Thanks to Juno for sponsoring this post!
One of the most common questions that comes up once you decide to pursue PA school is how do people pay for this? There are so many costs involved in attending a graduate program - tuition, fees, books, study resources, living expenses, etc. The majority of programs don’t allow students to work, and with the rigor of PA school, it would be extremely difficult to study and maintain a job. Most students end up needing to take out loans for all of these expenses, and then it gets confusing with all of the options available.
One of the most important things to look at when considering loans is the interest rate. The percentages you see may seem small, but when the money starts compounding on the first day of PA school classes, you will want it to be as low as possible! That’s where Juno comes in because they use group buying power to negotiate with lenders to get you the best interest rates available. It’s like buying in bulk to save money. Does it make more sense to buy one roll of toilet paper for $2 or 20 rolls for $10? You are basically getting a volume discount by combining your need for school funds with other students. I recently had the pleasure of speaking with Juno co-founder, Chris Abkarians, for my Youtube channel! I also encourage you to check out the Juno website yourself and see how up front they are with the process, but I’ll explain how it works. (And they have scholarships available that you should apply for right now!!)
According to the 2019 PAEA report, the average cost of tuition at a private program was $95,058, with public programs coming in at an average of $52,585 for in-state students. Out of state students at public programs were just under the average of the private programs at $93,313. When you add in an average of $7,978 for fees plus living expenses that will vary based on location, that’s a huge chunk of change. Becoming a PA is definitely worth it, but those numbers can come with a shock value and the money has to come from somewhere.
To see if Juno has a good option for you, the first step is joining the Juno student loan negotiation group for free and providing the typical information needed to obtain a loan. This allows Juno to put together a group of creditworthy students to present to lenders to compete for the best rate. The lenders will come back with options for flexible repayment terms and both fixed and variable rates or more limited terms. This is basically like sending your application out to multiple PA schools to see who is the best fit and has the best to offer you as a student. The story of how Juno began is really cool because the founders, Nikhil Agarwal and Chris Abkarians, actually did this process on a smaller scale while students at Harvard to save themselves and their classmates money just though negotiating directly with lenders.
Juno looks at all of the offers and will evaluate what will be the best fit for the most members. Those factors include interest rate, fees, term and repayment options, customer service, eligibility criteria, and death and disability policy, as well as non-financial features. This holistic approach results in rates and terms that are better than anything available in the current market.
After doing all of this work for you, Juno presents the negotiated deal for members to decide if the loan option is the best for them in comparison to other available loan offers. Juno will help you figure out the differences in what is being offered and also looks at the variation in the private and federal loan options. Both U.S. Citizens and U.S Permanent Residents can take advantage of this innovative approach to loan negotiations.
If you decide the loan offer makes sense, you’ll have the opportunity to apply directly, but there’s no obligation to take the negotiated deals. You can pick a difference lender or decide not to get the loan at all. Juno will follow up and make sure everything went smoothly and all of your expectations are met through the lender that was chosen.
I appreciate Juno’s transparency that you can see for yourself on the website. Many of the lenders offer a referral fee for using their services, but Juno will give that amount back to you when you use one of their deals. You’ll get at least 0.05% back in the form of a check when you take a negotiated loan through Juno.
They also clearly state that you should consider federal student loans before any private loans, which some other private loan companies may not mention in the interest of getting business.
Make sure to check out all of your options when looking into borrowing money. Compare the rates, ask questions, and look at the big picture to choose what’s best for your own situation, and including Juno in the process is a great idea. Click here to visit the Juno website and find out more!
