Panicking with few resources

Paying for College
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<p>I'm so sorry to have to make this thread but my guidance counselor is useless and I'm not sure what to do.</p>

<p>I am attending a mediocre state university near my hometown this fall (it's like 81 or 89% accepted, so nothing special.) I received my financial aid package, but unfortunately the school offers little to no advising on just what the heck I am supposed to do next.</p>

<p>This is my COA:
Books and Supplies $1,000.00
Loan Fees $130.00
Personal Expenses $1,100.00
Room and Board $7,950.00
Transportation $1,100.00
Tuition and Fees $9,310.00
Total: $20,590.00</p>

<p>This is my package:
Fed College Work Study Offered $2,500.00
Fed Pell Grant Accepted $5,550.00
Fed Perkins Loan Offered $1,000.00
Fed Parent PLUS Loan Eligible Offered $1,540.00
Fed Supp Educ Opportunity Grnt Accepted $1,500.00
Fed Direct Loan Sub Fall/Wt Offered $3,500.00
Fed Direct Loan Unsub Fall/Wt Offered $2,000.00
Grand Valley Grant Accepted $3,000.00
Total Awarded: $20,590.00</p>

<p>This is for the whole year, so I had my full need met. (My mom makes about $12,000 a year, so we are very broke.) Good package, I think. But before I accept all or some of it, I have some questions no one seems able to answer!</p>

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<li><p>Do I have to accept the work study? If I don't, will it affect my package for next year? I would take it without hesitation except that I must start working this summer and I don't want to quit a part-time job right after I get it. It's too difficult to juggle school, a social life, work study, AND a part-time job, isn't it?</p></li>
<li><p>My mom is almost certain to be denied the PLUS loan due to bad credit. The school offers additional financial aid if turned down. Do I need to accept it first before she actually applies for it?</p></li>
<li><p>My dorm assignment will likely be less than the $7,950 estimated and I am not taking a meal plan. Am I breaking a rule if I still receive this aid, even if the total is less than estimated?</p></li>
<li><p>Excess fin aid money will be deposited into the student's account the first week of the semester. Is it okay to use this for a car? I don't understand why we are given money in the COA for transportation when I have heard it is illegal to use it for a vehicle.</p></li>
<li><p>The enrollment fee for students was due May 1. We are required to pay it to secure an orientation date. We could not afford it, so my counselor called, got the payment pushed back, and managed to get me an orientation date. But now there is a hold on my account for registering for classes and I don't know if it's because I have not paid the fee yet (we will be able to pay it next week) or if I have to go to my orientation to register! The school website has no information on this. I am afraid all of my classes will be full by the time I get to orientation, which isn't until June 16th!</p></li>
<li><p>My sociology teacher keeps telling us not to take our whole financial aid package if we don't need it. Is this good advice? How do I determine what I really need? (Do I need money for transportation if my plan is to share a car with my mom?)</p></li>
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<p>I'm freaking out and know I really need to call the school, but I was hoping someone here would know before I have to do that. Thank you so much and sorry that they're such stupid questions!</p>

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<p>Yes, it’s a pretty good aid package from a directional state U. Wish the parent plus loan wasn’t included, but at least it’s pretty small.</p>

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<p>You don’t have to accept the work study. But if you don’t, then that’s $2500 that must be made up elsewhere. It is also important to note that you earn the $2500—in other words, you don’t get the money up front; you get it in the form of pay checks over the course of the year. Will turning it down affect net year’s package? That’s a question that only the U’s FA office can answer. I’d strongly recommend NOT trying to juggle an outside part time job, work study, and school (let alone a social life) all at the same time during oyour first semester in college. One advantage of work study earnings is that they don’t affect next year’s FAFSA; an off-campus part time job may increase your contribution to the FAFSA EFC. Again, talk to someone in the U’s FA office to find out more about work study.</p>

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<p>My understanding is that you will be able to take out an additional $1,540.00 in unsubsidized Stafford loans only after your mom is denied the parent plus loan. Try your best to pay the interest on the unsubsidized Staffords as it comes due in order to prevent it from being added to the principal.</p>

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First, make sure that freshmen living in dorms are not required to purchase a board plan. At many, many colleges, the freshmen living in dorms are required to purchase the full board plan. How are you expecting the cost of the dorm to be lower? Have you volunteered to be put in an overcrowd triple/quad? Most colleges use the standard freshman double room in the estimate COA.</p>

