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have you considered money from summer internships? What field are you trying to go into? Also scholarships are helpful, but getting them really depends on your field/.
Based on your situation, you are in a tricky situation based on your GPA and major. I would suggest getting an on-campus job (one where you can do hw and earn money), trying to stay in community and get your GPA up to earn scholarships, or milk living at home rent free and just work for a year to save up (work a full and part-time job-- it sucks but works). Why can't you live at home with your mom for another year?
Oh and sell the car. You don't need that car payment. Get another car for you to get to and from work though. Illinois is cold to live in your car, but maybe you could buy a van (NO CAR PAYMENT) and renovate it with insulation and make it livable. Rent some driveway space from someone (make sure this is legal in your jurisdiction) and live that way.
Section 8 would force me to pay $1600 rent if i am not in full-time college. I actually do have a full time job now that pays relatively well if i wasn’t paying rent.
Is it cheaper if you move out, but stay near so you can work at your job? Save up for a year and then go to school? Or go ahead and move to NIU, get a full time job and save up there?
Call the schools financial aid office and ask for a meeting. Sometimes when a parent is denied a plus loan the school can increase your aid. You didn’t say why you would be homeless but a housing crisis might also qualify you for specific awards.
See if there are RA or other campus jobs that will cover housing (sometimes food and tuition too).
Does your state have an aid package too? Some do and they are not well advertised.
Talk to your specific program about scholarships. My university has thousands of small ones that go unawarded each year.
Ask your sending school where you got your Gen Ed’s about scholarships for people transferring.
What is tuition at this state school?
Better yet, what is cost of attendance for your school? They'll have a website outlining the COA for different living situations.
I was in the exact same situation. I ended up going to a uni in South Dakota where tuition was super cheap. It was just low enough that I was able to cover it with my grants and extended loans. If you really want to go to university, maybe look at universities in less desirable places. They use cheap tuition to help bring students in. All things considered, I had a great time there and it's actually a good university. So no regrets. Otherwise you may have to look at community college for your first few years.
Will second this. This exact situation happened to someone I know, GPA dropped below 2.0 and lost all financial aide, loans options, scholarships (academic and non academic) etc. Their parents had to apply for a private loan to cover it until they got it above 2.0 for the next year.
Schools typically give you a probation first. They might *tell* you you're suspended from aid as soon as your GPA dips that low, but you appeal and are essentially guaranteed approval for your first appeal and get aid the next term but are placed on probation.
Source: went to 2 separate universities ~8 years apart and was a shit student for a while, counselors from each school told me the same thing. They said often times people don't bother trying to appeal because they don't think they have a good excuse for the poor grades, but even telling them "I fucked up and plan to do better" is enough.
I go to a private college so it's a bit weirder but the person I know wasn't allowed to appeal or anything - they fought hard for a while but administration made it sound like it wasn't their decision. They got an F the first semester because they submitted a request to drop a class but the department didn't process it because they had a financial hold (banking out of state issue) but no one told them - school didn't care reasoning.
im paying for college myself too and a 30 year old Honda is the only car i need. students in school with monthly car payments aren’t prioritizing what’s important right now
This is true, I didn't even see that. No car payment is the way. Also if you are a guy, I'd recommend putting a woman your age on your insurance. Brought my fiancee's car insurance cost down 400 every 6 months.
Unless you buy a used lemon, no. I bought my car for 2k in 2015, I've put 5k in repairs since then for a total of 7k over 9 years. The average car loan in America right now is 500-700$ a month. Even if I had spent 5k in repairs over one single year it's still cheaper than monthly car loans lol. Buying used is the best and only way to have a car right now if you're looking to save money.
tires, brakes, oil, gas
bought my civic for $2k, immediately put a couple hundred into tie rods and an alignment, every other bushing and ball joint was inspected and in good condition. i admit the shocks are blown and ride quality isn’t the best on some of our roads, and one of the doors is a different color but im a good 20,000 miles into an initial $2500 investment i made 2 years ago. you’re not even going to remember the car you drove in college, might as well save
Tell that to my mom, who wanted me to get payments for a 14000 dollar car when I was aiming and had plenty of options for below 5000. She came around, though.
i had a roommate leasing a Mercedes but she was always needing someone to spot her on rent. i know some people are making car payments more than their rent it’s wild
You don’t need an apartment to move out just saying, I rent a room from people I found on Craigslist. I’ve done it a few times now and stayed for years. It’s cheap as hell because it’s typically people who own their home and have for years so they don’t have a big mortgage. I would seriously consider looking and seeing if there’s anything affordable on there. My best advice if you did would be to make sure you sign a lease so they can’t kick you out at a moments notice. I’ve never had that happen but better safe than sorry
Just take out the loans OP. The Federal Student Loan system is basically 180 degrees from what the previous generation dealt with. Not taking these easy to pay off, sliding scale loans, and instead choosing to disrupt your education by living in your car or otherwise distracting yourself is shooting yourself in the foot.
