Season 2 • Episode 22
Back to School, on My Own Dime: Grad School Without the Ramen Budget — With Special Guest Alex Black
Alex Black joins Jennifer and Julie to discuss paying for graduate school, student loans, budgeting beyond tuition and bringing work experience to an MBA. Paired with Alex’s Orange-Splash Margarita.
About This Episode
What changes when you go back to college—and this time, you’re the one paying for it?
Alex Black joins Jennifer and Julie for a candid conversation about funding graduate school, weighing the investment, and returning to the classroom with a few more bills and a lot more life experience. And yes, Julie has a personal stake in this guest: he’s her son.
A Texas A&M horticulture graduate and former Aggie Band member, Alex has worked in oil fields, manufacturing, commercial driving, and mortgage lending. Now he’s pursuing his MBA at Texas Tech’s Rawls College of Business, bringing those experiences into the classroom—and figuring out how to pay for the next chapter.
We talk about combining federal student loans with proceeds from a planned house sale, budgeting beyond tuition, and thinking through how borrowing today fits into life after graduation. Alex shares how his perspective has changed since undergrad, when college expenses came from a mix of family support, work, and loans—and Mom was doing more of the worrying.
Along the way, we explore:
• Why work experience can give classroom lessons a whole new meaning.
• How Alex is approaching borrowing, interest costs, and the timing of additional loans.
• Why a career plan matters when you’re investing in another degree.
• Whether time in the workforce before college could help you figure out what you want from it.
There’s also a margarita upgrade approved by Alex’s grandmother, a debate over the ramen budget, and a family story involving a babysitting surcharge for tornado season. Apparently, financial negotiation starts young.
Whether you’re considering graduate school, helping a child think through college costs, or wondering what your next chapter might look like, this conversation puts a personal face on a big financial decision.
Alex’s Orange-Splash Margarita
The featured cocktail: Alex’s Orange-Splash Margarita
Alex likes his margarita on the rocks, without salt, and with a little orange juice to soften the tartness. Here’s a single-serving version inspired by his description.
Ingredients
• 2 ounces tequila
• 1 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
• ¾ ounce triple sec
• ½–1 ounce orange juice, to taste
• Ice
• Optional lime wedge or orange slice for garnish
Directions
Add the tequila, lime juice, triple sec, and orange juice to a cocktail shaker filled with ice.
Shake until well chilled.
Strain into a glass filled with fresh ice, skipping the salt rim.
Garnish if desired, and enjoy.
Start with ½ ounce of orange juice and add a little more if you prefer a softer, sweeter sip. Breakfast tacos optional.