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<p>Transportation costs estimated as part of price of several (2–4) round trip tickets home and/or the cost of driving a car you already own. Note that the $1,100 transporation costs will NOT cover the cost of owning and maintaining a car—even a clunker. A car is a really bad idea for a whole bunch of reasons if you’re living on campus. Among them: High cost of insurance (particularly if you’re a male) and the need to spend money on both gas and maintenance . The cost of maintaining an old car is not insignificant and the cost of insuring a new or late model car will be astronomical. If you’re working off campus, get to know the city bus system and/or ride a bike. For getting home, there’s Greyhound and checking out the ride board to see if you can help someone else with gas and driving.</p>

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When you talk to the FA office, ask about this. You might also want to check the web pages to see if you can find a list of things that go on during orientation. If your orientation is June 16, you’ll be able to find classes. You may have to take an 8:00 AM class or a 4:00 PM class (or both), but that’s not the end of the world.</p>

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If you can afford to NOT take out some of the loans, then avoiding loans is a good idea. First decline the Parent Plus. Then the unsubsidized Stafford (if they’ll let you). Then the Perkins loan.</p>

<p>And a question: Earlier you indicated that you’d be living on campus. Now you’re saying you’ll share a car with your mom? Is the college in the same town that you live? If so, then it might be best to live at home an commute. [You’d probably lose the Grand Valley Grant and possibly some work study, but you also would not need as much in loans.] If the college is not where you live, then how are you and your mom going to share the car?</p>

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Your questions are NOT stupid! They’re very astute!</p>

<p>Good luck in sorting things out.</p>

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<p>*I would take it without hesitation except that I must start working this summer and I don’t want to quit a part-time job right after I get it. It’s too difficult to juggle school, a social life, work study, AND a part-time job, isn’t it? *</p>

<p>Is your part-time job going to be close enough to your home AND dorm that you can continue with it after school starts?</p>

<p>Go ahead and accept the work-study. You don’t have to actually do all of it.</p>

<p><a href=“Do%20I%20need%20money%20for%20transportation%20if%20my%20plan%20is%20to%20share%20a%20car%20with%20my%20mom?”>I</a> *</p>

<p>How will you share a car with your mom???</p>

<p>If you don’t do a meal plan, how will you eat???</p>

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<p>Don’t worry about classes. It is way to early to pick classes for fall. You will probably be sent a lot of info in the mail during the summer so try to be patient. Most likely someone will help you pick fall classes and give you lots of info when you go to orientation. Take a deep breath and relax.</p>

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<p>Also, I have heard good things about Grand Valley and know of people who wanted to go there but couldn’t afford it so congrats.</p>

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<p>I agree with others…this package is a good one for you. If you get a summer job, you should be all set. Congratulations.</p>

<p>With regard to class registration…you need to follow YOUR SCHOOL’S timeline and they do vary. One of my kids registered for classes in June…the other didn’t register until September (she went to the last orientation). Regardless…you will have to reconcile your finances so they can unlock your account. </p>

<p>I would suggest talking directly to Grand Valley. Your HS GC isn’t going to be able to help you much with their policies. Most schools will assign you a financial aid advisor if you ask for one…this person can help you navigate the process. Give finaid a call and ask.</p>

<p>Agreed…accept the work study award. You may find that this job comes in handy and helps you organize your time as well.</p>

<p>Good luck…you sound like you are on your way!!</p>

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<p>I agree with what Robinsue has posted. I don’t know how many kids I know who use their college financial aid to get a car and then run into trouble because a car is not cheap to maintain. A good, reliable car with a low repair incidence is not cheap. My son got a good deal on a Subaru with a 1% loan and is still struggling to pay for it, pay for the insurance, the upkeep, the gasoline, repairs when needed. It would not have been possible in college without a bail out. </p>

<p>It sounds to me that you are getting a car for your mother with your financial aid funds. THis is really tricky business that I have seen go awry more times than it has worked. It looks like you are going to leave the car at home with your mother and live at college Most 18 year olds have their hands full just keeping their heads above water at college and keeping track of their own needs and expenses. Trying to subsidize your parents when you are on such thin ice financially is not a good idea. Your financial aid package is a good one from a state school that does not tend to meet full need. Next year it is probably going to be less generous since colleges expect the student to pick up more of the costs each year. To buy something that decreases in value and needs more money for maintenance as time goes by, like a car is really asking for trouble. </p>

