So I got f'd in the ass by my college

[Meresgi]

Got a call from my college concerning my Pell Grant last night, I tried calling today and couldnt get through so I drove up there to see what was going on.

Apparently a law was passed in the summer knocking down the Pell grant total years to 6. This is my second degree, i'm doing the 2nd to last semester right now and they yanked all of my funding out from under me 1/2 through the semester and tell me I have to pay out of pocket now.

I have no clue what the fuck I should do right now, I can take out unsub loans to finish out the program, but that's a ton of extra money on top of the loans I have right now and they acquire interest. I can't pay out of pocket because i'm taking so many classes that the only job I would be able to work is something that can only give me hours on Saturday/Sunday as i'm in school all day for the rest of the week...which means at most i might make 24hrs worth of cash a week...not enough to pay for college courses.

I asked if there was a grandfathered in clause, since i'm in the middle of a fucking degree, but the woman was like "nope". I asked how I talk to and was just given the fucking 800 number to the federal education department...

Any suggestions, even if this is an internet forum I need all the input I can get right now.

[Raldo]

Is there a reason why you need a 2nd degree?

[Meresgi]

Is there a reason why you need a 2nd degree?

Because Multimedia is a pretty shitty field in this job market. Meanwhile Network Security/Engineering gives me a shit load more opportunities.

My own fucking fault for wasting time on that degree, BUT it was a huge marketable field when I went into it before 2008 and all the jobs imploding.

The reason i've run over the limit is because of that degree and that fact I went on to a 4yr school, started on a degree had my father die on me and ended up flunking out/rethinking life, wasting more time.


also inb4 dumpster diving for a degree, that dumpster is locked.

[Tweek]

Did you check the dumpsters around your school for any degrees?


How about you pay for your own education? crazy, I know.

[Melena]

Wow Tweek in full asshole mode 2 posts in. He's not asking for a donation drive. Shit I still owe Sallie Mae 6k on my degree. Are you going to a for profit school Meresgi or an actual university? I would also call that 1-800 # and see what they say. They may be able to find you some grants/loans/scholarships you qualify for to help you out.

[ronin sparthos]

I was gonna say to inquire if you qualify for any other grants or scholarships or do some searching around online.

Federal work study?

[Meresgi]

Did you check the dumpsters around your school for any degrees?


How about you pay for your own education? crazy, I know.

How am I not paying for my degree? I still have loans that I HAVE to pay off, not like i'm getting this shit for free.

@ Work Study, I qualify but they didn't have any more jobs for this semester otherwise i'd be doing it.

I'm in PTK, so i'm going to see if there are any scholarships to at least get me through the rest of my degree from there too. Sucks ball this is all on a Friday though so I have to stew during the weekend before I can try to clear anything up.


I think what pisses me off the most is they let me do 1/2 a semester before even notifying me, then casually brush me off as if it's no big thing and I can just take the cash out of my wallet and go "Oh here you go, I sit on this kind of money just incase of this sort of thing!"

Also there is NO forgiveness of the debt even if I drop out of my classes for this semester and say "fuck it". I still owe them for the full semester because it's far pass the drop out point

[Tweek]

Wow Tweek in full asshole mode 2 posts in. He's not asking for a donation drive. Shit I still owe Sallie Mae 6k on my degree. Are you going to a for profit school Meresgi or an actual university? I would also call that 1-800 # and see what they say. They may be able to find you some grants/loans/scholarships you qualify for to help you out.

pell grant on his 2nd scholarship? nah fuck him. I don't support Van Wilder professional students he's been in school for 6 years?!

[Meresgi]

pell grant on his 2nd scholarship? nah fuck him. I don't support Van Wilder professional students he's been in school for 6 years?!

I didn't say that. I've been in and out of school for more then 6 years. I've worked plenty of jobs in between to pay the bills. Degree field going belly up, having my father die at 40 yrs old suddenly, and getting caught up in going to Art Institute like a sucker, and other shit put some bumps in that road that fucked me up along the way.

Sorry I didn't have all my shit planned out like you. Not sure how your life goes on w/o hitches, please do elaborate.

