Returning Student - Questions about Aid

Paying for College
1

<p>Good afternoon! </p>

<p>I have a few questions that I am hoping I can get some guidance/opinions on about returning to college. I will try to be brief, but here is a little background...</p>

<p>I have 2 semesters of college credits taken way back in 1999/2000, but never completed any program. 3 weeks ago I was given notice that I am going to be laid off from my job at the end of May. I have been thinking of returning to school for some time and while discussing it with my family decided to look into possible financial aid. </p>

<p>I know that I qualified for the full 5k from pell grant (due to low income) last year when I was looking into this but never completed enrollment because of other issues. I would very much like to devote 100% of my time to school since I will be out of work anyway, but I am a sole provider for my family (husband and 3 children) and do not think I would be able to go to school without A LOT of aid or getting a job. </p>

<p>I have been out of the loop for a very long time and would really appreciate any input on where I might start looking for assistance, and perhaps even any ideas of how I may be able to get enough aid to attend school full time. </p>

<p>Any and all help is welcome. </p>

<p>Thank you and have a wonderful day.</p>

2

<p>Pbeck, the only guaranteed grant out there is the PELL, up to $5600 with a zero EFC. That is from the federal government. You need to see if your state has funding and if you are eligible for any of this, and if the schools you are eyeing have any grants for returning students.</p>

<p>Otherwise, its loans. All loans. You are guaranteed at least $9500 which is what a freshman independent student can borrow, with $3500 subsidized (no interest accruing until you go under a certain number of credtis). It goes up a bit, depending on your seniority standing. ALso, if you took any federal financial aid at all, that will enter into the picture as well. You should sit with a financial aid officer at one of the schools you have in mind and see what the possibilities are.</p>

<p>The likelihood of getting enough grant money to support a family of 5 and go to school solely on that money is very slim to none. And, truly, I don’t know if taking out loans in the amounts that make it possible is worth it, unless you are going into some field of study where there are ready jobs that pay decently. You are talking about payment coming to $500 a month or more upon completion of school and those payment will be due come hell or high water until you die or they are paid, usually in 10 year terms. You could still be paying on them when your own kids are ready to go to college. To do this, with not much of a bump in job prospects or pay, is not a good idea. Better to see if you can afford a course here and there and eke out the money and get through without borrowing. Really, you don’t want to owe this money, because as bad as things might seem now, with a $40K loan monkey on your back, it’s a lot worse. School financial aid is not meant to support a family and the amounts are not sufficient to do so. </p>

<p>If your are going to be out of work anyways, and can get the PELL and get a full term or year under your belt, that’s a whole other story. Perhaps working part time, or maybe a position could open up at the school. As I said, do discuss this with the financial aid offices and get some hard numbers including what the payback will be on loans, and what kind of program you are thinking of doing. But be very, very wary about borrowing.</p>

3

<p>I guess I didnt think about the payback so much as I was thinking it through, only that if I was going to be out of work anyway, might as well try to go to school and get a better job. </p>

<p>My current (soon to be former) job offered a very nice tuition reimbursement policy which I had just reached eligibility for last December (which is why I know I qualified for the full pell grant with the EFC being 0) but I was unable to get enrolled and get classes started before the “troubles” started happening at work and I didnt want to enroll then be let go and be stuck with large loans to pay off myself. </p>

<p>Thank you.</p>

4

<p>The likelihood of getting enough grant money to support a family of 5 and go to school solely on that money is very slim to none</p>

<p>True. You won’t be getting the aid that you want. You won’t likely even be given enough aid to cover YOUR own costs for ONE PERSON. You’ll get the Pell grant, and likely a loan of about $10k. What state are you in? Does it give low income people small state grants? </p>

<p>Surely you can understand that the gov’t and school isn’t going to support you, your non-working H, and your kids while you go to school. The taxpayers surely won’t pay for that, and I’ve never heard of any college doing so either.</p>

<p>Typically, gov’t aid consists of small grants and loans to go towards tuition…not even much/anything towards room and board. Gov’ts may like to help low income people with tuition, but providing for room, board, personal expenses, is just not affordable. And, the idea of providing for family members is, well, certainly not what the tax-payers or even the colleges intend to pay for. </p>

<p>Also, your aid prospects are worsened by the fact that you’re a transfer student. I’m not saying that you would have gotten the aid you want if you were an incoming frosh; you still wouldn’t have gotten that much, but you may have gotten some institutional aid.</p>

<p>It sounds like you’ll have to come up with a better strategy:</p>

<p>1) work full time and go to school part-time at night.</p>

<p>2) your H returns to work and supports the family.</p>

<p>3) you and your H both work part-time (alternating schedules) and you go to school part-time. you could work weekends and go to school at night, while your H worked during M-F during the day. </p>