<p>Do the numbers for your outside job vs your work study allotment and availability of jobs at the school. Work study does not count against next year’s aid, whereas your outside job could depending on how much you earn. If you are working this year already, and expect to make over the amount that counts on FAFSA, it might be a good idea to start your work study job at that point. Otherwise make sure you are saving that money for your job for next year’s expenses as you will be expected to do so. Also if you want to work during the school year, it is advisable to be working on campus. Find out if you have to take every bit of the work study or if you can just take what you need. </p>

<p>Congratulations on your acceptance to college with that nice financial aid package.</p>

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<p>I agree that you should not decline the WS award just yet - it’s not going to get you any more aid anyway. Work study jobs can be very good for students for several reasons such as making contacts on campus by working for the various departments, doing research, and because, by their very nature, the scheduling is designed to be fit around the student’s needs. The last is very handy around exam time and you may even find a WS job that will allow you some study time while being paid! </p>

<p>I also agree with the previous posters re. the car. Don’t buy a car if you don’t absolutely have to. Even if it seems necessary to get to your part time job, is it really going to pay you enough to make it worth the expense? Most campuses also have non-work study jobs available that would require no transportation.</p>

<p>I don’t see an ACG award or any MI state aid listed in your package. Do you know if you’re eligible for these? ACG is frequently added after the school verifies your final HS transcript.</p>

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<p>Thank you so much for all the replies- I can’t tell you how grateful I am.</p>

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<p>Likely I will be looking for one in Allendale, which is the college town. I don’t know exactly how this will work yet, lol. All I know is that I have to work this summer just to have the stuff I need for school this fall.</p>

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<p>I will have to do this because I’m still not sure whether taking it is my best option or not.</p>

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<p>I requested to be part of an academic community that is unlikely to be a popular choice with freshmen. It is the International Community, designed for international students or anyone interested. Since I am studying languages until transferring, it’s pretty much perfect! The dorm cost for the four bedroom suite is about $2000 less, I think, and the two bedroom suite $1000 less. These are private bedrooms too! I think the $7000 quote was sent for the apartment style dorms I was originally interested in, but I’m not sure. The standard double room is not that expensive, if I remember correctly. </p>

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<p>As for the meal plan, I am not required to purchase one with the academic community housing, if I do get in there. It may be a good idea to get one anyways, but I can’t say I’m really interested in dining hall food and the freshmen fifteen =/ That may be something to reconsider though.</p>

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<p>Haha, I’m very familiar! I’ve been taking the bus home from school since sixth grade (first just down the street and later across town.) I really never wanted to set foot in a bus again, but I just may have to get over it.</p>

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<p>It is about twenty to thirty minutes away and it is very important for me to live on campus. Well, it’s important to live away from home anyways! We live with my grandmother, who makes life…difficult…to say the least. My mom believes the distance is not too great to share the car when necessary. Obviously she will have it the majority of the time.</p>

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<p>This is good advice, lol. Thank you =]</p>

<p><a href=“particularly%20if%20you’re%20a%20male”>quote</a>

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<p>This is unimportant, but I am not. =] Are insurance rates really higher for guys?</p>

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<p>Thank you so much! =] Thanks for all the congrats =] I’m really happy to know that it is a good package.</p>

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<p>I will do this, thanks!</p>

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<p>Oh no! We already have a car. My mom feels guilty because it was originally bought to be mine and then hers broke down.</p>

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<p>Oh, I hadn’t realized that happened! Eek, thanks for the warning…</p>

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<p>That was defiintely one of the biggest reasons I was hesitant to turn down the work study! Study time is valuable after all, lol.</p>

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<p>I do not know…Are they affected by poor grades? =/</p>

<p>Sorry for the super long post, but everyone is being so incredibly helpful and I already feel calmer. Hopefully I addressed everything and sorry to have skipped replying to all the posts, but this is already super long. I do have another question though: are you allowed to work two jobs on campus or is that selfish? Am I allowed to do WS and another on-campus job?</p>

