Help! My Financial Aid Package doesn't cover the Cost of Attendance

Paying for College
1

<p>Hi,</p>

<p>I'm a student at a large university in the western Pennsylvania area. I'm a transfer student going back to college after having been out for awhile. I will be attending full time. I do not plan on working more than a part-time job while I'm going to school, so I can focus on my education. </p>

<p>I'm 29 years old, living on my own, and have been working for the last several years. I am by no means rich. Last year, I only made 18k. This year, I've only made 11k; I will be making no more money this year, as I quit my job to focus on school. </p>

<p>Here's the skinny on what's happened so far:</p>

<p>My financial aid situation has been going up and down all semester. I received an initial financial aid package that nowhere near covered what I needed (it didn't even cover tuition). I knew that I'd have to file a special conditions form, which I did. My original EFC was 4400, and my new, updated EFC taking my special conditions and this years income is 2200. </p>

<p>The tuition costs for this school are around 13,000, and the cost of living for this school are about 7k, per year. This combines for an approximate Cost of Attendance of 20k. Deducting my new EFC, I have a need of about $17,800 to meet. </p>

<p>Here's the issue:</p>

<p>My updated financial aid package, after the special conditions form, doesn't meet this amount. I received work study (which will be my part time job) of approximately 2500, Staffords of 7500, and a Pell of 2060. This gives me a total of 12060, which is short of what I need to even cover tuition, let alone to eat and house myself. </p>

<p>So, the question: what the heck do I do? The final day to drop is this coming week and I need to make a decision about what my next step is. My parents will not help me make up the difference. I'm confused about why my EFC is 2200, and yet I'm left with all this left over need?? </p>

<p>I also didn't get a Perkins, or an FSEOG grant, which would have helped a lot. What does one have to do to get these? </p>

<p>My friend, who's a lot more adept at dealing with Financial Aid offices (he's a grad student), suggests I go in there and be more assertive with the FinAid office, but I'm not sure. I thought sending in the special conditions form was all it would take; is there more I can do?? </p>

<p>HELP! </p>

<p>Thank you</p>

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<p>

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<p>Perkins and FSEOG are limited funds - as in the college is given only so much money - so they usually go to those that file FAFSA the soonest. For instance My D filed FAFSA in Feb but we also had a special circumstances adjustment which took about a month and by then there were no FSEOG funds left despite her EFC being below 1000. </p>

<p>One thing you could do is go and talk to the financial aid office (make an appointment and see a full time adult rather than a student) explain the situation and see if there is anything else they can do for you. You have to talk to them - they don’t know your situation unless you tell them and they are dealing with thousands of students. Sometimes money gets freed up at the beginning of the semester - in my Ds case for instance she upped her ACT score in the summer so was given a higher merit scholarship so her Perkins was reduced making it available to someone else. Also she decided to not do WS the first semester and had the WS converted to a loan which freed up WS funds for other students right at the beginning of the semester. So check and see if there is any way they can help you more. Your WS does not appear to be maxed out though your Stafford loans may be depending on what year you are.</p>

<p>And next year file FAFSA as early as possible and have your information and documentation for the special circumstances adjustment ready to go early as well.</p>

<p>Good luck.</p>

3

<p>I think you may want to consider working more and going to school part time. Unless you are a veteran, I don’t think you will get more from the school. Or you could take out private loans. How many nearly 30 year olds go back to undergrad school full time and expect grants and federal loans to cover it. By the age of almost 30 people are doing residencies (I think you could even finish a Phd if you went to school straight thru)</p>

<p>I’m sorry if this seems harsh, but welcome to the grown up world of reality. It bites. </p>

<p>You must have some savings??? And you lived somewhere before deciding to go to school.</p>

<p>Nowhere is written that colleges (even when you are 18) will meet your cost of attendance without loans.</p>

