<p>So, I'm in a bit of a pickle. I currently am on academic restriction due to having a 1.51 GPA. It's horrible, I know. I failed too many classes, I'm not going to make excuses. Because I'm on restriction, I can only take 2 classes this semester (7 credits total-usually it's 6, but I convinced them to give me 1 extra credit so I could take the Lab Science course I need to transfer along with an art course). It'll be $1050 for tuition. A stretch out-of-pocket, but not impossible.</p>
<p>HOWEVER, because I have been a student since August 2011 and only have 25 earned credits (as well as my low GPA) I'm on Financial Aid termination. Which means I won't get any aid for this semester. Sucks, but whatever. It's life.</p>
<p>My problem/dilemma is that I'm planning on transferring next semester to a 4 year school. I'll be living on campus, 1000+ miles from home. It's going to be $9k for the semester (tuition, room & board), which I technically should get covered via Financial Aid. But I have no idea how my current FA termination will affect my eligibility at the new school.</p>
<p>Does anyone have any insight on this?</p>
<p>ALSO: I have an EFC of 0 due to my dad making ~20k last year (my parents are divorced and he provides the most for me), and the confirmation email said I could expect $5650 in pell grant along with $6500 direct loans for the year. Does anyone know if I'll still be eligible for those full amounts or if they'll be cut? I figure they'll be cut, just thought I would ask though. </p>
<p>This would have been my first semester getting the pell grant. The past two years my mom did the FAFSA and made too much to get any pell. Unfortunately, she got in a bunch of financial issues and I had to live with my dad, which changed my amount eligibility. We had been paying for school with money that had been saved, but that is all gone now.</p>
<p>Is it possible, mathematically speaking, to bring your GPA up to a 2.0 with these 2 classes? If so, that may be your best bet at being eligible for FA.</p>
<p>I don’t think so. It’s only 7 credits. Even if I aced them both, I don’t think it bring it up to a 2.0. But I don’t need a 2.0 for eligibility for FA… I only need a 1.80, which acing all classes this semester will do.</p>
<p>What makes you think that you will get enough financial aid to fully cover your costs in future years at that 4-year institution? You need to check that out carefully.</p>
<p>@HappyMom: My dad is in an industry (he sells old used cars via ebay) that is not improving not to mention the $250k he owes on the house he bought as an investment right before the real estate market crashed, and so I will most likely have a very low EFC until I graduate and both my parents have agreed to help me pay back any loans I have to take out (once they’re both financially stable, of course. My dad is looking to get remarried in the future (she makes $175k/year), but it’ll be at least 4 years before that happens and once my mom sorts out her finances she’ll have an easier time helping me with anything extra that I need, though she’ll never be able to afford ~$13k/year). Tuition for this year is $3000/semester. I can easily find a $250-$300/month rental close to the school (after I do at least one semester in the dorms), I know how to eat healthy while being frugal and anything else that I need I can get and job and work for. </p>
<p>@romanigypsyeyes: Yes. It’s a small, rural school in the middle of nowhere. Most of the people that attend are local to the area. I’ve talked about this exact factor numerous times with several different admissions people at the school and as long as I get the lab science credit that I am taking this semester, I will be able to transfer.</p>
<p>Are you aware that you may well have to pay more than your EFC? That does not become the sticker price for your education. It is also difficult to obtain financial aid as a transfer student.</p>
<p>You may need to consider getting more credits through a community college as a way of bringing up your GPA and accumulated credits while working to save money to finish your degree…</p>
You don’t have to have ever received aid to not meet SAP. My son had never applied for aid but when her returned to school after dropping out for a couple of years he was initially denied aid even though everything had previously been paid out of pocket. (he actually met all the cumulative GPA and % completed requirements but had withdrawn from all his classes in his last semester because of some stuff going on in his life).</p>
<p>You need to accumulate all of your information, make copies and send it to the director of financial aid at the college to which you are applying and ask what you can do to best resolve this situation. You may have to go to school locally and pay out of pocket until you get your average back up to an acceptable number. Or pay out of pocket for the first term as a transfer. But whatever, the fin aid director can give you advice on all of thise.</p>