<p>To sum things up simply so far, take the WS and forget the car. =D Sounds like a plan to me!</p>

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<p>Re: the car and work study (yes…I see a relationship)…IF you get an oncampus job, you will be able to WALK to it…and you will not need a car. Take the W-S award and then apply for W-S jobs on campus. Then you won’t NEED the car.</p>

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<p>Yes, it’s possible to have both a work study and a non-work study job on campus. Find out when/where on-campus employers post their openings and apply early. After the first year you’ll likely have a better idea of where the jobs are and which ones you’d like.</p>

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<p>Thumper is right.</p>

<p>A work study job won’t likely require a car.</p>

<p>how would you share a car with your mom and get to an off-campus job???</p>

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<p>I can tell you that my son’s car has been the bane of his bank account. He pretty much had to get one after college because his job and the courses he should be taking are not on public transportation lines. We do not have an extra car for him and with all of the necessary driving, it would not work for him to depend on us. He got a reliable second hand car with good mileage and checked over by a trusted mechanic. Still the cost of ownership and issues has been a pain in the neck, and he has a regular income and still leans on us financially as he lives with us. He desperately wanted a car when he was at college, but after this bout of car ownership has reluctantly come to the conclusion that it was a good thing he did not. He has advised his car hungry brothers of that fact and other college students.</p>

<p>You already have a taste of car problems. So your mom got a car for you and now needs it because hers broke down? Used cars tend to break down. A lot. Many a time my budget was busted by an untimely car repair that was absolutely necessary. </p>

<p>If you end up with extra money at the end of the year, just make sure that you are not hit with it sitting in your account or somewhere during your next year’s financial aid analysis. Use it to pay off a bill or lend it to your mother if it doesn’t put her over any cut offs. Yes, most schools are not as generous the next year. It is standard that they expect you to pay more each year. The cost tends to increase each year too.</p>

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<p>mirotic (the OP) writes:</p>

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<p>Good to see you’re listening! And good luck with your first year of college!</p>

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<p>Mirotic, congrats. Just so you know, getting into GV is very much an accomplishment – profile of admitted students is slightly higher than MSU (it goes back and forth each year), which makes them 2nd or 3rd public in the state for admit selectivity. So CONGRATS!
Secondly, as I know the area, the express busses to GVSU are really quite reasonable in frequency and speed. If you are going to live there, truly, forget the car (as the wise posters have suggested.) Also, accept the WS. You don’t have to use it, and you can adjust it mid-year if you found an off-campus job you like better or didn’t find a WS job. And re: food – do you have access to kitchen facilities, and do you cook? It is possible to save a great deal of money making your own healthy meals.
Good luck and cheers!
And don’t worry. Just keep taking initiative to get the info you need.</p>

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<p>PS - Re: Michigan competitiveness grant and Academic Competitive Grant – for those not familiar with Michigan shenanigans in the house, there have been and continue to be a raft of cuts, adjustments, cancellations, and unknown statuses in the availability of former state programs. ACG, however, appears to be intact, is worth $750, is contingent on an academically challenging/rigorous curriculae, and typically is not calculated until mid summer when final transcript is evaluated. One of the “Michigan” grants – think it is the competitive – which depends on grades and income – is dramatically reduced to about $550 from a former $2300 and hasn’t been applied until Jan. lately because schools are never sure what the state will REALLY fund.</p>

<p>So, that’s why the OP did not have those two on her package. My best guess is if she is eligible, the PLUS will reduce come fall by the ACG, and she may get a pleasant surprise second semester if and when the MI Comp grant is funded.</p>

<p>Mirotic - that said, don’t count on those state programs at this moment. Too much at stake. Just make your own plan and be happy if you get the extra ;)</p>

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<p>You can “accept” the work/study and I would do that. If you find a job this summer that can/will extend into fall/winter then you can just not look for a work/study job. If you find a job but it’s not giving you enough hours you can then look for a work/study job. The college isn’t going to find you a work/study job so if you don’t go looking for one, you won’t get paid (out of work/study dollars). There’s nothing to loose by accepting the work/study dollars. However, if you turn them down, you may not be able to get them back.</p>

<p>GVSU is alitle bit on the outskirts, however, the buses back and forth from Allendale to downtown GR are pretty good. If you don’t need the car this summer depending on what summer job you manage to get, I’d postpone the car purchase as long as possible.</p>

