Student loan?

[Colapop]

I'm going to be studying this year and it'll mean that I need topay for the papers... It's study by correspondence and the papers won't cost a lot ($1000) unfortunately I don't have that sort of money so I guess I'll have to get a student loan to pay for it. Can anyone give me the low down on the student loan system? The ins and outs, up and downs, pitfalls...etc basically all the sgit I need to know.
I don't need to know whether it's right or wrong, or whether you agree with the government or have issues with your mother - just need to know about student loans.

Ta

[James Deuce]

I've done the same and it works well for me, however I make sure that what I borrow can be paid off within a tax year and then it's interest free and doesn't become a millstone.

You must talk to IRD repeatedly to make sure you are keeping up.

This approach limits the number of papers you can do, but it is important to maintain balance in all things.

[Karma]

It's called StudyLink, hop on Google and you'll find it. I'm gonna be finishing a Computer Science degree Extramurally (correspondance) so will be taking loans for the cost of the course.

[Quartermile]

You just ring them up or go on their website(study link) and they send you out an info pack and a few forms to fill, send them away and you get a leetter saying that your loan has been approved, and the paper costs go strait to the place where your studying, and other money for you will start going in on x date.

Yea make sure you take out the $150 a week living costs even if you don't use it you can save it keep the interest and pay back the loan:D

You should apply for an allowance as well(free money that you don't have to pay back) sounds too good to be true

Hope that helps

[MrMelon]

If you're studying full time then you can get the interest written off for each year you're studying but dont think you can if it's just 1 or 2 papers... it's really easy to get organised though and learning new things is always good for ya :D If you're studying full time you can also get 150 a week you don't need to pay back since you're over 25 but I'm figuring you won't fall into that category!

[James Deuce]

If you're studying full time then you can get the interest written off for each year you're studying but dont think you can if it's just 1 or 2 papers... it's really easy to get organised though and learning new things is always good for ya :D If you're studying full time you can also get 150 a week you don't need to pay back since you're over 25 but I'm figuring you won't fall into that category!

You can get the Interest written off if you are working full time. I've done it.

[marty]

you don't have to pay back anything while you're studying.

if you do have a job (while studying) you can request an SL tax code. this will take .10c/dollar earned over the $17k/annum threshold (this may have just gone up) out of your pay. you can pay a voluntary amount if your pay is below the threshold.

there is an interest amount, but it is written off at the end of the FY if you are living in NZ for more than (i think)185 days in the FY.

careful you don't go loaning money via the student loan for living expenses - you will have to pay these back.

get a student card - discounts galore!

go onto the IRD website and register - you can view the status of your loan/repayments etc.

[toymachine]

Ug, probably not the smartest but i try not think about mine. It'll be around 23k+ just for the fees alone..

[marty]

some of the kids at the aero club are looking at $100k.....

[Guitana]

Yeah if you're going to get 1k you need to get another 2k for the party and getting the RF dolled up so ask for 3k and you should be sweet!!!!

[BuFfY]

One thing you need to remember with the loan is that the interest is put on your statement but it is written off every year, so you only every pay what you originally intended on doing.
You can also apply to get course related costs, which is up to $1000. You just need to state what it is for, normally text books and travel costs. For me, I said it was petrol but I am using it to buy all new bike gear :)

If you do plan on getting the $150 living costs make sure you get it put into a seperate account that is hard to get the money out of but has high interest.... I got it in my first year when living at home but some how spent it! cause it went straight into my spending account.
Oh and you may be able to get a tertiary account through your bank where you don't pay fees etc. It all helps!

[ManDownUnder]

What papers?? Do ya reckon you'll be useful once you've finished them?

[Colapop]

Thanks so far.
I am working full time, as is my wife. We have two kids (16 & 12). We rent our house.
As far as living costs and extra stuff goes - can I apply for this?? Guitana, you reckon I can get more ($2k or $3k) it doesn't work like that does it? Don't they just pay for the course and that's it?

I'm studying for a Diploma in Applied Management (basic management course) and ND5353 Diploma in Quantity Surveying. These two diploma's will compliment the project management work I am doing currently and provide the qualification back up to the practical experience I have in this area.

Especially with the bike crash (although I've got out quite cheaply) and the replacement gearbox on the Hilux I've got a bit of debt on hand and I don't want to too much further under if I can avoid it. But I must study (self enforced) because that's how I'm going to get my arse of of this sling so to speak. It won't happen overnight, but it will happen.

[Karma]

From what I've read on the StudyLink site you can't get living costs if you're not on a full time course, which it seems you're not.

In regards to how much you can get for the loan, I think you can get the basic fees covered by the loan and a certain amount for other course fees such as books etc...

