<p>Hello!</p>
<p>I am a transfer student who was recently offered an acceptance. To be honest, I was not expecting this. The best I was expecting was a postponement. I am obviously beyond happy to be given this opportunity, but I now have to deal with some unexpected issues. And so, I have a few questions:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>I have read somewhere on the UW website that financial aid for a spring semester transfer could be lower due to some reason. As financial aid will be my primary source of income(until I find a local job), how much of a decrease should I expect?</p></li>
<li><p>Is there enough time between now and the first day of the next semester to apply, and also be awarded any scholarships? Any other need-based aid available besides work-study or the usual federal loans/grants?</p></li>
<li><p>Can anyone offer any advice for cheap housing options, one bedroom and dog allowed?</p></li>
<li><p>I have a car. Not a great one, but it works. Would you recommend I keep it and pay for parking or to just sell it? Would it be worth having and paying for?</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Any other advice is extremely welcome and would be appreciated.</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>Have you used the net price calculator on UW’s financial aid website? Take half of those amounts to obtain an estimate of aid for one semester.</p>
<p>Are you a Wisconsin resident? Are you under 24? What is your 2014-2015 EFC?</p>
<p>UW grad eons ago and parent of recent UW grad here.</p>
<p>Consider all of the costs of car ownership. Insurance for living in Madison. Gas and oil changes et al. Parking- often expensive near campus (where you would leave it most of the time) or expensive for a place in a far lot on campus if you choose to commute. Many students live close to campus and walk. Once on campus you will be walking anyway- you won’t be able to park near your classes. There is free bus service for students (double check on the UW website). Very likely to get a job close enough to campus you won’t use a car (again- parking it near your job not likely). So if you are not using your car for school or work what would you use it for? Groceries? Trips home? Most UW students find enough to do on/near campus they are not going home often. There are walkable stores and bus service to others.</p>
<p>Some will say you should keep your car but most students do not have one. Depends on your budget.</p>
<p>Check the UW job postings now for available work next semester. Jobs may not be glamorous but often work around your class schedule instead of trying to work you courses around the job. No job is beneath you- many future doctors/lawyers and other professionals have cleaned and other unfun work.</p>
<p>Check the UW off campus housing website for a list of available apartments. It’s a nice site open to anyone and you can select your areas and other criteria easily. Check Craigslist. Read the UW site link about fair housing and other hints. You can check with Madison Gas and Electric on their website for the costs of utilities currently being paid- it can vary based on location within a building as well as tenant numbers and usage habits. Find out who cleans the sidewalk- you or management. The tenant guide will be helpful in considering all sorts of things. Most students relay which are the best/worst management companies by word of mouth- accuracy??? Listings are already out for next fall but you can choose earlier dates. Be sure to read any contracts before signing. Parents are usually required to cosign leases.</p>
<p>Spend time figuring out your course schedule for next semester. Likely around 16 credits. Do not feel you need to take the minimum credits to ease into UW. They accepted you so they feel you can handle it. You can drop a course if you need to but you don’t want to add after classes start and miss stuff.</p>
<p>A one bedroom apartment on campus that has parking and allows pets will not be cheap. What is your budget? Try craigslist for a sublet, but it will be iffy with a dog (Big dog? Small dog?).</p>
<p>First off, thanks to both of you for taking time to respond.</p>
<p>@Madison85 I am 26 years old, a WI resident, and an EFC of 0 (independent status, and both my parents have passed anyway). The aid calculator estimated me to receive enough aid to cover all my expenses, plus about $1000 extra. But transferring in the spring has me worried due to my experience with my transfer to my current college. I wasn’t issued ANY aid because it was a transfer during the spring semester (why? I haven’t the faintest). That was an… interesting semester.</p>
<p>@wis75 You just convinced me that having my car would cost me more than it would be worth. I’m sure I would survive without it since I haven’t had it with me at all this current semester. Plus that would definitely help with the financial hump during the transition. As for a job, currently I tutor Calculus I and II in addition so some other courses for my current school of UW-Platteville. I assume that I won’t be able to just transition into a tutoring position at UW without some sort of consent from a UW professor? Otherwise I have no qualms about a “labor” position. I have done my fair share and don’t mind doing some more.</p>
<p>Do either of you know, if I completed a new FAFSA for UW today, whether or not I would receive my aid in time for the first semester? Also how would that work with my current anticipated aid for the next semester I would have taken at UW-Platteville?</p>
<p>Thank you for the advice about the off-campus housing website. There seems to be some listings within my price range that actually accepts dogs! From around $650 to $750… Could be worse.</p>
<p>Did you already submit a FAFSA for the 2014-2015 school year? If so, I believe you just log back in and enter the school code for UW-Madison (003895), i.e. you do not submit a new FAFSA.</p>
<p>Go to jobcenter.wisc.Edu and sort on the location column for UW Campus to find UW-Madison jobs (the off campus jobs are non UW employers).</p>
<p>Most Math Center jobs go to TA’s, although a few Honors math seniors work there. That apartment rate is what my son paid for an unfurnished one bedroom a few years ago- very close to Union South- perhaps including heat. Utilities can be very expensive if the winter is cold.</p>