I wanted to take you through some of my story to help you put together all of the information that I have presented so far. As the blog progresses I will share more and report on my past, present, and future methods of paying for college.
I have heard many people, including myself, lament the plight of the under age 24 dependent student whose parents can’t (meaning they are financially overextended but FAFSA doesn’t seem to notice) or won’t help pay for college.
Then there is the fact that scholarships in college get much more competitive and specific. Sometimes I wonder where they find the scholarship recipients (you must be 6’9.5” tall, speak Portuguese and Klingon, have a 4.3+ G.P.A., and free dive for a living ß Not a real scholarship, but sounds like one doesn’t it?). Sometimes, because we are human, it is exceedingly difficult to compete. Keep filling out those scholarship forms! You might just get one!
I had a pretty typical experience for an under age 24 dependent whose parents can't/won't (in my case can't) pay for college. My mom had a decent job, but horrendous debt (from when she went back to school and a divorce), I worked three jobs and thus increased my expected family financial contribution significantly (which really sucked because I got even less money from financial aid), I lived out of state so I couldn’t live with my family, and I was an idiot with a credit card (if your car breaks down every month and it costs $200+ to fix it…get rid of the car! Just saying.).
Things got so bad financially for me that I struggled to buy food and pay rent, let alone pay tuition, and I kept working more and more. I eventually experienced a major depressive episode (Which ruined my grades for an entire year, brining down my G.P.A. and made it even more difficult to get scholarships. I am still trying to get my university to grant me a medical withdrawal, but they claim to have a time limit which I exceeded even though there is no notice of the existence of a time limit anywhere on the website or student manual.). Because of the depressive episode, my bad financial situation, and the fact that I couldn’t enroll in classes because I still owed $2,000.00 from the previous semester I dropped out when I was 22.
My family (I’m including extended family in here) was severely critical of my decision. I was told I was making a stupid decision, that I wouldn’t end up going back to school to finish, yada yada yada. Sometimes it is best to take a few steps back from a situation that is only getting worse. I had to get emotionally healthy, and financially healthy. I needed to evaluate whether what I was doing was working for me and my goals. This was a painful time in many ways. I’m glad I went through it because I can help others to move forward who are now in similar situations, or better yet, help others not to get into these situations themselves. (Tip to those of you who do decide to leave school for a while…take a leave of absence if your school offers it. This can, in some cases, keep your tuition down when you do return to school [because you are grandfathered into the lower tuition rate] and prevent you from having to reapply to school.).
It took me three years to get back on track and go back to school. The first thing I did was formulate a plan tailored to my needs. I outlined different pathways for you because these are general ways I have or could have used to pay for school. Obviously I used the Pausing Method because I allowed things to become such a mess. I have taken various tests so I didn’t have to pay expensive tuition money for classes I found easy. I work full-time, but I also find other ways to earn money. I also found a part-time job where I get to choose how much and when I work… it is very flexible and is something that will look good on my resume when I graduate. I find side projects to make money (this requires a slight creative and, at times, entrepreneurial spirit). I have been a pet waste remover, pet sitter, guinea pig (for experiments at my university and a local research center), involved in focus groups, joining online programs like Upromise (where you basically get free money for college by buying stuff you already buy), joining organizations that offer scholarships to members, donated blood plasma, I’m probably leaving some things out, but you get the idea.
Another major benefit to leaving school when I did and returning later was I got around that silly dependent status, and I positioned myself to be qualified as an in-state student at my university. Both of these factors greatly reduced the cost of my education. I have also learned how to cut out many other expenses or greatly reduce those expenses. I will write an article on that later because this posting will get ridiculously long if I include that too.
I have also learned to badger (extremely politely; think assertive not aggressive) financial aid. If you don’t get the answer you need, keep asking! Ask other advisors, ask supervisors, email, call, come in person. Get to know someone in that office on a first name basis, know their direct extension and email. The people in that office should recognize your name and face when you walk in or call. Sometimes if you are nice enough, people will go the extra mile for you and give you information that could really be useful, or let you in on loopholes that can really help. It is also important that you read EVERYTHING on your schools financial aid website, and in the college/university student handbook related to financial aid. Many people (because they are overworked or ignorant of the policies) overlook information about scholarships, loans, and grants (that you should automatically be receiving), or other information that directly benefits you. This information is specific to each school so it is your job to be well-versed in it.
I have also, sadly, used loans. I figured out ways to get them paid off where I actually don’t have to pay for much of them myself using a combination of loan forgiveness programs. This involved much planning and research on my part and I shared a few links I found to be valuable in this arena in the Useful Links tab. When all is said and done (based on the traditional loan payment method) I will have paid less than the principal balance when the loans are paid off ten years after I am finished with my Master’s degree. In a way it is like getting a scholarship, except I do have to shoulder the burden of loan payments for ten years and the free money is delayed for a long time. This does put risk on my shoulders because these programs could go away, or if I default at any point the ten year clock starts over.
Don't get discouraged or lose hope. There is so much more, but that is for another day…
