College and University members. Let's chat!

[HipHopcheerleader]

Lets, discuss our experiences with higher education. I am in it! I am strugglin' on thru. I need to hear from my sistas' and brothas' who are in it. Folks who finished. I would like to encourage those who are considering the journey. All are welcomed to join in.

It is more than a notion.

[Theresa Smith]

I would like to know if anyone has come up with unique ways to pay off student loans. I truly wanted my BS degree and I worked diligently for it and now I have all of these outstanding student loans. I am now about to begin my Masters program and I know I wil have many more student loans to pay. There should be more ways to help students repay their loans. I am trying to get scholarships for my Masters program but not having a lot of luck. Comments?

[HipHopcheerleader]

.......um yea me too. I am in the middle of my masters degree now. The one thing I've found to be certain is that the area of study that is in demand professional Nursing, Primary care providers, Pharmacists, Nurse Anesthetists maybe school teachers, are given forgiveness program opportunities. I have looked and this is what I have found to be true. Sally Mae had a few things that I am gonna' go ahead and apply for. The applications are free so why not? Of course you've hit up your financial aid department. I will keep looking and if I find something I will post it.

In addition to the cost of a quality masters degree, I am faced with faculty and staff that do not invest in their students success. The HBCU, that I've approached have left me with second thoughts about them. I have experienced disorganization, and a poor disposition, not to mention ineffective communication on their part. The programs that are predominantly White are aloof, and disconnected from me. There are virtually no minority professors. I have no mentor who cares whether I graduate or not. In fact, I would venture to say they take pride in making their degree as inaccessible as possible. I have been experiencing institutionalized racism and discrimination from day 1, since undergraduate school.

I keep moving forward and stay determined.

Theresa Smith said:

I would like to know if anyone has come up with unique ways to pay off student loans. I truly wanted my BS degree and I worked diligently for it and now I have all of these outstanding student loans. I am now about to begin my Masters program and I know I wil have many more student loans to pay. There should be more ways to help students repay their loans. I am trying to get scholarships for my Masters program but not having a lot of luck. Comments?

[Theresa Smith]

Yes it is difficult to find the right fit for a Masters Program. My daughter went to an HBCU for her graduate work and she never did get her Masters. She experienced the disorganization also and one professor that was interested in her success was deported back to Africa. It is really disheartening for her because she has the huge ($100,000) of student loans and no Masters degree yet. She is going back to her original university now to get her Masters. It is frstrating that our HBCU schools are not able to provide the quality education that we deserve, but I know that some of the problems are financial. Hang in there -it will all be worth it in the end.

[HipHopcheerleader]

Thank you so very much sis for those words of encouragement. It means more than you can know. This road gets rough, and I fell so alone. HamptonU is one of the HBCU's on Tom Joyners HBCUs' online programs. I am not attending HamptonU and will not for aforementioned explanations. I will continue to shop myself around until I find the right fit. I will not keep giving money to my current institution. They could not care less if I am successful or not. Guess what..... it is a sista who is the dean. She is apart of the upper level administrative strata.

Race-distancing so that she will not be accused of blind loyalty to minority students.

Sad!

Theresa Smith said:

Yes it is difficult to find the right fit for a Masters Program. My daughter went to an HBCU for her graduate work and she never did get her Masters. She experienced the disorganization also and one professor that was interested in her success was deported back to Africa. It is really disheartening for her because she has the huge ($100,000) of student loans and no Masters degree yet. She is going back to her original university now to get her Masters. It is frstrating that our HBCU schools are not able to provide the quality education that we deserve, but I know that some of the problems are financial. Hang in there -it will all be worth it in the end.

[Theresa Smith]

Good luck in your search. I attended Universiy of Phoenix online for undergraduate and I am also attending for my Masters. They had the program that I wanted and I thought they were pretty well organized and knowledgable. It will be good if you can find a good HBCU to attend. Keep trying and let us know your results.

[HipHopcheerleader]

Thank you.

Terri J. Robinson said:

I attended an HBCU during my undergraduate studies at Delaware State University. At the time I experienced disorganization, poor disposition and ineffective communication on their part as well. Had it not been for my mom working for the state legislature and using the authority that was available at the time, they would have caused disorder throughout my education there. Overall, it was a great experience and enjoyed every aspect of it. I survived and graduated. A few years after graduation I enrolled at the University of Michigan while teaching in Detroit and received my masters degree. The entire process went tremendously smooth in comparison to DSU. At the time I needed to implement more strategies and techniques into my classroom in addition to giving myself a challenge to work towards. Five years later after relocating back home to California I decided to enroll in a doctoral program at the University of the Pacific in which I currently attend. This entire program has been a blessing. It has been an enjoyable learning experience as well as an awesome dissertation journey so far. The support I have from my colleagues (current and alumni), faculty including my advisor/dissertation chair has been immeasurable. Timing is everything!! I wish you the best on your journey for a school that suites you.