Life Ending?

[xscpx]

So I received an email from the financial aid office saying they are cutting my funding after spring because of my "satisfactory academic progress". Pretty much, they think I've taken too many classes and shout be done. Well, I've only been in school for two and a half years! I do have two majors though and I'm an Honors College student so I've taken many classes. What can I do? I have a year left to finish both degrees (pre-reqs included) and I won't qualify for a student loan (bad credit). What options do I have? Has anyone heard of this? Why didn't they tell me this when they told me to declare two majors? Is it only because the economy of the state of Florida is crashing?

I sort of feel like everything is ending before it even started. I was thinking of talking to my anthropology department chair and seeing if he would given me conditional Graduate student status since I am two classes away from completely the Anthropology degree. If my status was changed I think I would be eligible for aid again, but theb I would have a masters degree to complete as well...solves one problem creates 10 more...

If anyone has been through something similar or has any ideas how I can stay in school, please help me!

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[ValeRx]

Well, personally I live off of student loans. I was expecting a certain amount for when Winter Quarter begins and I received an email stating that I was no longer eligible for a Stafford Unsubsidized loan and that they were scaling back my Subsidized loan to only 400 per quarter for the remainder of the year. I tried talking to my financial aid office but I didn't get any answers at all.

 

[Travisgee]

It isn't just Florida , but rather the US.
I would also suspect that some of this ruling has to do with your poor credit history. You may very well have to put this all on hold in order to pay the debts that you owe, then you can afford to return to finish this goal.

 

[xscpx]

It isn't just Florida , but rather the US.
I would also suspect that some of this ruling has to do with your poor credit history. You may very well have to put this all on hold in order to pay the debts that you owe, then you can afford to return to finish this goal.

And what if that is impossible? I have over $200,000 in unpaid medical expenses.

And how can credit have any affect on my scholarships? My financial aid consisted of scholarships, a pell grant, and a few school grants. I don't think any of that has anything to do with credit.

 

[ValeRx]

Well, scholarships don't have to be paid back but a lot of them have some fine print. You should go over any information you have on your scholarships and make sure you still meet their requirements.

 

[Isoprop]

i've had this exact problem!!

you need to go talk to your financial aid office and ask how to appeal. if your grades are in order and you haven't been dropping too many classes, you have a good chance of fighting this.

with your appeal, you should include a form/letter from your adviser specifying exactly how many classes/credits you need to graduate. you probably also need a letter from your major department saying that the classes you have taken count towards your degree (so the financial aid office doesn't think you've been taking classes that don't count for your degree).

you probably also need submit a projected class schedule for up to a year. this isn't written in stone but it shows that you are working towards a degree and aren't just floating by.

i'm curious: have you officially declared two majors? usually, double majors are given more credit hours to complete their degrees.

 

[illtreaturite1]

And what if that is impossible? I have over $200,000 in unpaid medical expenses.

And how can credit have any affect on my scholarships? My financial aid consisted of scholarships, a pell grant, and a few school grants. I don't think any of that has anything to do with credit.

Medical debts end up going into a separate category. Do you have any stafford loans? I've got bad credit and I haven't had any issues with my loans yet. I'm currently taking steps to remedy the bad credit in preparation for pharmacy school so I can work less (including some massive overtime in the first quarter of the new year)

Good luck....the economy is making it rough

 

[xscpx]

Yes I have officially declared the two majors. I am also an Honors College student, which at my school, has its own class requirements. What I don't understand is that in the fine print for my school it says that having a double major or being in the Honors College does not exempt you from the 135 credit hour max. I'm truly baffled by this. Why would they allow double majors and why would the HC require additional classes if they would disqualify a student from aid?

 

[pharmant]

You need to speak with your financial aid office. If you have only been in school for 2 1/2 years, there is no possible way you could be close to having a problem. Also, loans are possible as long as they are taken through the government - as some one already mentioned before - stafford loan does not require any credit check (FAFSA needs to be completed in January). Good Luck and don't back down!!!

 

[Sparda29]

Can you get someone to cosign on an alternative loan?