<p>Were you considering relocating the family? Or were you thinking of attending a college that is near your current home? What schools can you commute to from your home? CCs? public univs?</p>

5

<p>I live in Florida and have FSU, FAMU, and several local community colleges that are very close. I am unsure exactly the state offers for lower income students. </p>

<p>I certainly can understand that noone is going to cover 100% of my expenses. I think perhaps I was just trying to turn a rather negative situation into something I could benefit from and not thinking rationally about how it would be paid for. </p>

<p>DH is a disabled vet and does recieve a monthly payment, but it would not be enough to cover the “running” expenses. </p>

<p>Thank you both for being that “voice of reason”. I was thinking only of get grants and loans/whatever else I could qualify for to go to school and then get into a field I enjoy, and not thinking of the payback long term.</p>

6

<p>PBeck1980, there are some programs that community and local colleges have that enhance employability and pay enormously for those who can stick it out and get a certificate. A lot of them are in the medical field and have to do with medical billing or equipment that require specialty training. I have recommended to kids who have graduated from top schools with general degrees in fields that they enjoy, and they now can’t find work, to go back and invest some time and money in getting training in fields where there is work that pays. When you get a foothold in a position of that sort, you can then angle for other jobs more suited to you, and maybe get tuition benefits to get a general degree which may well be useful in getting managerial positions in such fields. I live in an area with a lot very well educated folks from some big name schools who studied what they enjoyed and can’t find work.</p>

<p>You don’t have that luxury with three kids and a disabled husband. So you have to find the angles where you can do this sort of thing. I don’t know what is available in terms of costs and funding on a part time basis, but if you can embark on some program that can better your chances at a better paying job, you’ll have more flexibility as to what you can take in terms of enjoyment. The problem with loans is that you have to pay them pack and that nearly 7% interest rate is no bargain. Do some numbers and you’ll see what I mean. But do talk to someone about what programs are available at local schools and where some of the better jobs are .</p>

7

<p>I will look into that sort of thing. </p>

<p>Again, thank you for all your help.</p>

8

<p>PBeck, sometimes it’s very difficult when one sees others living at the top of the bubble on borrowed funds and living the life of Riley as it so seems while we trudge along limited by lack of money. But when the payback time comes, it is not pretty. I know some folks who owe hundreds of thousands of dollars in school loans and cannot begin to pay them. At 7% it takes about 10 years for what you borrow to double, and it goes by fast. These loans are not dischargeable for practically any reason, and they can hamstring you in terms of job opportunities, mortgages and many other things. Schools tend to push them because they get the proceeds and it’s what keeps them running for a good part. But unless you can see a benefit for yourself and family in terms of repaying them and a better life, don’t touch them. Be very, very careful.</p>

9

<p>After thinking more about it, I know that large loans are not the way to go. I have 3 children that will be in college evenutally I hope, and will not be able to help them if I am buried in debt myself. Up to this point in my life I have never had a credit card, no car payments, and my home was purchased outright from the individual, not a bank - so technically I have 0 credit, but I also have 0 debt. Its probably best to keep it that way for now. </p>

<p>I will contact the local community college and see if they have any of the programs you mentioned earlier (or know anywhere in the area that does). I just want to do something to better provide for my family, like everyone else I suppose. </p>

<p>Thank you.</p>

10

<p>PBeck, as you are going to be losing your job, you might look at the libraries, career offices, state offices, as well as the colleges and look for some help. There might,just maybe might, be some programs to help you get training and education for better job prospects. Just make sure you check out everything you are told so that you are not sold a bill of goods. You don’t want to use up whatever PELL grant eligibility and maybe even borrow for some program that is all flash. You need to invest in some substance and something with a good chance of payback. There are a lot of programs and schools that are eager to get their mouths on that government teat and just suck the funds right out, and if you walk in with the eligibility you can get hoodwinked. But there are programs that can help you get into a field where job prospects and salaries are good. You need to get educated in that area. </p>

<p>A friend of mine who could not find work after she was injured ( her job entailed some physical labor she no longer could do), at least work that paid what she wanted and was making before injury, went back and learned to operate some heavy duty medical machinery and now does MRIs or some other scans. She had to get trained and get certified, but has been fully employed with flexible hours and with a decent pay scale. She is now looking to instruct others how to use the machinery to have more work options. There are a lot of niche positions that require special skills and time invested to learn them and if you can find something that is in demand in your area, you can raise your earning potential, and gain some flexibility. Then you can maybe take some courses just for you, and some of those do not have to be for credit courses at a college. Our community center here offers a lot of luscious courses in the arts, literature, just about everything for a price that is a fraction of that of a community college even. So you can find “courses” in thing you will like that do not cost a fortune. But right now, with three children and a disable husband, you need to look at ways to strengthen you earning potential and possibilities. Good luck.</p>