4

<p>Sorry, Sue, but I have to disagree with you. My school, for instance, has a great number of students who are returning to college at an older age, much older than me. In fact, they have a school specifically geared towards us. We’re called non-traditional students, and there are more and more of us every year. Perhaps you didn’t know that before, but I’d appreciate it if you would take note of this for the future. I didn’t appreciate you saying “welcome to the world of grown-up reality.” The reality is actually that more of us are going back to school to meet the needs of the workforce. </p>

<p>Aside from that, also, my age has nothing to do with this discussion. I provided it only to show that I’m an independent student. I have as much right to a college education as someone who is 19, 29 or 59. The money that is provided to students through the financial aid system is money that I and my family have paid through taxes. If I have a need, it is the job of the financial aid office and federal government to meet that need according to guidelines.</p>

<p>And no, I don’t have savings, like a lot of people living in today’s America. That’s why I’m trying to go back to school, so I can get a better, more stable job so I can finally get savings…along with health care…and an idea of what I might do for retirement. It’s called trying to make a living, and last I heard, a college degree really helps with that.</p>

<p>And I did live somewhere before…on my own. I had a job…full time. The problem with our financial aid system is that if you work too much, your financial aid is tied to that. The more you work, the less you get. You work too much, and you’re nearly expected to pay for college yourself. And do you happen to have 12,000 dollars laying around per year? I don’t. And most Americans don’t. </p>

<p>You’re right, though…nowhere is it listed that colleges have to cover the cost of attendance…and yet, colleges REGULARLY DO! So, I’m not sure what your experience is in financial aid, but I certainly didn’t appreciate your tone. Thanks for suggesting private loans, I’d say that’s about the best bit of advice you provided. </p>

<p>But if I work more and go to school full time, I’ll be looking at 8 years of school. That means 8 years of practically abject poverty because I’ll have to sock most of my earnings away while I work full time. That means I eat mostly ramen noodles to survive and hope that they don’t raise tuition rates too much and can cover rent. And I’m not even going to talk about about the fact that I’ll probably be looking at minimum wage jobs which won’t even make a dent in costs, and the employer won’t exactly want to keep me around if I’m taking classes that don’t benefit them. </p>

<p>And this still doesn’t answer the question as to why I should have to deal with that at 29 anymore than a 19 year old. </p>

<p>I apologize to others reading this forum if I seem upset, but I’m genuinely in need of EDUCATED advice that actually applies to me. Not someone who’s going to use someone in a pickle to mouth off about their own outdated concepts and ageist biases. And certain not someone who has biases about who and who is not worthy of a full-time college education. </p>

<p>Far as I can tell, all of us are part of a screwed up system that makes no sense regarding today’s reality of funding college education. I’m here to get advice in how to work in a screwed up system, not to hear my plans are not valid because I’m nearly 30, thank you.</p>

<p>Swimcatsmom,</p>

<p>You were actually helpful. Thanks. I think that’s what’s happened here, regarding the Perkins and FSEOG. I’m hoping more money will come available as people drop out. I will go see them on Tuesday when they open - maybe there is more that can be done. I’ll ask to see someone in charge.</p>

<p>If anyone else has more advice, I’d appreciate it. I’m a nice guy…promise. :)</p>

<p>J</p>

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<p>Doesn’t sound like it to me! If you ask for advice, you should be civil to those who offer it, even if you don’t particularly like what they have to say.</p>

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<p>Sorry, but about 25% of her post was actually advice. The rest was this:</p>

<p>"How many nearly 30 year olds go back to undergrad school full time and expect grants and federal loans to cover it. By the age of almost 30 people are doing residencies (I think you could even finish a Phd if you went to school straight thru)</p>

<p>I’m sorry if this seems harsh, but welcome to the grown up world of reality. It bites.</p>

<p>You must have some savings??? And you lived somewhere before deciding to go to school.</p>

<p>Nowhere is written that colleges (even when you are 18) will meet your cost of attendance without loans."</p>

<p>If you read that alone, it’s nothing but rude and has absolutely NOTHING to do with helping me. It’s chiding me for not going to school sooner and that I’m not living in “the grown up world of reality.”</p>

