u/Dangerous-Row-1614

I worked in tech for 6 years but lost my job in a layoff. A year later, I have applied to over 8000 job postings. No luck. I was given an offer twice and twice it was rescinded for financial reasons.

This prompted me to apply to an MBSA program because I was operating a business analyst anyway toward the end of my tenure at my last company.

I was given a 50k scholarship to a highly rated MBSA program in the Northeast. I would go but tuition is 88k. I could get 20.5k in grad loans (public), but no more. I applied to a few banks for private loans, at lower interest rates, but was rejected, probably because I don’t have a job. I haven’t worked in a year.

What should I do? My situation is tenuous. I don’t have a partner and I don’t have parents, so I can’t ask them for money. I don’t want to waste another year with nothing concrete to show for it.*

*I haven’t been twiddling my thumbs. I spend my days networking, going to conferences and sending job apps. This hasn’t borne fruit. I even with to lunch with some rando who had a crush on me in the hopes of a referral (none). I have been referred by friends and auto-rejected (I had always been interviewed in the past).

I was admitted to a master’s program in analytics. Tuition is 87k. I received a 50k scholarship and I can take 20.5k in federal loans, but that leaves me with a 16.5k gap. I’m in a precarious financial situation. I would consider taking more loans but have no co-signer (no family). I haven’t worked in a year because I lost my job in a layoff. I am reluctant to draw from my retirement accounts for this degree. In a normal market, I would’ve got a job paying 100-180k, but a year of unemployment has forced my hand to cover a horrific gap.

I can only think of private loans or drawing from retirement accounts, maybe applying to scholarships (no idea, never done it).

What do you think?