<p>I would ask for a copy of your orginal award letter if this is what you threw away. On the letter it would state the cost of attendance. Without knowing what the school publishes as cost of attendance it is difficult to speculate why they will not certify a Stafford loan. The important issue here is not what you figure the cost of attendance is, but what the college uses as there cost of attendance for distribution of federal monies and this is generally a published number. $7000 a year “feels” pretty close based on looking at the website in which case full Pell and work/study would have covered it. It is interesting that you are getting a “refund” as that almost implies you received more than cost of attendance even without the work/study unless you have also paid out of your pocket on the account.</p>
<p>If you are doing ALL of your courses as online courses, I can’t imagine the school will make an adjustment to your cost of attendance to include child care. Just my opinion.</p>
<p>^^good point.</p>
<p>Ok so i spoke to the dean today and she said she will look into things all she could tell me was sometimes schools base things on default rates of the school and other excuses.</p>
<p>So i went to the financial aid office to get my reward lettler and the Estimated budget is 7,265 and my need is 7,265</p>
<p>I was rewarded 2,775 for the pell grant and 2,500 for work study.</p>
<p>Bringing the total to 5,275</p>
<p>And i declined the federal work study so all i got for aid is the 2775.00</p>
<p>Can you see why im upset they are not helping me out.</p>
<p>Is that your budget for the semester or for the year? Hopefully the dean will help you get your Stafford loans reinstated at least.</p>
<p>thats for the spring semester only</p>
<p>Sk8 mom i dont khow she was like ill talk to the director but usually dont over ride her decisions? im like what is this mess i even told her your not treating me fair</p>
<p>That probably is not a good lead into the situation, but I understand your frustration. I’m not sure what’s going on there…it’s possible that there is a problem with the school itself, as the dean mentioned default rates. Perhaps kelsmom can shed some light onto what might be going on.</p>
<p>If your grades and completion rate are decent, ie. you’re not on or close to being on academic/FA probation, it seems very odd that they would refuse to reinstate your Stafford loan. It’s a bit of a vicious cycle as low-income students are already at-risk for failing to graduate and default, especially if they don’t have the funds to continue! As a last resort, you might try contacting your elected officials if this is a public school in your state/county of residence. But give the dean a chance first and try not to be defensive about it…it’s probably not a personal thing at all and you’ll learn more if you can keep your cool and write down what they say. Take names/dates too so you have an exact record.</p>
<p>Btw, don’t you get any state grants to help you meet the costs?</p>
<p>yea the pell paid everything i jsut needed some money for childcare i khow so many people who got loans and did not have to document every little thing they need it for afterall its based on financial need my fasfa even said i qualifed for federal aid</p>
<p>greatbear, Pell is federal aid. Doesn’t your state give any grants to low-income students? I agree that the loan situation seems very unusual…but until they explain why they’re applying a different standard in your case, it’s impossible for us to understand it either! I would keep asking questions until you get an explanation, even if it’s not something you agree with. Please let us know what they say…</p>
<p>This was my appeal denial letter </p>
<p>Dated FEB 16, 2011</p>
<p>I am in receipt of your re-appeal dated february 14,2011 requesting further consideration of the student loan committee’s decison regarding your request for a stafford loan. Based on the information presented and a thorough review of your file, I must uphold the decison of the committee.</p>
<p>Triton college’s financial aid office follows a default mangement plan that limits access to sudent loans based on inadequate acadmeic achievment, previous student loan default,lack of educational expenses and/or excessice prior laon borrowing. The department of education allows institutions to make professional judgements, on a case by case basis, regarding the approval of the student loans. Based on our default management procedures, you do not qualify for a student loan at triton college this term.</p>
<p>You are welcome to look at alternative loan programs and see if they would meet financial needs. if you are interested in this option please contact whatever …</p>
<p>I wish you the best in schieving your educational goals. If you have any questions regarding this matter, please feel free to contact me.</p>
<p>So i guess i was denied because of their default management procedures</p>
<p>yes makes perfect sense??</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Do you have any idea which of these was the basis for the denial of your request? That’s really the only thing that matters. It sounds like you requested a loan to cover childcare expenses, which is not considered an educational expense…is that right? Do you have housing expenses? Those are a component of COA.</p>
<p>i do have rent none of them apply to me this is my first semester at this school and i never defaulted on anything</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I’m curious why you think NONE of these apply to you. If you did not make adequate academic progress at your previous school, your current school CAN consider this. If you have lack of educational expenses that would require an adjustment up to your cost of attendance, this would also apply at your current school. Excessive loan borrowing is the total of all schools.</p>
<p>It sounds like the school feels they have met your EDUCATIONAL financial need with the package they have given you, and they do not plan to adjust it.</p>
<p>It sounds to me like the school is dangerously close to having an excessively high default rate. I would be very wary of any school that eliminates federal aid to a low income student, effectively cutting the housing component out of their COA. Is there another public school that you could transfer to?</p>
<p>I can understand your problem, my school told me today that to get a Stafford student loan, I must complete 6 credit hours of college before I can be approved. How can these schools override the “ability to benefit” rules set by the US Dept of Education. I am a first time student with a high school diploma and they decided to change their rules after I was already approved. I’m trying to find a contact to file a complaint, if anyone knows please pass this on. My cost of attendence is $5250 and my pell was for $2775. I should more than qualify for a federal student loan, but this school is overriding the federal guidelines.</p>
<p>Not sure how or why someone in your position would decline a work study. You could be working for funds instead of borrowing. Now it appears you will do neither.</p>
<p>Schools are absolutely allowed to limit student loans. While students may borrow up to the annual max, whether or not the school will certify a student is up to the school. If you ask why you are not getting the loan, they should be able to explain.</p>
<p>Denise, I can see why someone in his/her position would decline workstudy-- because they have childcare expenses! Childcare can easily eat up the entire cost of a minimum wage work-study job. This parent may be trying to retrain for a better-paying job or planning to go to work when the children will be in school, thus decreasing child care expenses.</p>
<p>By the way, a COA can be readjusted to include childcare expense. If you do an internet search for “child care” “Cost of attendance”, you will see that many schools will re-evaluate a financial aid package for students with dependant care expenses. Interestingly, one of the schools that came up in an online-only school.</p>