Living in Abilene

TTU Abilene enjoys strong support from the local community. One of the benefits of this is that we can offer every student a scholarship of $500 per semester, which qualifies them for the in-state tuition rate. That's right. No matter where you come from, you will get the in-state tuition rate. Also, due to the Texas legislature's committment to and funding of, higher education, you will get an exceptionally good education for an exceptionally low price. With the $500 scholarship, you can take 9 hours of coursework for about $1300. You simply cannot find better value in higher education.

Domestic Students

Another benefit of Abilene is an incredibly low cost of living. A nice three bedroom house in Abilene can be purchased for as little as $70,000. Two-bedroom fixer-upper homes are as low as $35,000. Not only can you get the country's best deal on tuition and fees, and get an excellent education to advance your career, but you can even buy a home while doing it! The mortgage on a $70,000 home is only about $750 per month. If you can rent your extra bedrooms to other students, at $300 per month, then you end up paying only about $150 per month! Many students have done this, and it works out well.

Apartments range between $200 and $700 per month for one bedroom, and between $300 and $800 for two bedrooms. A nice three bedroom house can be rented for as little as $900 per month. If you have two roomates, you can live very comfortably for $300/month in rent.

So, it will cost only about $2600 per year for tuition and fees, and between $1800 and and $8400 per year for a place to live. Let's say that you get a reasonably nice apartment with a roomate, and pay $300 per month. Your yearly expense for tuition and fees, plus rent, would only be $6200. People from New England or the West Coast may have difficulty believing this, and are encouraged to come for a visit.

Path to the Master's degree, higher pay, and job security

In general, graduate students who are US citizens or permanent residents, are breathing, and have a heartbeat, can borrow $20,500 per year in student loans, and pay it back at a very low interest rate. The interest does not even start accruing until you leave school. If you take the tuition and fees, plus rent or mortgage out, then you have about $14,300 per year for food, utilities, books and entertainment. You won't live like a King or Queen, but you can live comfortably, and when you graduate, you will be snapped up by a company or university who wants people with the knowledge you gain at TTU Abilene.

You don't even have to have a job to get a MS or PhD at TTU Abilene. You can concentrate on your courses. If you take 12 hours per semester, and take a couple of courses in the summer, then you can graduate with an MS degree in less than two years, and only owe the government $30,750. With your increased earning power and job security, you will be able to pay that back (at a very low government guaranteed interest rate), in less time than it would take to pay off a car.

There are several local software companies who hire students for summer internships. If you need a little extra money, you can take a part-time job. The Abilene economy is relatively strong even during major economic downturns.

Path to the PhD

If your goal is to earn a PhD, then you can start by following the path to the Master's degree, outlined above. In fact, you can earn a PhD by following that plan for a longer time. However, that may result in more debt than you want. Here is how you can minimize debt and optimize your career.

During your first year or two as a Master's student, decide which professor you want to work with. Most of the professors at TTU Abilene have funded research projects, and can pay a stipend. In order to obtain that funding, they wrote a proposal, wherein they promised to do a certain amount of work and write up the results in a scholarly fashion. Your job is to convince them that you are the best candidate to perform the work that needs to be done in order to meet the objectives of the proposal that they wrote.

Do good work, and get paid for it. Turn the work you do into published research. We teach you how to write research papers that will be published in journals and conferences. That is a part of what we call "mentoring." When you finish your degree, you will have a track record of published work, which can give you a big advantage over other new graduates.

If you don't get extra funding, don't give up. Many PhD students have to fall back on the MS model at some point during their PhD. Your advisor will pay you when they can, to work on the project that they have funding for.

International Students

For international students, things are a bit more complicated. Most international students do not qualify for any type of student loan. Also, they generally do not have wealthy family members to pay their way. Added to that, most international students are allowed to study in the US under an F-1 Visa, which is granted by the U.S. department of State, and there are restrictions on the employment F-1 students can have.

The INS regulation divides employment of F-1 students into several categories: On Campus, Off-Campus, Due to Severe Economic Hardship, Practical Training, and Sponsored by a Certain Type of International Organization.

Special provisions pertain to citizens of the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia. Citizens of these countries, including F-1 students, are permitted to be employed in the United States. They must nevertheless apply to INS on Form I-765 (without fee) for an Employment Authorization Document (EAD) evidencing their eligibility to work.

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Sujit Bosale