some link that you can forward me, pls revert soon.

Hope this helps Mukesh! - http://simbarulez.com/blog/2005/04/25/financing-an-international-mba/

Dear simba, Thanx alot for your prompt reply, this was really helpful. i have also applied for the MBS , but after reading your experience on your blog i have started worrying about this school funding too. although i am doing my own research on funding options.if you know any other source of funding. pls advice . also i will be very thankfull to you if you can gv some idea about my profile. id there any chance for a designer in your school incase i apply there. how you are manging your finances there , is it easy to manage loan in second year than in first year ? pls do advice about this aspect also.

Mukesh, If you are interested in schools in US, please apply for schools who do fund your complete loan for the entire tuition and living expenses. I think that is the only hassle free to fund an international MBA. Becos, the school guarantees the $ for all the admitted students and hence, becomes easier for visa etc. This loan does not require a US cosigner or a collateral. It is almost like the school trusts you to put their name at stake. Your profile looks good enough for a top school. I do not know any designer doing an MBA, maybe you might be the first I get to know. :) And the loan is available for both the years. You can take the complete loan in the second year or take a little less by saving some $ during your summer internship. Hope this helps... Mukesh, i wish to publish a lot of queries on my website to help others having similar questions like yours. please let me know if I can publish yours in the name of Mukesh.

Dear simba thnx a lot for your reply. Ofcourse you can do that , i am very thankful for your help n support simba. god bless you with a great job in US. To the best of my knowledge oonly chicago, harvard, columbia provide this facility. does duke provide this facility please let me know. i wish to apply for duke also. kinldy revert ma'am.

Yes, Duke offers Duke Opportunity Loan. More details here - http://www.fuqua.duke.edu/financialaidemba/aidoptions/index.html Good Luck!

Dear simba, so far my application process was going on here, i am very thankful to you for your help. My life story is turning out to be like yours, I also got through manchester b-shool i round -2 , and i got a wait list in ISB, and my application for GSB is rejected in Round -1 . i am planning to apply for the R-3 at duke, can you pls advice about the chances of getting in to the duke in round if application is ok , as march -21 is r-3 deadline for the submission . i will really appreciate if you can provide some insight about r-3 chances, Thnx in advance.

No one can predict your chances. You just put ur trust in God & do what feels right :) Thats all I can say...

Hi Simba, Just wanted to check whether the Indian Bank loans details. Do they disburse it to the student or directly to the Univ? If so how can i avail a loan for Living expenses using the Edu loan of Indian banks. Also they are asking me huge margin money ? Is this the correct procedure?

I think the money is disbursed to you as a check in the name of the university. I think the loan should even give you some money for living expenses & partly by ur own. I might be wrong though! What is margin money? Interest rate might be high at this point if that is what you mean. Do more research online before you go in for loans.

Hi Simba, Thanks for your quick reply. For loans above 4 lacs upto 15 lacs  ( Indian Rupees) they charge 15% as margin money . Margin Money is the amount the student/parent has to pay inorder to get the loan amount and by financial definition its just to know that the borrower has capacity to repay the loan ( it sounds foolish even though they take collateral security )  .

For e.g in my case the margin money is 40% Say I want a loan of 10 lakhs from SBI , I have to pay 4 lacs ( 40% ) and the Bank will contribute 6 lakhs and then issued a dd/check for 10 lacs.

In my case , it defeats the sole purpose of educational loan becoz for the loan amount of 17.45 lakhs I have been asked to pay 40% margin money i.e around 7 lakhs and also they wont deduct this money and give , instead they want the student to pay the margin money upfront and all this comes to light only when the loan gets sanctioned and is ready for disbursement. Before that they never tell anything :( .

Anyways I need to contribute an article of how Indian students get harassed when they approach Bank for loans and so on :) It will be an eye opener for others and probably they may benefit. BTW I have opted to join ESADE and hence running around for Loans and other stuff. Let me know if you find something else and I will also keep you posted.

Vinod, Sorry to hear about your situation. I am sure you will find means to get out & make good for yourself! Actually, you should send out a big article to Times of India explaining the harassment of these banks. Similar thing happened to me a long time ago & I feel I should have done something then! These banks should get more vocal about things they can do & not make students run on blind errands. ESADE must be fun! Congrats and enjoy!

Hi Sowmya Simba, How are you doing? Hope you are doing great. I had a query regarding the loans and Fin Aid at the top 10 colleges. Does the loan without the co signer cover the complete 100 % of the tuition fees. If not, how much percent do they expect the student to arrange for. Thanks.

