Let me introduce to you Shelby, who is planning on going to her dream school, but doesn’t know if it’s going to work out. Let’s hear her story…..
Hey Judge Josh. It is with a puffy, tear swollen eyes that I must ask you for your advice. I got accepted to the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities back in December. I was ECSTATIC. I’ve wanted to be a Gopher since I was a little girl. Anyways, April 1st rolled around and I got my estimated financial aid award letter… I got a whopping two loans, one being an $18,000 parent PLUS loan. The catch is, my parents aren’t helping me pay for college at all. They simply can’t afford to, no matter what that stinkin FAFSA says. After we sent in a changed income form, the U wrote us back saying that our EFC changed but my financial award package had not. My father (an alum) called them today and had a lengthy discussion in which they basically told him they sympathize with us, but they can do nothing.
I have looked into student loans, but as my parents have pointed out (and I agree with them, although it stings to do so) that taking out a $23,000 loan for freshmen year is just putting myself into too much debt. So, my only hope of being able to attend my dream school this fall is scholarships.
My real question is this: I’m scheduled to attend the U’s two day Orientation/Class scheduling in June. Do I still attend orientation, register for classes, keep in touch with my roommate (another sucky situation: already picked out a roommate and we get along great!) and wait til August to see if I win any scholarships? Or do I suck it up, quit now, and accept my fate at a local community college? I’ve applied for numerous scholarships (I think I’m a member of every scholarship search site available) and am still continuing to do so. At the same time, I don’t want to deepen the wound and screw over my roommate for next year.
What do I do?
Shelby,
Don’t we all wish college was a little bit cheaper. Actually we wish it was quite a bit cheaper. Many students’ parents can’t help financially and don’t qualify for free funding. It’s a hard pill to swallow.
My advice is to wait and see. Until the University of Minnesota is demanding money, stay enrolled. Go enjoy the orientation. You can look into other options, wait for scholarships, etc. This will give you time to figure out how much money you can actually come up with and decide how much you are willing to borrow for college. Just remember that this is only your first year of college, so financial problems aren’t going to go away.
Next I would apply to a community college. Honestly, 23K is a lot of money. Keep in mind you may be able to do a few years at a community college and then transfer to the University of Minnesota.
There you have it! Any thoughts for Shelby? Add your comment below!
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