[Tweek]

peaks and valleys bruh... peaks and valleys gotta ride 'em out

[Ishido]

Find a sugar momma

[Palin]

Tweek do you come into every advice thread and just tell people to deal with it? Jesus christ if you don't agree with his choices don't post/read. Shut the fuck up.

@OP, your college has to have a way to take out more Financial Aid. Are you maxed out on your Subsidized and Unsubsidized loans already for the year?

[Azull]

It does seem odd that a law like that would pass and go into effect almost overnight without some time passing or some kind of if/then pervision for existing grant holders. Are you able to look up the law to make sure it isnt something that may go in effect in a few years instead of now?

[Cleverness]

Tweek went from 0 to retard in record time.

Palin he said he can take out more loans but he's already got a few and he's afraid of more debt. How many more years would it take to get your 2nd degree, and how much(roughly) would it cost to finish? While the loans do gather interest, at the very least you will be on deferment while you are in school. Then can just apply for forbearance after you get out so you have some breathing room before you have to start paying loans.

[Meresgi]

@OP, your college has to have a way to take out more Financial Aid. Are you maxed out on your Subsidized and Unsubsidized loans already for the year?

Nah i'm not maxed out, this is probably what I gotta do though I hate having to add even more $$ on top of my loan stack..but eh. Cooling down a little now, felt like punching someone's teeth down their throat earlier lol.

It does seem odd that a law like that would pass and go into effect almost overnight without some time passing or some kind of if/then pervision for existing grant holders. Are you able to look up the law to make sure it isnt something that may go in effect in a few years instead of now?

The law was passed in the summer, it's just taken this long for the NLDS (or w/e) to contact the college and tell them who is still going to get Pell grants. I didnt think anything was up because I got my Pell Grant and approved shit at the start of the semester like nothing was up. I have no clue why there isnt a grandfather clause or something..but again it's Friday, no one was at the office even at 1pm, so I have to wait till Monday now.

How many more years would it take to get your 2nd degree, and how much(roughly) would it cost to finish

I piled on courses this semester to make sure I graduate next semester (fiance's parents are selling the house/moving out and we're staying with them right now and paying rent since the area is rich as fuck (Columbia MD)). It will cost me about 5-6k for this semester+next I believe, depending on what next semesters prices are. This semester ran me 3200.

Find a sugar momma

Want to go get a drink?

[Mojo]

It's a federal law that passed last December. It has nothing to do with your school, they must simply comply with it. A more appropriate thread title would be I got fucked in the ass by lawmakers. Depending on your academic history and the actual grant money you have received, you may be able to appeal the decision. I don't know how much say the school actually has in these matters, but my school has a process for appealing satisfactory academic progress (which includes the maximum time frame) in the cases of extenuating circumstances. Your best bet would be to talk to someone in the financial aid department and inquire about the appeals processes that they have in place and what they think successful appeal is made of. If this fails, your only options are to find some way to pay for it out of pocket.

[Dimmauk]

My best friend went to art school, got a masters, works at ESPN.

If you want to finish, then lower your class load, get a loan. It's what I did. I got my degree in 2000, and still owe a shit load. My friend that worksat ESPN owes close to 100k. LOL

[Meresgi]

It's a federal law that passed last December. It has nothing to do with your school, they must simply comply with it. A more appropriate thread title would be I got fucked in the ass by lawmakers. Depending on your academic history and the actual grant money you have received, you may be able to appeal the decision. I don't know how much say the school actually has in these matters, but my school has a process for appealing satisfactory academic progress (which includes the maximum time frame) in the cases of extenuating circumstances. Your best bet would be to talk to someone in the financial aid department and inquire about the appeals processes that they have in place and what they think successful appeal is made of. If this fails, your only options are to find some way to pay for it out of pocket.

I didn't think there was an appeals process, I'll have to make an appointment and go in to talk to someone and see what they have. The woman at the desk made it seem as if there was no workaround for this.

Thanks for the info/input also to everyone other then Tweek, who is apparently going through menopause.

[Mazmaz]

If there's one thing I've learned at university, it's that there's ALWAYS an appeal process.

[Howie Roary]

So I got f'd in the ass by my college

do you go to Penn State?