<p>And I may not sound like a nice guy to you, but I am one. Read that post she left a little more closely. If someone talked to you like that on the street, you might be inclined to set them straight as well. I accept advice when its given to assist, not to demean.</p>

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<p>I’d rather return to my original question please now, thank you.</p>

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<p>iamjbo - I know it is difficult going back to school after a break - my son is doing so this fall. He is still a dependent but was self sufficient for about 18 months and that income kills him financial aid wise for this year despite the fact that all of it went on rent and bills. I really think it is great that you are realising you need to do this for your future - better late than never. Anyway post back with how you fare with the finaid office which will maybe give some ideas to other people in your position. Good luck (and don’t get into a slanging match on CC - threads can really go off on a tangent and become quite tiresome after a while which really does not benefit anyone).</p>

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<p>sorry if I was harsh. I didn’t know that there were 30 year old students in school full time.</p>

<p>Maybe that’s cause I was supporting myself full time since the age of 18 and I never had the chance to go to college. </p>

<p>It would never have occurred to me that I could have gotten full financial support from the college to go back full time. Going back to school didn’t have to mean quit work and go to school full time. Not too many people can afford to do that (especially those that have no savings after 10 years of work)</p>

<p>There is no easy answer to your question. Either work more, or take out loans. you probably have great credit since you have an extensive work history. Or you could go to a school that meets full need??</p>

<p>You did sound immature when you were shocked that the school wasn’t going to meet all your costs of attendance. That is the real world for 99% of all college students, regardless of age. Read this website for a while.</p>

<p>You have a big gap to fill. need is defined as COA- EFC. And no, most colleges DON"T cover full need. </p>

<p>Either getting the college to give you more money, getting a grant for older students or a loan, find a school that has night or weekend and accelerated programs. How about a job with tuition reimburement.</p>

10

<p>I did a quick Google search on “scholarships for students non-traditional age” and got a lot of hits. It looks like there are more scholarships of this kind for women than men, and some of them are local to particular states. But a fast read of the results makes it clear that this is a category that has some resources attached to it that might help in the future. I would bet that funding cycles for this year are over, so you might be left with only loan options for this year. Another idea is to check with the department of your intended major (or search for scholarships for non-traditional students in your field of interest) to see if there are funding opportunities there. Another term that could yield good search results is “reentry students”.</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

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<p>Hey, look at this! After a bit more Google searching - there is a low-income education loan just for students who are residents of Western Pennsylvania. Interest is only 2% before graduation and 5% after graduation. You sound like a great candidate. Look here to see if you qualify:
<a href=“http://www.gibson-fnd.org/Docs/Education_Loan.htm[/url]”>http://www.gibson-fnd.org/Docs/Education_Loan.htm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Best of luck!</p>

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<p>You may be able to call the lender directly and up the amount of the Stafford loan.</p>

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<p>

Depends what year he is. For an independent freshman the $7500 is the maximum Stafford allowed. If he is a higher grade the limits are higher (2nd year $8500, 3rd and 4th years $10,500)</p>

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<p>Sue,</p>

<p>Thanks for your help, but I’m not even sure why you’re on this message board if you’re not a student. Perhaps you have a young child yourself about to attend school and that’s why you’re here, but regardless, I’m not your child and you shouldn’t talk to people on here as such. I don’t appreciate you demeaning me like a child because I don’t fit your definition of who should be attending school. </p>

<p>“Maybe that’s cause I was supporting myself full time since the age of 18 and I never had the chance to go to college.” If you’re upset because you didn’t get a chance to attend college and you’re bitter or upset about it, that’s fine. But this thread isn’t about you. If you want to talk about yourself or how you didn’t have the change to go to college, start your own thread and don’t use mine. In the meantime, since you didn’t even know that 30 year olds were attending college full-time in this day and age, you don’t see to be very informed about what’s going on in college today. Therefore, I don’t think you’ll be able to help me much, and I’ll be ignoring your posts on from here on out. Thanks and goodbye. </p>