From the studylink site;

Compulsory fees - pays the compulsory fees for your course (including compulsory Student Association fees).
Course-related costs - helps with costs related to your studies, for example - stationery, text books, computer equipment, childcare and travel.
Living costs - helps with your living costs, especially if you don't qualify for the full amount of Student Allowance.

You can borrow up to $1,000 per loan account for course-related costs.

Your course must be full-time or limited full-time to qualify for living costs.

As long as your course is a tertiary course approved by the Tertiary Education Commission you can borrow the total amount of fees your education provider requests from StudyLink.



Anything else?

[ManDownUnder]

I'm studying for a Diploma in Applied Management (basic management course) and ND5353 Diploma in Quantity Surveying. These two diploma's will compliment the project management work I am doing currently and provide the qualification back up to the practical experience I have in this area.


You spoken to HR about this - will the company pay (in part or in full?)

Edit - as part of you next wage round... walk in with a request for paper's to be included in your package - 1 paper a year or whatever. They benefit, you benefit and it works out cheaper (i.e. they pay a training expense which they can claim back on tax etc, and you don't get the money, pay tax on it, and THEN pay for the course).

Cheaper and beneficial all round dude.

[Guitana]

Thanks so far.
I am working full time, as is my wife. We have two kids (16 & 12). We rent our house.
As far as living costs and extra stuff goes - can I apply for this?? Guitana, you reckon I can get more ($2k or $3k) it doesn't work like that does it? Don't they just pay for the course and that's it?

I'm studying for a Diploma in Applied Management (basic management course) and ND5353 Diploma in Quantity Surveying. These two diploma's will compliment the project management work I am doing currently and provide the qualification back up to the practical experience I have in this area.

Especially with the bike crash (although I've got out quite cheaply) and the replacement gearbox on the Hilux I've got a bit of debt on hand and I don't want to too much further under if I can avoid it. But I must study (self enforced) because that's how I'm going to get my arse of of this sling so to speak. It won't happen overnight, but it will happen.

Well COL you need to sit down and work out what books and studying gear you will need I know the Open polytech Library can supply you with the books for free if you're doing the course through them,so if you need some extra cash for other unrelated course costs ahem! Bike repairs!!! Then get a list of the most expensive books that you may need to help you study and of course you may need a new computer to send your work in if you are using the polytechs New E-Learning system!!!! Also once you become a student you can apply for a student ID which will give you allsorts of discounts Yeeha!!

[Colapop]

Drum will back me up on this (He used to work for this company) - The company I work for are not good payers. They will not pay for study.

Yep I could move to another company but I've put 6 years unqualifies work in here and now I'm at the point where it should be starting to pay off ie. I found the right job - now all I need to do is get the Diploma's THEN tell them to stick it their arse!

[Guitana]

Do you have any Maori ancestors Col you could apply to your local IWI and not bother to pay it back!!!!
I had an apprentice down south and his IWI payed for every single thing related to his trade training but they will probably turn up ten years down the track when he's in buisness and get him to do all their welding for free on their fishing fleet-with interest!!! Tu Meke steel waka's!!!

[Beemer]

I'm studying at present and applied for my student loan (just for the course costs, not books or living expenses) online. Totally painless, no problems, they sent me the info and all I had to do was send back copies of my birth certificate and tax details I think. That was last year and they rang me before Christmas to see if I was planning to do any more study this year (I was) to remind me to get my application in early. I did it all before Christmas and everything was sweet. My seven papers weren't too expensive ($478 each) so I hope to pay it all off a year after I finish studying, if not before. I just figured why not? It's interest-free while studying so it makes more sense than using my own money!

And don't forget Trade Me and Vol 1 bookshop (in Palmerston North) for second-hand books - I got one I needed for $15 and it's $85 new!

[Disco Dan]

My advice col, is to keep on them... (studylink) they like playing 'post the bit of paper' and seem to enjoy sending pointless bits of paper back and forth for ages. Get things rolling asap with them, even before you have aplied for the course...

The $150 allowance is nice, and many students (myself included) live of that. - but do remember it's added to your student loan... before you know it, you have added thousands to your loan....

Buffy - I do the same thing! Course related cost's comes through and i just claim the full $1000 saying petrol!! it's great!

[Karma]

The $150 allowance is nice, and many students (myself included) live of that. - but do remember it's added to your student loan... before you know it, you have added thousands to your loan....

But without doing a full time course, and given you have two wages earners, he won't get it.

[Beemer]

But without doing a full time course, and given you have two wages earners, he won't get it.

True, my papers are extramural and I could only apply for the course costs and textbooks.

[Gremlin]

Unless you are disciplined, do not get living costs, as its part of the loan. A lot I know had to get allowance, and borrow the living costs too, and they ended up with huge loans.

The interest free, if you're living in the country etc, does help, but you should aim to keep the loan as small as possible, in my view. For papers, you don't see the money. Once the loan is sorted, and you have specified what you want them to pay for, they pay :) It was under the older structure, that you could get more money, and invest some etc, and pay some to uni.

