Have you applied for Finacial Aid? Come in!

AKIRA · 04-14-2008, 04:29 PM

Ok I went to go apply for Financial Aid again and I used the same "Aid" website that my school basically recommends. (UF directs you to FAFSA) I was able to transfer a lot of financial info from last year into the year I am applying for, however, some things have changed. For instance, my mom doesnt pay for shit, however, it says that $3K is expected from my family. MMMmmk. However, I really am not getting any money from her, but from my work. And thats where I remembered something I heard 2 years ago..

An idiot I used to work with got financial aid to go to police academy. She told me she applied EVERYWHERE. Apparently, she got a lot of funds from an array of small Aids and was pretty well endowed. Now she wasnt rich or anything, but she was able to pay for school and concentrate on her studies. On the contrary, theres me...I work part time and go to school full time and because I work, school could have better results (not grades, but performances...I am a theatre major)

So my question is...should I apply for more than one Student Loan? (I dont get scholarships...or at least know how to)

JB20 · 04-14-2008, 04:44 PM

You will probably have to go to your school's financial aid office and applied for a dependency appeal from your parents.I have to reapply every year for my independent status until I am 24

Hoglander · 04-14-2008, 05:44 PM

Parent of a student here... what's odd is that they decide how a family operates, IMHO.

If you get no support like my kid's boyfriend with crappy grades and no family... he gets nearly a free ride. I'd look into JB20's angle.

maniclion · 04-14-2008, 07:12 PM

I got nearly half my school paid for filing as no dependence on my mother or father plus I applied for every scholarship I could track down, plus GI bill, plus Pell Grant. I even submitted poetry and short stories to Poetry and Creative Writing Scholarships but I wasn't as strong of a writer back then so I never got any replies back....Now that I have honed my skills next time i plan on furthering my degree I'll be sure to submit to every contest I can find from the $100 to the $5000 ones instead of just going after the big dollar ones.....every little bit helps when it comes to books, lab fees, etc......

kbm8795 · 04-14-2008, 09:44 PM

It's a long shot, but you can look into possible tuition waiver programs at your university. These aren't widely advertised and usually require filling out one form. There may or may not be some for undergraduates, and if they exist, they'll be a limited number.

Declaring yourself independent is often linked directly to if your parents were able to claim you a dependent on their income tax forms this year - if they didn't, you have a good argument in your favor. It's also a good idea to review the University's "budget" for an average undergraduate and challenge amounts which are unrealistic (like estimated book expenses).

There are some more creative ways to cut costs for an undergraduate. One thing you can do for classes which aren't your major (and in which you figure you won't keep the book) is to search the library databases a week before classes start (see if you can get an early syllabus or shop the school bookstore for the listings for your classes). If you can locate some of those books (even through interlibrary loan), you can often check the book out for the entire semester. When that doesn't work, there are discount books available online, though you are likely already aware of it.

You should also sign up for FastWeb. . .FastWeb: Scholarships, Financial Aid and Colleges Their ads can be a pain in the ass, but you create a profile and they send you email notices of upcoming scholarship deadlines throughout the school year. You can click on the offerings, review the guidelines for a scholarship, and decide to apply or not. Some places just ask for a rather simple essay...some offer a couple of hundred bucks like a drawing.

If you end up taking student loans, also sign your butt up for upromise.com
Money for College - Upromise

This is an organization which you register for and they set up accounts. Every time you buy a Coke at the supermarket, for example, Coke puts a couple of cents into your account. You get more contributions from companies like restaurants, making travel arrangements, or shopping online (for example, if you use Priceline.com to bid on a hotel for a trip and spend $100 on the room, $1 gets deposited into your account). You can sign up every friend and family member if you want and they can each buy things and have money added to your account. What happens with your account? Well, every time you hit $50 in corporate contributions (which takes awhile unless you get a ton of people signed up to help you - though your parents should do it anyway) the money is used to pay on your student loans. If you've got a close family, it's a good idea for them to sign on - it costs them nothing and you get a few cents every time they buy something from a company or product which offers to pay into the account. My local Kroger actually puts notices in the aisles for products that pay into those accounts, making it easy for people to make selections.

Now you are working part-time, which is great. . .but you should talk more to professors about how you would love to do more work in areas that will directly help your career when you graduate. Just let them get that in their minds (tell your academic adviser as well) and a lot of them will remember it, so if something decent comes along, you can swoop on the experience and get some money. You can also check into a campus job where you can also study - heck, one year I ran the athlete's study hall - four hours a day - and got my own work done while they studied. . .and you can pick up a few extra bucks for basically doing nothing.

maniclion · 04-15-2008, 05:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kbm8795

Now you are working part-time, which is great. . .but you should talk more to professors about how you would love to do more work in areas that will directly help your career when you graduate. Just let them get that in their minds (tell your academic adviser as well) and a lot of them will remember it, so if something decent comes along, you can swoop on the experience and get some money. You can also check into a campus job where you can also study - heck, one year I ran the athlete's study hall - four hours a day - and got my own work done while they studied. . .and you can pick up a few extra bucks for basically doing nothing.

My professor got me a job at $25 an hour helping him install a computer network for one of his clients... You have to put all your effort into doing as well as you can to get recognized but once you do you'll get on their good side and find favor in them....

