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College: You owe us 16 grand (help)

blink56k

blink56k

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 19, 2006
40
0
Rita Repulsa's Moon Palace
Recently I got my student bill in the mail detailing I owed a total of 16 grand for the fall semester.

Where did all of the financial aid go?

Well, this idiot here didn't realize that you had to re-file the FAFSA (free application for student aid) every year and that it didn't just renew itself provided you still attended the school and your financial cicurmstances didn't change.

Now I'm seriously at a loss for what to do. Does this mean I'll have to skip a semester? Or the whole year? :(

I don't know what my options are at this point.

I've thought of either doing a semester/year in a school here (I'm currently on vacation in the Dominican Republic, where my parents recently permanently moved) or I can go back to the States and work for a semester while living with my aunt.

Another desperate option is to just take out a loan for the whole school year but of course that'd be the worst thing I could ever do so I'm just crossing that out.

I don't know what to do. I had so much to look forward to this year: the job promotion I got on my on campus job and obtaining a retreat leader position in campus ministry.

I just don't know if I can handle losing out on a whole year or if they would even take me back.

I contacted the school's financial aid office but no word yet.

Any advice you guys can offer?
 
Wow, that was a big mistake.


Good luck. Remember to be clear on the conditions for this sort of thing next time. There must have been a few friends of yours who knew to fill the forms out. Too bad they didn't casually ask you. Bad luck I guess.

But again, know the conditions.
 
I've got to say Financial Aid is a royal pain in the a**. I can't believe that this has never happened before (someone missing the deadline), so I think you should be able to get some kind of answer. Have you tried the FAFSA website and looked for answers there?

Good luck!
 
You can't be the only person to make this mistake. Whilst there is a deadline that you have missed there must be some (probably arduous and unpleasant) late application process you can follow.

You College must have been in this situation before and can probably guide you through it.
 
You still have time to file the fasfa. File online...

The only thing will be if your school "ran" out of money.

The other option is to get an alternative loan from a private lender such as citibank or sallie mae. A student loan for a year will not kill you.
 
Keep hounding the FinAid department for help. The deadline varies from schoool to school. If one sets a deadline, they'll probably stick with it. But, your school may be lenient and/or willing to help you.

In the meantime go file at FASFA today...now!
 
Student Loans or some private loan option is probably going to be your only bet. Financial Aid runs dry quickly, but not the laons. F.A. has the deadline for a reason and the grants and such go quick
 
I didn't even bother with FAFSA this year. Freshman year, I got about 2 grand in government loans. Sophomore year, I got absolutely nothing. So junior year, I didn't bother. Just took out a private loan. I'll have debt coming out the ass when I graduate :(
 
Financial Aid was the biggest pain in the ass in my entire college career.

I hated walking into the office and seeing a sign on the wall:

"Lack of planning on YOUR part does not equal an emergency on OURS"

Good luck!
 
yg17 said:
I didn't even bother with FAFSA this year. Freshman year, I got about 2 grand in government loans. Sophomore year, I got absolutely nothing. So junior year, I didn't bother. Just took out a private loan. I'll have debt coming out the ass when I graduate :(
Click to expand...

Talk to me about it. I'll owe almost $45,000 when I graduate :eek:
 
celebrian23 said:
Talk to me about it. I'll owe almost $45,000 when I graduate :eek:
Click to expand...

I have 3 years worth of loans already and am well above that, and I have 1 more year :eek: When I graduate, I'll be at around 75 grand, before interest

It's really pathetic how expensive it is to go to college in the US. I was at one point considering going to one of the universities in Toronto, and my tuition, room and board there would've been about $1,000 (USD) less than what I pay for tuition, room and board at an in-state (so I get the cheapest tuition possible) university here in the US. I remember seeing that residents of Ontario paid hardly anything for tuition.

And people wonder why compared to the rest of the world, a majority of Americans are dumb. Because they can't afford to go to college :rolleyes:
 
blink56k said:
Recently I got my student bill in the mail detailing I owed a total of 16 grand for the fall semester.

Where did all of the financial aid go?

Well, this idiot here didn't realize that you had to re-file the FAFSA (free application for student aid) every year and that it didn't just renew itself provided you still attended the school and your financial cicurmstances didn't change.

Now I'm seriously at a loss for what to do. Does this mean I'll have to skip a semester? Or the whole year? :(

I don't know what my options are at this point.

I've thought of either doing a semester/year in a school here (I'm currently on vacation in the Dominican Republic, where my parents recently permanently moved) or I can go back to the States and work for a semester while living with my aunt.

Another desperate option is to just take out a loan for the whole school year but of course that'd be the worst thing I could ever do so I'm just crossing that out.

I don't know what to do. I had so much to look forward to this year: the job promotion I got on my on campus job and obtaining a retreat leader position in campus ministry.

I just don't know if I can handle losing out on a whole year or if they would even take me back.

I contacted the school's financial aid office but no word yet.

Any advice you guys can offer?
Click to expand...

Use the secret to get the money.
 
I work at a four-year university and there are programs to help students in situations such as yours. Often, the financial aid dept. can defer your payments until your financial aid is activated. It'll take a lot of work on your part (and hopefully a bit of compassion on the part of your school's Financial Aid office) but it can be done.

I would highly suggest trying to speak with a financial aid counselor who is a higher level decision-making person, perhaps a director or assistant. They are usually the ones who will make a decision in a case like this, so bypass the front-desk staff and try to speak to those who can make things happen for you.


Good Luck. :)

edit// i guess I should've read all the posts heh... oh well!
 
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