I kept the loan to a minimum, I paid for textbooks from working when not at uni, I didn't borrow living costs, couldn't get the student allowance, and managed to walk out of uni with it having costed me $15k ish, not bad for a full degree.

Don't bother trying to read the statements they send you... I couldn't never make head or tail of them, they didn't balance, and in summary, it pretty much described their systems :wacko:

[Guitana]

True, my papers are extramural and I could only apply for the course costs and textbooks.

I'm pretty sure Col could find some really expensive text books to add to his list seeing as the areas he will be studying in are "Specialist"!!!!:zzzz:

[Quartermile]

Nah you can claim transport costs on that aswell, thats how I get the extra on mine:devil2:

[Guitana]

Nah you can claim transport costs on that aswell, thats how I get the extra on mine:devil2:

Ah yeah that would look a little stupid on his application seeing as he's doing it through correspondence!!!! I dont think the fuel bill would amount to much riding the RF900 down to the letter box and back!!!:scooter:

[Macktheknife]

Col, you should not need the $150 expenses stuff and I don't think you would qualify anyway, needs to be fulltime study.
However the easiest way to get the $1000 (max) allowance for costs is to ask the student association of the place you are studying for the costs sheet for your course. They have systems in place for ensuring you get all that you are allowed to get and make it easy.
All student loans are now interest free thanks to the labour government, while studying and after completion, IRD have the most compicated system in the world for managing the loans but the only thing you really need to know is they don't charge any interest at the end of the day.
Go to the website, http://www.studylink.co.nz/ you should find all the info there.
Give me a PM if you need any more info
Mack

[The Pastor]

Nah you can claim transport costs on that aswell, thats how I get the extra on mine:devil2:

Care to explain? I think you can only claim a max of 1000 total.

[Quartermile]

Care to explain? I think you can only claim a max of 1000 total.
Yea but my books only cost $650 or so

[Drum]

Drum will back me up on this (He used to work for this company) - The company I work for are not good payers. They will not pay for study.

Yep I could move to another company but I've put 6 years unqualifies work in here and now I'm at the point where it should be starting to pay off ie. I found the right job - now all I need to do is get the Diploma's THEN tell them to stick it their arse!

Col, they paid for my Dip.Bus. and it was all during work time too. But generally you're right. They are pretty miserly when it comes to training. They have plenty of highly trained staff after all!

Stay where you are mate. With those quals. you will quickly make yourself invaluable, and that's when the payoff comes. You'll pay that student debt off soon enough.

[Quartermile]

Ah yeah that would look a little stupid on his application seeing as he's doing it through correspondence!!!! I dont think the fuel bill would amount to much riding the RF900 down to the letter box and back!!!:scooter:
NZ Govt aint too clever tell they that its for somethin g like going into the library to study

[halen]

I received a 1098 from Sallie Mae for my student loan interest deduction. It did not include the interest paid on my private student loans. The Sallie Mae website provided information that all of my student loans may not be eligible for the interest deduction. My interest was over $4,000.00. During a divorce, while in college, I took student loans for living expenses, transportation, books, supplies and tuition. How do I determine the total deduction allowed? Please help me.

[gijoe1313]

I'm still waiting for the IRD to pay back the $11.03 they got me to overpay way back when...

Not too worried, its nice to have the IRD as a gubbermint innerstitution that owes me money for once :shifty:

Though the glitch they had a while back was funny when they were demanding that I pay back $232 for a loan paid off a long, long, long time ago :angry2: :rofl:

Now its back to business as normal and they still owe me the $11.03 (should charge them interest!)

[Mully]

I'm still waiting for the IRD to pay back the $11.03 they got me to overpay way back when...

Not too worried, its nice to have the IRD as a gubbermint innerstitution that owes me money for once :shifty:

Though the glitch they had a while back was funny when they were demanding that I pay back $232 for a loan paid off a long, long, long time ago :angry2: :rofl:

Now its back to business as normal and they still owe me the $11.03 (should charge them interest!)

I overpaid mine about $70 or so. Once I cottoned on, rang them and the asked if I wanted it back.

Hmm, that's a tough one. Do I want my money back???? Morons.

[rachprice]

Hey pretty sure you cant claim living costs if you arent a full time student anyway.

[Hitcher]

I received a 1098 from Sallie Mae for my student loan interest deduction. It did not include the interest paid on my private student loans. The Sallie Mae website provided information that all of my student loans may not be eligible for the interest deduction. My interest was over $4,000.00. During a divorce, while in college, I took student loans for living expenses, transportation, books, supplies and tuition. How do I determine the total deduction allowed? Please help me.

You appear to live in the US of A. This is a New Zealand web site. Google it. Join the dots.