Hello all !
My virgin post. I’m 28 this year, with an AA degree in IT. I’ve just been made redundant by my job and I’m looking to go back to college to finish my degree. I’m hoping it’ll be in Computer Science or IT related. I live in Texas, so I’m looking at the colleges around the big cities. Namely, UT Dallas, U of Houston, UT Austin, A&M, and SMU.
I’ve done some reading up on FAFSA. From what I understand, I apply for admission into the college, and submit my FAFSA. The school’s financial department will show me how much they can ‘provide’ me. Firstly for tuition, followed by cost of living.
So my question is, what if the amount is not enough for me to survive on ?
Eg, Tuition is $8k, cost of living is $8k, total would be $16k.
What if the college can only provide me with $10k ? Does that mean I have to come up $6k in cash ?
Or can I find other ways to get the remaining amount of money ? eg, take a loan ?
I’m concern because my intention is to go back to college as a full time student, spend the next 2 years purely focusing on my education. But I’m afraid the college might not provide enough money for my tuition + room/board.
I’ve tried calling some of the colleges, all said I should apply to them and submit my FAFSA. they won’t comment otherwise on giving aid money.
Google the net price calculators for each of the colleges you are interested in attending and enter your data. This will give you an idea of what aid you will qualify for in each place. Here’s one to start you off https://www.utdallas.edu/finaid/calculator/
@AlbionGirl hi there, thanks for the reply.
stupid question but does the estimated cost of attendance numbers mean that’s how much the college will provide ?
My concern is, eg, the COA says $25k in total. And the financial aid given to me is only $15k.(Which means I’m short $10k)
Will that happen ? Or will the school commit to giving all $25k based on the COA ?
Sorry if it sounds stupid. It’s my first time applying for FAFSA.
I paid out of pocket for my CC education.
No, the COA is what the school estimates the costs will be for each student - tuition, fees, room and board, books, incidentals. It’s not what they provide, it’s what they expect you to pay (although you don’t pay the entire COA, just tuition and fees to the school; other expenses like books are paid to the bookstore, rent to the landlord, etc) Very likely you will NOT receive that amount from any school. If you submit the FAFSA, there are a few things you are guaranteed. As an independent student with junior standing, you will get a $12,500 LOAN. The school may also have grants or scholarship funds. The state of Texas might have funds you are eligible for. If you are low income (in 2015), you might qualify for a federal Pell grant.
You need to read the information from each school carefully. Are they awarding you grants, which you do not pay back, or loans? How much can you earn during the school year and summer? Are your expenses going to be higher or lower than the school estimates (travel might not cost you $2000 as it would an out of state student).
Please note also when doing your planning that the filing date for (2017-2018) FAFSA will be changing to October and it will start using year prior tax returns. Here’s a link that explains the details.
https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/about/announcements/fafsa-changes
This student will be a transfer student…and he is also independent for financial aid purposes. If the net price calculator doesn’t ask about these two things…it will NOT be accurate.
So my question is, if the COA says it’s a certain amount (like $25k), and the school only provides $15k in AID money. How can I get the other $10k ? Via loans ? Or must I come up with that in cash ? Because I don’t have alot of cash right now. I’m hoping to finish my 2 years of education via grants/aid/loans.
Is that possible ?
The school doesn’t really care how you come up with the balance. It could be from savings, current earnings, and/or loans.
wow, looks like finishing the last 2 years full time could be a challenge.
You can’t depend on the school giving you any money because you’re a transfer. You can get a ~$12k/year federal student loan because you’re independent, and if you’re low income you may get a Pell grant of up to ~$5k/year. But the likelihood of being given (and/or loaned) enough so you can devote 2 full years entirely to study without having to work is unrealistic. You’ll probably have to have a job to pay your living expenses.
hi @austinmshauri
is the 12k/year federal loan + 5k pell grant certain ?
if that’s the case, if i went to a lower cost college, eg, Midwestern State University, i might be able to get by.
You have to file the FAFSA to see if you qualify for the Pell grant. Go to the FAFSA.gov site to see what you might qualify for and call them with any questions.
You can also work while you are in college, in the summers, on breaks. Very few adult students return to school and just stop working for 2 full years. Many dependent students also work to pay for college and living expenses.
Very few lower income students of Any age get by without working during school. Even most Ivy schools have a student component to fund.
hi guys, i’m just wondering, when you guys say working during school. Does it mean working full time while juggling with school ? I used to work 40 hour weeks. I seriously don’t think i’ll be able to handle a job + school.
I worked full time at the post office while putting myself through nursing school. It isn’t ideal, but sometimes you do what you have to do. I would recommend a part time job. You will make sacrifices for sure, especially in your social life, but you will be grateful later that you minimized your future debt load!
@slaudsmom that was what i was fearing. i was working in IT. doing network solutions. always on call and stuff to fix crap. if i went back to what i did before, i seriously don’t think i can handle school at the same time.
You mentioned you might have some lower coat options for schools? By all means, take them! My brother is a computer geek with a great job. He says that most places don’t care where you went to school. So absolutely examine the feasibility of cheaper options!
Many older students in your situation look for cheaper options + a part time job + going to school year-round (meaning, you don’t take summers off.) The poster above is right. CS (if that’s what you’ll be studying) is a field where it doesn’t matter much where you got your degree. What counts is what you know & your practical experience.
Have you checked into Cyber Security? There is a program that pays for your last two years of a bachelor’s degree in return for several years working for the federal government. Let me see if I can find a link.