<p>We are working way ahead as s. is just entering his fit university next fall, but I've noticed a number of fin aid experts/workers on this board so will ask in advance.
S. is presently enrolling as a dual-degree student (one is BA in Film and one is the equivalent of music technology at School of Music but is a BFA not a BM). Since the BFA is pretty specialized with numerous SOM prereqs, and since he will need film reqs to get the upper level production courses he wants, we expect he'll need to take a minimum of 18 credit hrs (as opposed to 12 or 15) and plan on a full fifth year.
He's received a scholarship that covers 8 terms of study. We are trying to completely minimize his loan amount for the next four years in order to "save" his indebtedness threshold for year 5. We also <em>hope</em> to save personal resources to help cover, but that can be tough being small business owners in this present environment.</p>
<p>I have noticed that once an undergraduate degree is complete, only loans are available to continue. This may not actually come to bear on us anyway, but do people generally attempt to pace their credits so that neither degree is "complete" until year five in order to maintain eligibility for FAFSA grant such as pell?</p>
<p>Thanks in advance for any advice you can offer.</p>
<p>The fifth year funding is institution specific, regarding institutional grants, scholarships and loans. My son was a five year dual major in a specifically designated five year program (perf/ed) at Hartt. His talent award covered the full five year duration.</p>
<p>Be sure to check the parameters and be aware of what the financial aid policy is on dual degree/double major programs. The Stafford/Perkins caps are set by federal dictate. I don’t know the limits (if any on the Pell, but the FA experts on here should.)</p>
<p>He did max out his Stafford allotment by the end of his five years.</p>
<p>We were able to cover COA through savings, Plus loans, and his Staffords, but it will depend on your resources. </p>
<p>You have to know the timing as to how the degrees will be awarded. If there are two actual degrees, it makes sense to defer the coursework so that they are awarded concurrently in the final year; the award of the initial degree in year four would abrogate federal undergrad aid for year five. (At least that’s how I understand it.) </p>
<p>One other thing to check is to be aware of “overload” charges, which may apply to credits “in excess” of an established per semester norm, as these are institution and degree specific. Many disciplines are credit heavy, and the fee structure allows for those in that type of program to carry a heavier load than a liberal arts degree, (where 15 credits might be the norm) without additional financial penalty. </p>
<p>Son’s experience was an average load of 17-18 per semester, with a max allowable of 20 or 21 without requiring a dean level waiver or face “overload” fees.</p>
<p>Your best bet is to review the details in the school’s undergrad handbook, and then speak to a financial aid administrator for interpretation. It does help immensely going into that discussion to be armed with as much back-up info as possible, and the undergrad handbook is the best place to get it.</p>
<p>Thanks, VDad. Yes, it’s two separate degrees, each with own reqs. One music tech student had done it before and we hope to track her down for advice. So it may be possible to time completion of both in yr. 5. I will get busy looking into the specs. I do know that we’re in for overload charges after 18 credit hours per semester and we’ve been debating the wisdom of just pacing it well (at 18 instead of 20) nevermind the finances versus attempting to push it for 9 semesters (which is theoretically possible but, I suspect, would require some kind of perfect universal alignment : )</p>
<p>S’s general scholarship for academic merit carries 8 terms in the arts (but 9 for engineering.) S. has not yet heard whether or not he will be selected for a talent-based award, announcements of which are made first week of April. Since the SOM portion is 4 years, though, I’m not sure that he’d be awarded for 5 in the happy event he were selected for talent award. Maybe there is room for discussion on the merit award (eg. getting 9th semester) and I should pursue that as well.</p>
<p>At any rate, thanks for those tips.
Cheers,
K</p>
<p>As soon as he is awarded his first bachelors degree, his eligibility for Pell and SEOG are gone. He will continue to be eligible for Stafford loans as long as he does not reach the aggregate undergrad limits ($31,000 for a dependent student, of which $23,000 may be subsidized - $57,500 for an independent student with up to $23,000 subsidized … in case he turns 24 & becomes independent for financial aid purposes during his last year).</p>
<p>If the school has Perkins available, they may award him some after he becomes ineligible for Pell. He can always ask when the time comes.</p>
<p>Yes, once one of the BAs is awarded you are in a different category, so time it to be concurrently awarded and you can at least maximize any aid available.</p>
<p>Thanks, guys. Kelsmom – Part of my concern about the loan re: year 5 is the possibility of his not being able to get enough via Stafford and instead needing PLUS – worried because I am a (legal : ) permanent resident alien with no credit history who is also ineligible for credit because, you guessed it, no credit history. (Even my banker can’t seem to solve this conundrum. I am/was fine with that until now because I avoid credit like the plague… but this is one instance where I just plain have a score of “0” and <em>may</em> not be able to cashflow yr 5 without credit…having lost nearly half of what I’d set aside for school to begin with…)
So my question is…IF I were rejected for a PLUS loan, does that INCREASE the cap/ceiling for Stafford???
If not, I may be better off doing everything in my power to cashflow yrs 1-4, having him take no loan, b/c he’ll need apx. $23k compound-inflated by 6% across 4 years in 2013 to attend, right? In other words, without the scholarships, MI promise, etc., grant, he’ll need in the neighborhood of the entire Stafford maximum.
(I think right now would be a good time to pray for a little extra merit money from the department still deciding, wouldn’t it : )</p>
<p>Again, thanks in advance for advise.
Cheers,
K</p>
<p>But, wouldn’t you run into the ceiling on annual loan limits that year? I think the max Stafford for any one loan year after year 2 is $7,500. But if you’re turned down for a PLUS loan, he’s eligible for an additional $5,000 loan. Unless, I’m misunderstanding your post, it looks like he’d also have to take and bank the loans in year 4 in order to come up with close to $23K for year 5.
[FinAid</a> | Loans | Student Loans](<a href=“Your Guide for College Financial Aid - Finaid”>Student Loans - Finaid)</p>
<p>Hmmm. Egads, I believe you are correct. (Which would mean he could finance $12,500, which is not nearly enough…unless he gets a spot as an RA, or takes a break year to work and save…all good options in light of the alternatives. That fact will make things interesting. Clearly, I need to get digging on this info so I know whether to save (and have him borrow) in order to pay the lion’s share of year 5 or or attempt to pay-as-we-go to reserve his stafford max. I am guessing this level of planning will require input from the FA office rather than a discussion board : ), but first I’ll take V-dad’s advice and review the student handbook closely.
If anyone’s been through this, please do post – it helps direct my attention to the best places to dig.
Thanks again for your help, all.
Cheers,
K</p>
<p>Just in case anyone reads this dead thread: in this case the dual degrees are awarded concurrently, so the wisest course is to make sure no matter what we do not exceed his borrowing cap at $31 k sub and unsub across 5 years and begin saving now for year 5, which we are doing. That means cash-flowing any shortfall, optimizing work study, and/or parent Plus for gaps. Also, for future permanent residents…no problem with parent plus loans…lack of credit rating is apparently o.k., it’s just ADVERSE that concerns them. Hoping to be helpful to a future searcher : )</p>