Hello, Im a freshman in college, when i enrolled i was to become a full time student, but i realized i was one of the late students that registered, so i had no priority to choose the classes i needed, so i became a part time student, no my question is, is it bad to be a part time student first semester of college then full time next semester? Will this affect my financial aid for the entire year?
In order to qualify for financial aid during any one semester, you have to be a full-time student, which is generally defined as 12 quarter-hour credits. If you are taking less than 12 credits, you are a part-time student and you will not qualify for financial aid during that semester. If you become a full-time student next semester, then you are qualified to apply for financial aid. If you haven’t done so yet, fill out your FAFSA and submit it with an application for financial aid for next session.
It is unfortunate that you weren’t able to get all the classes you want, but now that you are a registered student, you will bet higher priority for registration in the next session. Make sure that you enroll at the soonest possible moment so that you will have more classes available to you.
Other than the financial aid aspect, there is nothing at all wrong with being a part-time student. For many, starting out as a part-time student is actually a better way to become acclimatized to the demands of college.
There is financial aid available for part-time students, but it is not the full “assortment” that would be available to full time students. Your financial aid office should be able to help you.