<p>swim,</p>

<p>Yeah, I’m maxed on my staffords. And this first year is very difficult. It seems that getting back into the financial aid system after working is tough the first year. You almost have to make yourself poor, because any money you make will lower your aid, and it starts a vicious cycle. </p>

<p>On the brighter side, I did apply for a private loan through sallie mae tonight. My credit isn’t the best, but surprisingly, my mother said she would co-sign. I’m not sure how stringent they are, but it’s hope. Do you have any experience with those programs?</p>

<p>Cal,</p>

<p>I’ll look at that now! Thanks.</p>

<p>Any other people with good advice about my situation?</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

15

<p>You are an adult- don’t have your mother co-sign a loan for you.
I expect she is trying to fund retirement, and having to cover your student loan if you default would be a burden.
If your credit is really that bad- get a job from a company that will pay you to attend school & straighten out your credit until you can afford to attend full time.</p>

16

<p>Here’s the problem:

My son is 24 years old. He returned to college at age 23, after working full time and supporting himself for 3 years. During those 3 years he saved about $10K – he did that by living frugally as he never earned more than $25K. </p>

<p>He did not qualify for financial aid because of that $10K in savings and the prior year’s income; also, because he was only 23, he was not treated as independent for financial aid purposes. He found a half time job with flexible hours, and also enrolled in a heavy course schedule, taking some evening classes & also supplementing with some on-line courses. He had not difficulty handling the higher workload because of his greater maturity – students who have been in the work force for several years before returning to school often find that their work habits and discipline make it easy for them to juggle employment with school. </p>

<p>After the first year my son had spent down his savings and had a sharply reduced income, so he qualified for much more financial aid, including a Pell grant. Also, he had done very well academically his first semester (straight A’s), and also applied for and got a small merit scholarship from the school. Money is tight, but he thinks he will graduate without taking on any more debt.</p>

<p>I’d suggest simply that you look for work – I think Sueinphilly was overly harsh in her choice of words, perhaps because of her own background, but I think that any 29 year old with a history of full time employment should be able to manage outside employment and school at the same time. My 19 year old also is able to work at least 15 hours a week, and often more-- and also maintain a GPA qualifying her for Dean’s list. I know that you do have a work study grant – but my kids have both taken on extra jobs in addition to work study. </p>

<p>You’ve got a gap of $8000 – you can fill that by taking on an extra part time – and you can take action to reduce your living expenses. (example: find a roommate to share housing costs; or find a housing situation that offers you the chance to reduce your rent in exchange for work, such as housesitting, babysitting, or apartment management).</p>

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<p>Seems like you need to figure out how you will come up with the extra money for this yr and then also in subsequent years. Do you KNOW if you will be awarded more money next yr or will you face this same situation? Loans pile up quickly and can be a real burden in the end. </p>

<p>To see where you will stand next yr, ask your school or I think you can check on collegeboard. For instance, some schools only meet 65% need and offer 50% of that amt with loans - others have better deals. MANY people think schools fulfill 100% of need and are shocked to find out that they don’t. Often those that do fullfil 100%, calculate EFC very differently than the FAFSA EFC (using Profile). I was surprised to see how disparate the FA pkgs were from my own kids’ schools. Unfortunately, I think transfers are offered even less than incoming freshman. </p>

<p>You have a tough situation because you need money NOW. Can you use the loans to pay just for the 1st semester to give you time to earn $ for next semester. More likely, the loan is probably split up to cover the semesters equally. If you’re living off campus, hopefully you can pay month by month - whereas in a dorm/campus apt you have to pay now for the entire semester/yr. Maybe your school offers a monthly payment plan. I know everyone is saying to work more, but remember what you earn (over $3000?) will affect next yr’s FA. Maybe you can look into being an RA next yr or apt manager (on campus apt or even off campus) - these jobs often provides free room - not sure how that affects FA. There should be jobs available where your age is an asset (more mature/reliable than a newbie).</p>

