Intro-Grad School/Wedding Planning

ChristineNB

Hi all.  First off, it was great to find a board on here just for students.  I have been with my partner Andy for 3 years and last month, a week before Thanksgiving, he asked me to marry him.  I am in my first semester of a Master's in Nursing, getting my nurse practitioner degree, which I will have in 3 years.  I am also working as a RN, but my schedule is fairly flexible and I can adjust my hours. 

Originally, prior to his asking me, I had thought that maybe we would get married when the program was done, or the summer between years two and three.  However, now that we are engaged and neither of us really want a long engagement, we are actually talking of getting married this summer. 

I am also paying for school completely out of pocket as I go, so juggling tuition payments with wedding expenses will make for a tight budget. 

If anyone has been in my shoes, I would love to hear your advice.  If not, I look forward to reading more on here.

Christine

birdie1020

Welcome! I don't have any specific advice, but I know the Budget Board has a lot! Good luck!

MMRoberts11

Welcome to the board Christine!  You have a lot in common with many people here.

misstomrstodr

I can imagine you're going through a lot, but I think you're making the right decision by getting married sooner than later (I think a longer engagement for people in grad school is worse...we definitely don't need more stress on our plates right?) I know student loans are a last resort but have you thought of just taking out a loan for this semester? As an NP, you'll make enough money to cover 1 semester of payments, and it will reduce some of the pressure off of you if it's next summer. I am also getting married in June 2012, taking my 1st qualifying exam (the first big hurdle for doctoral students) in January (next month)...and I'm an epidemiology major in City University of New York's Doctor of Public Health program. It's a lot but when you're focused and dedicated, you can do it, right? If you ever want to chat, you can PM me!!

ChristineNB

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_students_intro-grad-schoolwedding-planning?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special%20Topic%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:684Discussion:ac659023-c154-48a6-9eef-e0a5ffa134dePost:89a57590-77c3-40a7-8584-7e9081acb344">Re: Intro-Grad School/Wedding Planning</a>:
[QUOTE]I can imagine you're going through a lot, but I think you're making the right decision by getting married sooner than later (I think a longer engagement for people in grad school is worse...we definitely don't need more stress on our plates right?) I know student loans are a last resort but have you thought of just taking out a loan for this semester? As an NP, you'll make enough money to cover 1 semester of payments, and it will reduce some of the pressure off of you if it's next summer. I am also getting married in June 2012, taking my 1st qualifying exam (the first big hurdle for doctoral students) in January (next month)...and I'm an epidemiology major in City University of New York's Doctor of Public Health program. It's a lot but when you're focused and dedicated, you can do it, right? If you ever want to chat, you can PM me!!
Posted by misstomrstodr[/QUOTE]
Thanks alot for your advice.  I have debated taking out a student loan, even just for the semester.  For now, I think I'll be ok.  I am working a ton of overtime as an RN now during my semester break.  I am also hoping in June/July I can work more than usual so I can have some honeymoon money.  I am glad my partner is done with his master's degree so he is able to help out  more with wedding stuff. 

ginadog

As I procrastinate on my thesis, I have to chime in and say I know where you're coming from!

I work full time, am doing a Master's in engineering and planning a wedding!  I originally thought I'd get the thesis done over the summer in time for Fall.  However, I sold my house and moved during that time and I just couldn't do one more thing.  After years of classes and working, I kind of wnated a little taste of life back as soon as classes were done too.  So now I'm giving myself this semester ONLY to finish it up (It's completely doable too). 

However, wedding planning is so extremely distracting (and way more fun). 

Ugh.  I cannot wait until this is finally over!  I just don't have enough hours in the day to work full time and do this thesis in the evening.

double nichols

This is definitely something my fiance and I struggled with as well. We got engaged last June right before he started his 1 year intensive Masters program and a few months into my Masters program as well. We wanted to get married as soon as possible - however, it made more sense for us to wait until at least one of us graduated. Now we're getting married this coming July after he graduates (in May) and hopefully has a job to support us. We're going to come out of school with quite a few student loans, but I think it's worth it. We just know we're going to have to be careful with planning finances. 

It's hard to wait over a year after our engagement to get married, but we figure with both of us in grad school, when would we ever really get to spend much time together? 

My advice: be organized. I've been planning a wedding and going to grad school since June. It can get stressful, but at the end of the day you just need to count your blessings: you're engaged to a great guy and you're working towards a dream job. Life is good.

I hope this helps. Good luck in planning and in school!