Pave offers an interesting new option for funding an education

2013-07-22T15:10:00-04:00

Daniel Toole is a 28-year-old architect in Seattle who plans to attend Harvard’s master’s program in urban design. But instead of paying his way with graduate student loans, he is trying to raise money by selling a slice of his future earnings to investors.

He needs $80,000, even after scholarships and grants. Mr. Toole wants to finance a big chunk of that through a new company called Pave, which connects people like him with “backers.” If he reaches his goal and raises $30,000 from Pave investors, he will pay them 7 percent of his projected annual salary for 10 years.

“If I decide to go into the Peace Corps or do something like work for a major firm that didn’t pay well for the first couple years out of school, the percentage of total income would be quite a bit lower than standard 10-year loan paybacks,” said Mr. Toole, who has commitments for nearly $11,000 so far.

The program comes with other perks: the investors, who clearly want to see their human investments succeed, often double as mentors.

“This is me reaching out and seeing if I can get access to people who can guide me through my career and push me around through their own networks,” Mr. Toole added. “I need solid financial mentorship. I am not great with money, and ...

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Pave offers an interesting new option for funding an education