2015/16 is Fall/Spring this school year. So that FAFSA applies all year. Schools only get your FAFSA if you send it to them (school code). When you do the 2016/17 FAFSA in January, it will be for next fall/spring school year. For THIS spring, the existing FAFSA is still in effect.
By “upfront” $, they mean deposits. Most schools will wait for the rest if they know you have FA coming in. But you would still have to pay the excess over your FA. You could probably do monthly installments on that.
It sounds like you have:
Very little cash on hand
A $200 deposit due soon
A significant “gap” amount over and above FA granted you would have to pay.
The gap amount is the key. How much will it be, and can you pay it over time, and will you have the $ to make those pmts.
Call the FA office tomorrow and ask how quickly all this can be run, and to estimate what you would get.
In the end, you may or may not need to defer until fall.
The issue I was explaining was that you had not submitted your corrected FAFSA to the new school, like thumper mentioned you need to do, until now.
So if you were to start now then you are missing out on aid you might have gotten if you applied earlier or started in fall. So even if they give you the Pell and fed loans you can qualify for as long as you file FAFSA and qualify income wise, then you would still be short money.
So you need a new plan. You don’t have the money for the deposit, let alone $1700 for first semester.
Also you said you are not sure a college education is what you want right now.
It’s good to explore options before jumping into something.
Could you take some classes at community college in photography and other things you are interested in?
I didn’t start or apply for fall semester because at the time I was interested in another school. I just heard about this particular school about a month ago so I applied for the next available semester which was spring.
I’m new to this whole college thing. I just graduated in June actually. So i don’t know all the ins and outs of trying to go to college. I thought that if i were to file the FAFSA for 2016-2017 that I would be good on aid for the spring semester but I guess not.
I’m most likely going to weigh my options and try a trade or fashion school because college is such a pain in the neck right now and is draining me mentally and financially.
I know this is a lot and can be confusing even for adults, seems like you are kind of on your own with it. That’s why we are trying to help you.
If you are 0 EFC then you can qualify for maximum aid, if you submit FAFSA early, but that does not mean all costs will be covered. That’s what you need to find out ahead of time.
If you submit the FAFSA on time then the school will give you a financial aid award that lists all costs and aid, then you can see what you have to pay out of pocket.
You can still submit FAFSA early next year, see what the aid package looks like and then decide what you want to do in the fall. For now you can eork and earn some money and explore your interests. No matter what you decide you will need some money to start out.
I do have an EFC of 0 (according to my 2015-2016 FAFSA) I’m still going to submit my FAFSA for next year and see what happens after my 2015-2016 FAFSA is submitted to them. I’m most likely going to start school in the fall or for now just explore my options. Do you know of any fashion or beauty schools (other than the Art Institutes) that I could possibly try attending? I live in Missouri City/Houston Texas by the way.
Looks like they have programs in Fashion Design, Fashion Merchandising and Cosmetology. I think this would be a great first environment to explore those careers and see what direction you want to go.
If you are in district (Looks like they service: Houston Independent School District, Katy, Spring Branch, Alief Independent School Districts, Stafford Municipal District, and the Fort Bend portion of Missouri City) tuition for 15 credit hours is just over $1000.00 and would most likely be covered by a full Pell Grant with a 0 EFC.
It is certainly not necessary to go to a 4 year school for Fashion or Cosmetology.
Thank you for the links and info! I think I’m going to do a community college or fashion school instead of a 4 year university. Saves me time and money