<p>At the very least, try to get an appt with a financial aid officer at your school. We’ve had good results while meeting in person. Explain your situation and maybe she/he will have a suggestion for you that you haven’t explored yet. My d’s school suggested a way for her to get more money this past summer and it worked out great. Two of my kids wound up getting better FA pkgs after explaining our situation and submitting whatever documents the schools wanted.</p>

<p>Good luck and keep looking for options. My mom didn’t go back to college until I was 4 and then she never stopped - earning multiple degrees. Older students often do better because they WANT to be there to study/get a degree as opposed to many students who go to college for reasons less important (get away from home, party, etc).</p>

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<p>when you max out workstudy- that is all money that won’t count for EFC- as it is actually part of your aid package.
You don’t mention how many credits you have already- to save money many people attend a CC to max those credits out before transferring to a 4 year school.
Id also agree that some aid officers are very flexible, however it depends on the school, schools without huge endowments don’t necessarily have good aid, and OOS schools don’t have great aid for students unless perhaps you have a football scholarship ;)</p>

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<p>I appreciate that some of you are putting these things in a better way that the original person is, but again, what you’re talking about has nothing to do with me. I don’t have 10k in savings. My credit isn’t the best (if it was, I’d probably have 10k in savings). And I’m not sure why someone would say “don’t have your mother co-sign, you’re an adult!” Do some of you know how many adult students in undergrad and grad school have to take out additional loans to cover college? And do you think that all of them have the good credit to do so? Heck, my roommate had to have his mom co-sign on a loan for a viola just last year, and he’s almost 25. Should he have stopped going to school just so his mom shouldn’t have to co-sign? </p>

<p>I realize that many of you who are responding are coming from a place of “my son this did” or “my daughter did that”. You are proud of your children. I get that. You may think that everyone can recreate exactly how your son or daughter managed to make their way through school. “Pull yourself up by the bootstraps” and whatnot. </p>

<p>But in all honesty, are your sons and daughters truly independent from you? Are you seriously providing no money to them at all on the side to help for school? Extra spending money? Rent? A little grocery money here or there? Or did you cut them off unceremoniously and say “good luck to you, your dad and I aren’t planning on helping at all, you’re a better person if you do it on your own.” Answer that question for me, please.</p>

<p>Again, I am not your son. And the bit of scorn and guilt that is being written into some posts is amazing. Yes, my credit is bad and I didn’t save 10k while I was working the last 10 years. You don’t know the circumstances of why I have bad credit or why I don’t have 10k, but your tones are making it sound like because I don’t have those things, I have less right to look for ways to attend college like your sons or daughters do. It’s like you’re using them (or yourselves, in one case) as the standard by which to judge others. </p>

<p>I’m not exactly sure why I seem to be incurring the wrath of a bunch of moms, other than the only experience you have to share is about your sons or daughters. But again, I’m looking for advice that might relate to me or MY situation, not your sons or daughters. I don’t have 10k saved up, my credit isn’t the best, and I can’t change those or other parameters of my life in order to go to college. In short, you can’t tell me to stop my life and make it into your sons or daughters. </p>

<p>In fact, not that it should be any of your business, but the reason I don’t have 10k saved, my credit is the best, and need a co-signer on a private loan is because for the last few years I have been battling cancer. My personal savings are gone thanks to this, and because I’m still negotiating payment on many of the medical bills, my credit has been damaged. My company didn’t offer health insurance (most companies in my field do not because they are small business). My cancer is now in remission, thank god. But the damage has been done, and I need a degree in a field that offers more stability and benefits in case my illness returns. That’s why I have to go back to college. And that’s why I may not be your son or daughter. </p>

<p>If I seem upset or irritated, you now know the reason why. The reason really shouldn’t matter though. 29, cancer, bad credit, any of that. If you have information, share it because its helping someone but do it without the dose of moral judgment about why they need the advice in the first place. You really can’t know what any of the people on a board such as this are going through, or their reasons for needing the advice you have. </p>

