Supporting yourself through school.

[D4N31L]

I was wondering how most people manage to support themselves through schooling that is as long as physics. I do not come from money at all, so my parents won;t help at all wih paying for schooling or housing. SO I wanna know how people manage to pay for such a long education process.

[hypervalent_iodine]

I would say that this depends very much on where you're from and what tuition / government funding you have available to you.

 

I can't really speak for what it is like outside of Australia. I was fortunate enough to have pretty decent student loan system there for me to use, though living expenses were still quite a burden. I supported myself through much of high school and all of my degree (I moved out of home at 15 with little to no help from my family). I wouldn't have been able to survive without the student loans I mentioned and government assistance. I had a few part time jobs in high school and throughout my degree as well, since I couldn't afford to live with just government payments. When I was in third year I also started private tutoring. It meant that I got maybe a handful of weekends to myself over about 7 years, but I much preferred that to starvation.

 

Edit: if you have an idea of what college you want attend or think you will attend, you should contact them and see if they have anyone able to give you more specific advice. I think many colleges offer this sort of thing now and it would probably be more helpful to you.

[John]

In the U.S., there are loads of different available scholarships and grants, though of course there's no guarantee of getting them since they're mostly competitive or tied to certain qualities not every student will have. The government offers Stafford loans, which are granted regardless of financial need, though whether interest accumulates during your degree does depend on whether you have financial need, there is a maximum amount you can take out each year and overall, and how much you can actually take out each year is tied to the cost of attendance for your school. There are also Pell grants available from the government, though they're based on financial need.

Individual states may also offer some assistance. For instance, I'm from Louisiana, and there's a program there called TOPS, which pays full tuition and fees for any public school in Louisiana for four years as long as you take certain classes in high school and achieve a certain GPA and ACT score (and assuming you attend college shortly after high school).

Other than that, it's similar to what hyper mentioned above. People go to school while working. Given the odd hours that taking classes sometimes imposes on availability for work, some people wind up working multiple jobs. It's difficult, especially in a degree like physics, but it's doable. Of course, there are also online degrees available in some subjects, or at least individual online courses available. The perception of online classes/degrees varies (as an example, the medical school in the city I come from won't accept online classes for any of its specific prerequisites, even the non-science ones). Another option is to prioritize some job and take classes during non-business hours, though this may entail taking far longer than four years to complete a degree. Depending on the job and possibly the degree, an employer may even offer some financial assistance.

[EdEarl]

I volunteered for three years service in the US Army, after which, the government helped pay for my college education. Although, I also worked while I was at the University. The Army sent me to school to repair Nike missile systems, a choice I made as part of my volunteer service, which meant I was able to get a better than minimum wage job.

[Prometheus]

If you're in the UK you could consider the Open University (one of those online/distance learning degrees John mentioned - in the UK it has a good reputation). For a physics degree you'd be paying £5000 a year instead of the £9000 a year at a bricks and mortar uni. You can also take on less modules per year there, allowing more time for you to work part-time.

 

I know some people who have given private tuition to senior high school kids in physics and maths - a good way to consolidate your knowledge too.