04-14-2008, 04:29 PM	#1
AKIRA I am Rollo Tomassee.. Elite Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Outside the box Posts: 8,787 Photos: 3	Have you applied for Finacial Aid? Come in! Ok I went to go apply for Financial Aid again and I used the same "Aid" website that my school basically recommends. (UF directs you to FAFSA) I was able to transfer a lot of financial info from last year into the year I am applying for, however, some things have changed. For instance, my mom doesnt pay for shit, however, it says that $3K is expected from my family. MMMmmk. However, I really am not getting any money from her, but from my work. And thats where I remembered something I heard 2 years ago.. An idiot I used to work with got financial aid to go to police academy. She told me she applied EVERYWHERE. Apparently, she got a lot of funds from an array of small Aids and was pretty well endowed. Now she wasnt rich or anything, but she was able to pay for school and concentrate on her studies. On the contrary, theres me...I work part time and go to school full time and because I work, school could have better results (not grades, but performances...I am a theatre major) So my question is...should I apply for more than one Student Loan? (I dont get scholarships...or at least know how to) 6' 209lbs (8/16) Bench 365 (12/3) Weighted Pullups 80lbs 3x3 (3/19) Squat 370 Deadlift after herniation 385lbs 3x3 (3/17) NASM certified 2/06 Journal

04-14-2008, 07:12 PM	#4
maniclion Cartographer of the Mind Elite Member Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Mens Incognita Posts: 20,437 Photos: 10	I got nearly half my school paid for filing as no dependence on my mother or father plus I applied for every scholarship I could track down, plus GI bill, plus Pell Grant. I even submitted poetry and short stories to Poetry and Creative Writing Scholarships but I wasn't as strong of a writer back then so I never got any replies back....Now that I have honed my skills next time i plan on furthering my degree I'll be sure to submit to every contest I can find from the $100 to the $5000 ones instead of just going after the big dollar ones.....every little bit helps when it comes to books, lab fees, etc...... "We are like tenant farmers chopping down the fence around our house for fuel when we should be using Natures inexhaustible sources of energy — sun, wind and tide. ... I'd put my money on the sun and solar energy. What a source of power! I hope we don't have to wait until oil and coal run out before we tackle that." Thomas Edison: In conversation with Henry Ford and Harvey Firestone

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04-14-2008, 04:44 PM	#2
JB20 Heavy Metal Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: School, work, or the gym Posts: 37	You will probably have to go to your school's financial aid office and applied for a dependency appeal from your parents.I have to reapply every year for my independent status until I am 24

04-14-2008, 05:44 PM	#3
Hoglander Cleaner Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Washington Posts: 1,501 Photos: 10	Parent of a student here... what's odd is that they decide how a family operates, IMHO. If you get no support like my kid's boyfriend with crappy grades and no family... he gets nearly a free ride. I'd look into JB20's angle.

04-14-2008, 09:44 PM	#5
kbm8795 Registered User Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Illinois Posts: 2,367 Photos: 1	It's a long shot, but you can look into possible tuition waiver programs at your university. These aren't widely advertised and usually require filling out one form. There may or may not be some for undergraduates, and if they exist, they'll be a limited number. Declaring yourself independent is often linked directly to if your parents were able to claim you a dependent on their income tax forms this year - if they didn't, you have a good argument in your favor. It's also a good idea to review the University's "budget" for an average undergraduate and challenge amounts which are unrealistic (like estimated book expenses). There are some more creative ways to cut costs for an undergraduate. One thing you can do for classes which aren't your major (and in which you figure you won't keep the book) is to search the library databases a week before classes start (see if you can get an early syllabus or shop the school bookstore for the listings for your classes). If you can locate some of those books (even through interlibrary loan), you can often check the book out for the entire semester. When that doesn't work, there are discount books available online, though you are likely already aware of it. You should also sign up for FastWeb. . .FastWeb: Scholarships, Financial Aid and Colleges Their ads can be a pain in the ass, but you create a profile and they send you email notices of upcoming scholarship deadlines throughout the school year. You can click on the offerings, review the guidelines for a scholarship, and decide to apply or not. Some places just ask for a rather simple essay...some offer a couple of hundred bucks like a drawing. If you end up taking student loans, also sign your butt up for upromise.com Money for College - Upromise This is an organization which you register for and they set up accounts. Every time you buy a Coke at the supermarket, for example, Coke puts a couple of cents into your account. You get more contributions from companies like restaurants, making travel arrangements, or shopping online (for example, if you use Priceline.com to bid on a hotel for a trip and spend $100 on the room, $1 gets deposited into your account). You can sign up every friend and family member if you want and they can each buy things and have money added to your account. What happens with your account? Well, every time you hit $50 in corporate contributions (which takes awhile unless you get a ton of people signed up to help you - though your parents should do it anyway) the money is used to pay on your student loans. If you've got a close family, it's a good idea for them to sign on - it costs them nothing and you get a few cents every time they buy something from a company or product which offers to pay into the account. My local Kroger actually puts notices in the aisles for products that pay into those accounts, making it easy for people to make selections. Now you are working part-time, which is great. . .but you should talk more to professors about how you would love to do more work in areas that will directly help your career when you graduate. Just let them get that in their minds (tell your academic adviser as well) and a lot of them will remember it, so if something decent comes along, you can swoop on the experience and get some money. You can also check into a campus job where you can also study - heck, one year I ran the athlete's study hall - four hours a day - and got my own work done while they studied. . .and you can pick up a few extra bucks for basically doing nothing.