Define "a little"?

Just remember that there is not architecture degree worth $30,000+ per year regardless of what people tell you about "contacts" and "investment" and other bullshit.  Only go if you can reasonably afford the tuition (or pay it back within a reasonably time).

As someone who went to grad school during the '08 recession and took out what would amount to ~2 years starting salary, I would strongly recommend taking a look at the math.  I have my current role/job thanks to going to grad school, but paying off those loans at an aggressive accelerated repayment plan was.....not fun.  Tuition prices have continued to skyrocket since then, as well.  

You also need to consider that you are accumulating debt during some of your prime income earning years, which has a compounding effect downstream.  I'd suggest getting a google spreadsheet with amortization values (you can find these online for free) and plugging in some numbers to see your repayment plan with interest and expected salaries.  Really dive into it and make an informed decision.  

It's an intensely personal decision, but the financial burden is quantifiable, so you owe it to yourself to investigate it as best you can

Masters and PhD programs in other disciplines are almost always research-focused, for which a stipend and/or scholarship are expected. This isn't true of MArch programs, which is why they don't typically offer the same kinds of financial aid. 

The people telling you not to pay for grad school are simply unaware of the differences between Architectural and other degrees.

Whether or not the expense is worth it is, as others have said, a personal decision. But don't feel like you're doing it wrong by paying money. Almost everyone pays something.

They are possible, but extremely rare. I had all my tuition covered for my MArch, applied for/got more scholarships every year, worked part time, and still took out about $50K in loans. Why? Living expenses. I don't know why this isn't discussed more, debt is unavoidable unless you have outside support. 

Whether it's worth it? I love my job, and I'm not sure what other paths really exist out there that don't grind you down in one way or another. It's how the US works. 

meowpypurrfday 

I did know someone who was fully funded for M.Arch - she was a commander US Navy Seabeas - serious strings attached - 

there are lots of schools that offer full tuition scholarships (umich, columbia, washu), some schools that offer university-wide fellowships that cover tuition and provide a generous stipend for living (e.g. washu, utexas, uiuc), some schools that offer graduate assistantships which provide a stipend to cover cost of living and remits tuition (e.g. georgia tech, virginia tech), 5 year undergrad programs that cover full cost of attendance (e.g. howard) - of course they're competitive but it's definitely possible, you just have to do your research :) and i'm international so these are options that don't have a nationality clause, i can only imagine the multitude of other opportunities available for americans!

The estimate cost of my 2 year's study in Ann Arbour(U of Mich) is 160k. I think there will be more than this number. I am thinking if I use that money to buy a condo then it will have a 800 net income every month, and I can give this condo to my daughter when she grow up. 

Also IIT's scholarship is half of the tuition, I think that might be more doable. 

man, there are so many things to untangle here. 

definitely, 1000%, racking up 150k+ in debt isn't worth it in this profession. (and, i'm auburn/harvard and sending 2 kids to public uni's so i've seen both sides). 

every public college/uni in the US - and i mean every single one of them - is addicted to out of state/foreign tuition fees. they can't survive without them. so, at least here, they go out of their way to make it almost impossible to get in-state tuition unless you've lived in the state for 2 years, being full time employed (50 out of 52 weeks minimum and self employment doesn't count, owning a property doesn't count, etc). 

to just state the obvious: it's the definition of insanity. 

that said, almost every school does offer a few positions each year that are a full ride. we had an employee in our office who got that deal from U. Michigan and one who just started at Princeton on a full ride. it is possible. hunt them down and ask. 

and then if you need to get the masters, go to the best school where you have state residency. or (if you attended a 4 year institution), look into the option of getting a 5th year BArch from a school. KSU here offers that to 4 year majors (or did). 

good luck - i feel for this generation. 

I got a design job at an ideal design-award-winning local/regional firm fresh out of grad school WITH THE SAME PORTFOLIO I HAD FROM UNDERGRAD. The connections and few extra projects of graduate studios and systems classes were generally worth it, but also not life changing. The main thing I learned is how to leverage networking into a job or opportunity, and how to conduct your own research inquiries that could potentially lead into teaching. If you can learn how to write studio briefs for yourself, or find some online - you can run your own self-initiated design projects without an official studio class and critique, and have an equally valid looking portfolio. 

I will note that although the portfolio thing may have been a fluke, going to grad school (affordably) allowed me to seemingly 'shift gears' from working in a more technical focused, gritty/construction focused office (a blessing in disguise) to a more capital-A 'studio' environment with a handful of impactful projects. That cost me $50k loans for living expenses and my salary move was almost completely lateral (making very slightly more than I was before) in that timespan of 2 years, despite new skills learned and new projects done.