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<p>My son got $510 from the Michigan Competitive Scholarship last year and MSU added a little more for him. The Michigan Promise Scholarship is totally gone.</p>

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<p>You don’t automatically “get” any loan $. You’ve been offered loans. You need to “accept” the loans, following directions from your school (you should be able to do this online). Basically you need to read about the loans, how much they will cost you, how much you need to pay back, etc. This is for your benefit - so you know what you’re getting yourself into. ONce you complete the acceptance of each loan, then the loan $ will be deposited into your account. This process takes some time. Perhaps you can ask if you can use some loan $ to pay your deposit so you can get rid of that hold and regiser?</p>

<p>I would definitely accept the w/s. My 2 kids have always done this. My DD chose not to work 1st qtr but then did every qtr after that - sometimes she had 2 different w/s jobs at the same time. My son worked some semesters and not others. YOU get to choose how much you want to work. It’s up to you to find the jobs (often listed online). The workstudy amount listed is the upper LIMIT that you can earn in the school year. No need to turn this down. You don’t have to use this option, but it’s nice to have it available if you see a job you want.</p>

<p>Work-study helps you in 2 ways. W/S jobs are only available to kids who are offered w/s so there’s less competition than for non w/s jobs that everyone is eligible for. Although W/S income still counts toward federal taxes, it’s not used against you when determining financial aid in the following year. I believe it works like this (but someone please correct me if I’m wrong). Let’s assume you earn $4000 this summer in a traditional non work study job. At college, you earn another $2000 in non-work study income ($6000 total non w/s earnings). A portion of that $6000 will be counted toward your next year’s EFC because over a certain income, FA increases EFC $.50 for each $1 earned. If however, you earn $2000/yr in w/s income, no part of that $6000 will count toward next year’s EFC because the $4000 NON W/S earnings are below the limit.</p>

<p>W/S jobs are usually more flexible than regular part time jobs. Students often can skip work or reschedule work hrs around exams/projects. Some jobs, like library desk or information desk or equipment rentals often have “down time” where it’s slow enough to do some studying. For science majors, lab jobs are often available work-study. Research assistants too. My son actually got paid to be part of a weight study, testing that freshman 15 theory. He got paid to be weighed before and after and to provide eating habits, etc. </p>

<p>I would try to avoid the plus loans. Your mom can’t afford loans. Most kids can handle 10 hrs/week. Many jobs require less hours than that.</p>

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<p>Thanks so much, everyone! I feel way calmer now. As an update, I went ahead and took everything except the Parent PLUS loan because my mom certainly can’t afford it and I don’t want that kind of pressure on her. </p>

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<p>Is it really? o_O I had no idea, especially when I got in on a 2.8 GPA! (31 ACT though, which probably helped.)</p>

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<p>There are kitchens in these dorms and I can get by =] So no starving here! I will still look into one of the cheaper meal plans though, just in case.</p>

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<p>I will do this! I’ll get by without it and should it happen, it’ll just be a nice bonus. Otherwise, it’s not vital.</p>

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<p>I hadn’t realized it worked this way, for some reason! I realize now I’ve been acting pretty dumb about the whole thing and not using common sense. At least work study is something to fall back on and should I find just a temporary summer job, everything will work out perfectly.</p>

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<p>This is helpful. I was under the impression I would work as the employer saw fit and nevermind how much I can handle or what my maximum award for WS is.</p>

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<p>This would be bad. My mom and I are broke enough to get good financial aid, but should she or I make more, we would be in a situation where we are too high for good aid but are too low to afford college.</p>

<p>I didn’t realize about the money earned via WS/non-WS. Thank you for that information!</p>

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<p>Avoided, definitely, especially as there is no real guarantee that she won’t pass the credit check. She’s got bad credit, yes, but I’ve heard of other people passing anyways, so I don’t want to risk it.</p>

<p>Sorry for cutting posts and not responding to everything. I definitely feel more at ease now. I’ll see where I am at with the loans I have accepted and have to apply for and go from there. The car is out of the picture at this point and work study is in, which was my biggest concern. If I am in need of more money during the school year in addition to the work study pay, I will try and find an additional on-campus job, since they are more likely to accomodate and be more understanding, right?</p>

<p>Thanks again =]</p>