I'm so Freakin' Frustrated!!

[Blue Belle]

Can someone please explain to me why I don't qualify for financial aid for college?? I made 20,000 in 2004... and could BARELY get by, but that's still making too much money for a pell grant?? My Estimated Family Contribution for 2005-2006 is $5,408. I just finished applying for aid for the 2006-2007 school year and with an income of $16,399 (gross) my EFC is still $3,937. I don't know, maybe I filled something out wrong... but I went through step by step and put in all the information required. I'M JUST SO FUCKING FRUSTRATED!!! I haven't really worked for 8 months and have been scraping by for so long. So now at the age of 35, I finally make the decision to go back to school so I can get a degree and a better job, I find out that I won't get bupkiss.

Sorry. I'm just frustrated and had to vent. :(

Thanks for letting me.

--Belle

[Wapsie B]

1. That's the defunding of education for ya.

I went to school for awhile using Voc-Rehab grants to help with part of it. Then I quit school for awhile. I went to a financial aid office not 5 years later and they said it was much harder to get money for school through their program.

I hope you can find some way to finish.

[Blue Belle]

2. I hope I can too.

I'm going to start looking at scholarships. I'm afraid that my credit score is too poor to get a student loan.

[Wapsie B]

4. Mine would be too.

I know I wouldn't have been able to finish without distance learning as one of my alternatives. My Alma Mater has been very reasonable with their tuition and fees even to out of staters. Only thing is most schools require you to take 30 hours of credits through them.


edit: your username sounded familiar in that there's a well-known Bed and Breakfast near here with that name.

http://www.bluebelleinn.com/

[SeattleGirl]

3. The Bushistas have made it much more difficult to qualify

by reducing the amount of financial aid money available. Did you just try for one type of aid, like a Pell Grant, or does your application cover other sources also?

You might want to think about getting a student loan. Yeah, not as good as a grant, but if you really want to go to school, that would be something to consider, and may not be as difficult to qualify for.

Sorry it's so difficult for you. Pisses me off to no end what the Bushistas are doing to this country.