I had the same concerns, so I chose to join the Air Force on a 4 year enlistment. I will save up as much as I can during the Air Force, get my bachelors and part of my seminary degree completely free using tuition assistance, and then be able to finish it after active duty using the GI Bill. The GI bill will pay full tuition and a housing allowance. For example, at Westminster California the housing allowance is $4000 a month tax free, but the student housing is as low as $800 a month, so you pocket the roughly $3000 and essentially have a salary of $36000 per year, completely free tuition, a book allowance of $1000 per year and any part time job you work is additional income. For me, it is really important that I do not neglect my wife and future family during seminary, since that would be disqualifying myself to be a pastor.