<p>I received a notification that I will recieve $5500 in aid (grants, not loans). Will I be given $5500 per semester, or is this for the whole year?</p>
<p>That is likely for one year. Is it a Pell Grant?</p>
<p>I believe so? I’m not too familiar with the terminology, but after completing my FAFSA it said that my EFC was 00000 and that I would receive $5500 in aid.</p>
<p>Yes…that’s a Pell Grant.</p>
<p>It is for a year. It will be divided between semesters (or quarters).</p>
<p>Yes, that is a Pell grant and that is the amount per year, not per semester, based on full-time enrollment. Make sure you also apply for your state’s grant program by the deadline, if a separate application is needed!</p>
<p>In addition to the $5500 Pell Grant, you will also receive a $5500 Stafford loan for your freshman year.</p>
<p>Oh okay, I got it! Thank you everyone!</p>
<p>Btw, how does state aid compare with federal aid? Like, if I take my schools tuition and subtract my scholarship and federal aid from it, I have $8500 per year that I have left to pay. Do you think that I might get $5500 from the state as well, or do the states give less aid compared to the federal government?</p>
<p>What state are you in? If you don’t care to reveal, you might google your state’s higher ed agency.</p>
<p>Completely depends on your state. Our state gives a $1000 grant to students with EFCs below 1300. California gives pretty good aid.</p>
<p>*Btw, how does state aid compare with federal aid? Like, if I take my schools tuition and subtract my scholarship and federal aid from it, I have $8500 per year that I have left to pay. Do you think that I might get $5500 from the state as well, or do the states give less aid compared to the federal government? *</p>
<p>Some states don’t give ANY aid.</p>
<p>Which state are you in? and…is this YOUR state?</p>
<p>What school is this?</p>
<p>What scholarships have you gotten? </p>
<p>Will you be going to a school that you can commute to? If not, then you need to consider more than tuition.</p>
<p>Is this for St. John’s ?</p>
<p>Are you a NY resident?</p>
<p>the school costs over $45k per year to attend. </p>
<p>The tuition is about $32k per year.</p>
<p>Can you commute?</p>
<p>You got a $17k per year scholarship.</p>
<p>I’m in NY, and yes this is for St. John’s. I’m a resident of the state and live near the school so I’ll be commuting. And yes, it is my state. The tuition is $31,000 for the first four years and $35,000 for the last two. The $17k scholarship covers the first four but not the last two.</p>
<p>Well, you should get TAP then, but I don’t think it’s as much as Pell.</p>
<p>When you say that you still need to cover $8500, are you including a $5500 student loan?</p>
<p>If not, then perhaps with TAP and a loan you’ll have it all covered.</p>
<p>No, I am not including the $5500 student loan. Would you mind explaining a bit about that? Will I have to pay it back with interest? When will I have to pay it back? After graduation or what?</p>
<p>Also, since I will be going to St. John’s for the 6-year pharmacy program, the 17k scholarship is only for the first 4 years. Will I receive the TAP and the pell in my final 2 years?</p>
<p>Thanks once again.</p>
<p>Yes, a loan has to be repaid. The max STafford loan is $5500 for a freshman, $6500 for a sophomore, $7500 for 3rd year and up, with an aggregate of $31,000. But once you are considered a professional student the loan limit will increase.</p>
<p>The Pell is for undergrad students only. If you are in a 6 year pharmacy program there is a point in there where you are considered a professional student. Once you are considered a professional student you are not eligible for the Pell any more. (don’t know how/if that impacts TAP).</p>
<p>Thanks for the reply. So is there any grant for graduate students (I believe I will be considered a graduate student in my final 2 years)?</p>
<p>I’m afraid there are no federal grants for graduate students.</p>
<p>You need to check with your school about when you will be considered a graduate student so you don’t get any nasty surprises. It may vary by program, but I remember a poster a few years back been really taken unawares when they lost their Pell in only the 3rd year of their 6 year program. Check with your school.</p>
<p>for the undergrad loans, you will start paying them back once you’re completely out of school…so after you get your pharmD. </p>
<p>As an undergrad, you can borrow…</p>
<p>frosh 5500
soph 6500
jr 7500
sr 7500</p>
<p>since you’ll also be borrowing for when you’re no longer getting your scholarship money, try to borrow as little as you can during the first few years.</p>
<p>I don’t know what grants St. John’s has for students who go on to their pharm school. You might want to ask about that. You need to make clear that you’ve been accepted to their 6 year program. that’s important because they may only offer grants as incentives to get “other” students to enroll.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, once you’re considered to be no longer an undergrad, your borrowing power for fed loans increases to help pay those high costs.</p>
<p>I will call them up tomorrow to make sure about this, because in the final two years the tuition jumps to $35,000. I don’t wanna accumulate debt in my undergrad years and then have to borrow $70k more to cover my final 2 years.</p>
<p>It sounds like St John’s will consider you an undergrad for financial aid purposes for the first four years (or until after your P2 year), but you should confirm that with them. You will be eligible for TAP only while you’re an undergrad (and there is an 8 semester limit) and you can estimate your award using the calculator at the HESC website, where you’ll also fill out your TAP application if you haven’t done so already. NYS has been fairly generous with grant aid and I think this year’s maximum award was a bit over $4K…of course, that can change with each state budget. It’s likely that SJU will also offer you some other need-based aid too so if you can work this year/summer you might be able to forgo loans for a few years, or at least take only subsidized loans. </p>
<p>Once you’re no longer considered an undergrad, you should expect to take large loans for the remaining years. Stafford loans for grad students are capped at $20K/year and you’ll also be eligible to take Grad Plus loans. There may be some opportunities for you to get scholarships, but those will likely be fairly small and much more competitive in relation to what you’re receiving as a freshman. Many PharmDs have a hefty debt when they graduate but starting salaries are much higher than the typical new college grad…just keep an eye on salary trends and understand that you may have to move to a different area in order to secure employment.</p>