<p>Otherwise, perhaps some of you should start saying: “before I give you my advice, I’m going to ask your some personal questions about your situation to make sure it fits my definition of someone who is worthy.” And doesn’t that seem a bit silly? </p>

<p>I want to say one quick thing about “get a job” before I go. I’m not sure how many of you can see this, but if I work more, the Financial Aid system penalizes me by offering less aid. Right now, I’m at 12k in financial aid, and that’s if I don’t work another day this year and bring in any taxable income. </p>

<p>If I work, that financial aid will be adjusted downward, and that means I’ll have to work MORE in order to make up that shortfall and pay the school. Which means my aid will be adjusted downward again. </p>

<p>I am more that willing to work more, outside of my work-study. So, anyone, how do you propose I get around this? If someone can come up with a legitimate, legal way to do this, I’m ON BOARD. </p>

<p>And don’t use “employee tuition programs.” Here’s why:</p>

<p>Awhile back, I worked at a company that offered such a program. It required at least one year of service first before applying. The best benefits from these programs also require you to continue to work full-time, but the full-time earnings pushes your federal aid package down. And part-time employees receive even less. </p>

<p>Besides all of that, the most generous programs are in larger corporations, which I would need a degree to get into anyway. And, whether you knew this or not, most managers don’t want their employees taking advantage of these programs. It interferes with productivity and work hours. If you ask most managers, they will tell you that they don’t promote it because they need their workers available and committed to their jobs, not school. And what’s more, they certainly don’t want to create a special schedule for a worker so he or she can go away mid-day or morning to take a class that is only offered then. School must fit into the work schedule. And if you’ve ever been to a college or university, some classes only take place during the day.</p>

<p>These programs, although available to everyone, are really targeted for people at management level on up where the company has a reason to invest in education. But they offer it to everyone to enhance the benefits package at all levels. How do I know all this? I was an assistant to the owner of a company once. He offered such a program but was honest in his assessment: “Why would I train someone with my money so they could just go off to my competitor or I have to offer them more money to stay?” These companies aren’t stupid; they offer the programs when they know it will benefit them first and foremost. </p>

<p>Which brings me to the final point on tuition reimbursement programs: Many companies can force you to pay back the tuition if you leave the company. They only pay for classes that directly benefit the company, and prepared you for promotion or help you do your job better. A degree is not a necessary goal for these companies. This means that many of the gen ed classes that are required for a degree are NOT covered by the employer because it doesn’t directly affect them. They can choose which classes to pay for and which to reject. And, in fact, they can choose which college you attend to take advantage of the program. </p>

<p>And, again, all of this requires you to get into a company that offers you such a program and have a manager that is willing to schedule you to allow you to take advantage of it. </p>

<p>So, unless I’m wrong about reimbursement programs and their true purpose, I’m totally willing to listen to ideas about how I can work without losing financial aid. </p>

<p>Thanks</p>

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<p>if your reason to finish your education is to be more employable- I think finding a company that will support your desire for further education is a no -brainer!</p>

<p>My husband works at Boeing- you don’t need a degree to work there- in fact he has never attended college- they pay for workers to attend school even if the classes are unrelated- I had someone from Boeing in my massage school program for instance.</p>

<p>But in all honesty, are your sons and daughters truly independent from you?
Yes actually except for the one who is a minor child- and I have been independent from my own mother since I was 17 and I moved out of the house- it isn’t that difficult- just depends on what you have as a priority.</p>

<p>Do some of you know how many adult students in undergrad and grad school have to take out additional loans to cover college?
Their parents post on these boards when the students refuse to pay their loans!
Which is why I think adults should be responsible for their own expenses- if you can’t afford something- its a good incentive to get your own house ( or credit ) in order.
Our choices determine future choices- if I make a bad choice and wreck my credit why should I expect a parent to have to bail me out? How long do you expect to be dependent on a parent once you are grown?</p>