First, congrats on going to grad. school. As a doctoral student, I can say that, even with funding, I have had to take on increased loan debt to support my education and supplement my income. Student loans, while not appealing, are the best bet for you. Are there any opportunities for assistantships in your program? If so, I would ask about them. Unfortunately, funding in graduate school is getting scarce, as it it becoming increasingly difficult for non-science fields to afford to completely fund their graduate students. That, coupled with more people choosing to attend grad. school, means that programs are going to become increasingly competitive. What I would suggest is that you bite the bullet and take out a loan to cover the rest of the costs for this year, do well in your courses, so that you stand out, and you may get better funding next year. Many programs do not give much funding to students beginning the program, as they want to make sure you are serious. I hope this helps and best of luck in your program.
It's looking like I'll indeed have to take some loans. The University of Dallas doesn't use TAs, so I'll look into a research assistantship. However, I doubt that this is feasible during the first year. Many thanks for your input, Daniel.