Yes. Complete Tuition & most of living.

Hey Simba, Really nice to see your reply. :) How are you doing? Hope I am not barging in at the wrong time. :) Like zillions of ppl on earth, I too am an MBA enthusiast. SO thought PGG will be a good forum. I know there are millions around but the charm of an all girl forum is totally unique.

There is something that I would like to ask you. I am working with Cisco and have got about 3.5 years xprnce till date. I will be giving my exam in June. Simba I need your help in two ways here :) I have few queries which I am joting below and please help me in your free time with these.

My first concern is finance, I know I cant ask my dad to spend his hard-earned money on my MBA (I dont intend to depend on him); although he can show the necessary amount while taking a bank loan from India. I want to know if I can get 100% tuition and living expense loan and scholarship from B-schools (specially Fuqua, Tuck, UNC, Wharton etc.,) and also that how much amount should I be saving for the initial stage i.e, till I get my scholarship?

Secondly, I want to know what is the criteria that the B-schools look at for granting scholarships, in general.  I guess I will bug you in the later mails. Simba you have been an inspiration to me. At times I am clouded with self-doubts and the thing that will I be able to pull it off? Hope to be in touch with you. Regards.

Hey Shilv, Did I ever reply to your below mail? Let me know!! :)

Nope Lady...you never replied to that mail :) My good luck that you saw it now..

By the way I took my GMAT and scored 720..Planning on applying to Duke, Ross, Wharton, Kellogg, Indiana Kelly and ISB. Somehow I like UPenn (being Ivy and all that big alum thing) and wonder if I really stand a chance there or whether I am wasting my ~220$ on it. :)

Simba, Do you think I should rather stick on to the other good schools which can give me scholarships? I plan to do MBA with Marketing and Strategy consulting as two of my core subjects and planning to get into IT Marketing/Consulting. Any input from you will be a real big help.

Ok, here is the first reply, For top b-schools in US, you don't need your dad's money. You can take loans directly sponsored by the school, like the Duke Opportunity Loan for internationals. You don't need a cosignor nor collateral. You might want to read - http://simbarulez.com/blog/2005/04/25/financing-an-international-mba/

Scholarship is pretty tricky, I have heard of very few people who got good amount of scholarship, but they usually have very high GMAT of say, 760+ and done really something significant in their careers.  But you never know, you might get lucky, a lot depends on the kind of people applying along with you.

But the loans that I mentioned are available to all admitted students. Initially before you start school, you may need at least a couple of 1000 $ just so, you don't get stressed out about simple expenses. And if you need a scholarship, the funds may be available to you a week or month after school starts, so even that way, you need some money to keep you going till then, for rent, security deposit, food etc.

As I said, I guess you need to make sure if you want funding or top school. Logically, higher the rank of school you apply, lower your chance of getting some scholarship. So, you may want to decide which is more important. If getting some kind of free money (read scholarship) is more important, go to lower ranked school as you might stand good chance, say... something like UNC, or Texas, I am not much aware of these universities. You may want to spend some time there.

And self doubts, girl.. you will always have some & more... you will never be free of it! Once you get admitted, you will be worried about funds & visa, once that you will be worried about classes & classmates, then comes exams, then recruiting for internship... & so on & on.. it is a never stopping cycle, so, while I won't say not to worry, I would suggest you to positively use that 'self-doubt' to challenge yourself of bigger things. Maybe that's how we all will rise higher in each of our lives...

Look at me, I have an excellent degree from the best I could get... now, I am worried about the H1b visas & having a job.. as I said, it never stops... Good Luck!

Hey again, So, you are looking at Wharton & Kellogg as top schools, Duke & Ross come somewhat next... Kelley & ISB are somewhat similar. I think the list looks good.

If it were me, I am looking at definite admissions from ISB & Kelley and 50% shot at the middle tier & may or may not from top 2. Hope thats how you are looking at them too! I presume that when you say UPenn, you mean Wharton... hmmm.. just 220 bux. As I always say, go for it, you will never know how close you were :)

And as i said in my previous mail, if scholarship is a big thing for you, then your bottom 2 choices, ISB & Kelley should be giving you some money. If you are not so sure, apply to one more in that tier. You need to make that decision. Your plan seems fine to me. But I am trying to run as far away as possible from IT & related things, so I might not be the right one to comment on that! Anyway, good luck & stay in touch.

 

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