Shoestring Living

Search

Recent blog posts

  • Some things to do if you are laid off
  • Free HPV Shots Tomorrow
  • What Not to Put on Your Resume
  • Chinese Company to Pay Nearly $1 Billion for Defective Drywall
  • Tax Breaks for Disabled People
  • Chicken Jerky Recalled
  • Google and SIGTARP Go After Loan Modification Scammers
  • Free and Low Cost Thanksgiving Turkeys
  • Two Programs to Help with Student Loan Debt
  • Free Music for Browncoats
more

Getting Help With Tuition

Submitted by georgiana on Sat, 12/05/2009 - 22:01.

My Twitter feed was full of the same story today, about a writer who lost all her money and thought about not adopting two children and finally decided to go through with it. Sadly she seemed to have missed some basics and said things like they were going to sell everything in the house to pay for tuition. The trouble with doing this is that you end up with an empty house, nowhere to sit and no resources when the next year's tuition comes due.

It doesn't take something as dramatic as losing all of your money for the cost of tuition to break the bank. All you need is to get laid off, or maybe have an injury where you're off work for a few months. Divorce is another time when finances are suddenly disrupted. If your circumstances change then the best option is to apply for financial aid and let the school(s) know that your circumstances have changed. You may think it's too late to apply since the optimal time is before February 1st of the year in which you plan to attend (for instance for seniors who Aare in high school now, December 2009, applications should be in by February 1, 2010) but you actually have until June of the year you attend. So a senior in high school now would have until June of 2011 to apply and get some assistance retroactively for their freshman year in college.

Now if you've already applied for financial aid for the school year you can apply again. You need to talk to the financial aid office for the school and explain what happened and give them the new numbers. They'll tell you what to do next. I believe you'll file a new FAFSA but it's been a long time since I actually had to do this so please check with the experts. If you get someone who doesn't seem to know what they're doing ask to speak to a supervisor.

Also remember you can always ask about work study for your student and get some extra cash that way. Sure not working in college is ideal but if your situation is less than ideal you have to adapt.

You can find the application for FAFSA, the first step in the United States, here: http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/.

  • georgiana's blog
  • Login or register to post comments

Copyright 2008 - 2011 Georgiana Lee.

The information contained in this website is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by Shoestring Living and whilst we endeavour to keep the information up-to-date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the website for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk.
In no event will we be liable for any loss or damage including without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any loss or damage whatsoever arising from loss of data or profits arising out of or in connection with the use of this website.
Through this website you are able to link to other websites which are not under the control of Shoestring Living. We have no control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.
Every effort is made to keep the website up and running smoothly. However, Shoestring Living takes no responsibility for and will not be liable for the website being temporarily unavailable due to technical issues beyond our control.