CLIFTON, N.J. >> An aspiring nun who was told she couldn’t enter a convent until her student loan debt was paid off has used an online appeal to get the money.

Alida Taylor was accepted to join the Sisters of Life in New York City in September.

The 28-year-old New Jersey woman started a GoFundMe page last month, hoping to get $12,000 to pay down her student loans. She surpassed her goal Thursday, raising more than $22,000.

Taylor said the extra money will be used for a vocation fund.

Attempts to reach Taylor were unsuccessful.

But she told WCBS in New York that “The Lord when it’s his will, he always provides, and I just trust him.”

Officials say most Catholic religious orders ask people to delay applications until they have repaid debt.