Readers, it’s that time of year when we’re obliged to have a conversation about a distasteful but crucial topic: financial planning. I know, I know, it’s like taxes. No one wants to do it, and it feels like there’s enough time that it can always be put off just a bit longer. March has a way of quickly becoming April, though, and waiting until you’re forced to think concretely about it will constrain your options and increase the pressure under which you find yourself. So let’s do this thing!

A few weeks after the big January application deadline, our processing factory is at full steam and we’re happily reading through all of your applications.

With decisions out for a few weeks now, admitted candidates are largely moving past the initial frisson of that news to the task of making an enrollment decision. Many candidates are in the enviable position of having several good options from which to choose, and there’s one reality that is common to nearly all: grad school is a major investment, and it requires a carefully-considered financial strategy.

For most students, the excitement of an admissions offer comes with a dose of yucky-tasting medicine: the need to get serious about financial planning. You’re forgiven if the subject makes you feel overwhelmed and confused about where to begin, but it’s not something you can ignore in the hopes of it going away. The sooner you start to work on your financial plan, the more options you’ll have to work with.

Today we turn to something of an eat-your-vegetables topic. The thrill of a favorable admissions decision is, for most candidates, accompanied by the realization that it’s time to get serious about making a financial plan. It’s understandable if the prospect makes you want to curl up into a ball and take a nap, hoping things will sort themselves out, but I assure you that the earlier you get cracking on financial planning the easier your path will be, and the more options you’re likely to have available to you.