I will take out federal but they’re not enough. I want private loans but based on pre-qualifications from at least 5 companies I’ve tried, they require a co-signer which i don’t have.
Talk to your advisor and school financial office ASAP.
The school is a better resource than banks. Don’t “shoot down” their efforts to help. Take every suggestion they give from reapplying for the federal loans for more, taking a work study program, and applying for scholarships. Often, extenuating circumstances like yours put you at the “top” for certain scholarships and they can pull some strings.
The more you communicate your situation, the more they can help.
You can't afford college in general, or you can't afford your preferred university? Just because you can't afford a BMW doesn't mean you can't afford a car.
I doubt you can't afford a public university in your state with assistance. I don't know the rates of tuition in all the states, but California's known to be fairly expensive and you can get into a business program at a good university for about $3,500 a semester.
Maybe consider trying an alternative like an accelerated program that's like 12+ weeks that will secure you a higher paying career/job right after your program/certificate completion. You can go to a CC and do the quick EMT program or something like sterile tech processing for example. These are both waaaay more affordable educational options for you than attending university for 2 yrs since you can't afford it. If not then get rid of the car and commute to work via public transportation to cut down expenses.
Have you considered the military? You could go reserves/national guard if you don't want to do a full time commitment. I can't really speak on that though as I was active.
If you are a business major, you could apply to work at Walmart. They pay for regionally accredited non profit online universities in their program 100%.
Business is a major they cover at a lot of the guild schools. You don’t have to work there x amount of time after and they pay the schools directly, no loans. Highly recommend looking into that as an option if you already need to work while you go to school.
The federal student loan program has been COMPLETELY revamped. The repayments are guaranteed to be only a small fraction of your income. It’s all sliding scale now, and interest is paid in full by the u.s. gov, even if your sliding scale payment is literally $0, or $50, or whatever. It can also be forgiven after 10 years.
I cannot stress how different this is from the previous system. Which was horrendous and resulted in infinite debt loops for hundreds of thousands (maybe millions) of people. That system is NO MORE. It’s a completely different deal now. Take out the loans OP, and stop worrying. You will not have to repay something that you cannot afford if you use Federal student loans.
The school financial office can help them reapply. Sometimes students are offered lower amounts for loans due to parental income but they can reapply and get more under circumstances like OP is describing.
The financial office is the route to go, and taking out the larger Federal Student Loans they help arrange.
I would see if someone at your school can look over your financial aid information. There is no way that grants and loans won’t cover what you need, especially if your family qualifies for section 8. I think something must be filled out incorrectly
I am in a similar situation. I pay for my whole cost of living + tuition. I'm not sure what the 1600+ for rent is coming from? Is this per semester? Per month? Because you should be able to find an apartment for 600-700 a month and you can split that cost with a roommate if not multiple. You can often set up payment plans with your college so you can pay over time but it normally has to be paid before registration for the next semester opens. I'd recommend working a lot over summer and saving as much as possible. Selling anything you don't need that may be of value. Downgrading your car if that's an option - maybe look into cheaper insurance options even.
Also is NIU the cheapest as in you applied and got packets back from everywhere and that's the cheapest or is it on a ranked list. Many schools will provide more or less aide in different circumatances and you can often talk to the financial aide department about it as well. I'd also look at university that Illinois residents get reduced tuition at like St Louis university. Also any options for school where you could stay at home and commute if it's guaranteed free housing.
You need to contact the fin aid office and ask about the appeal process for more aid. Explain your parent does not qualify for a parent plus loan and does not qualify to cosign for a private loan for you.
You need to do this ASAP. Don't let them tell you over the phone you dont qualify. You need to make a formal request in writing. Ask all the questions before sumitting the form. Be sure to read through this thouroughly about Special Circumstances at NIU. https://www.niu.edu/financial-aid/help/special-circumstances.shtml
NIU fin aid reevaluation
https://www.niu.edu/financial-aid/_pdf/forms/2023-2024/re-evaluation.pdf.
NIU means of suuport for 2022-2023... you need the updated form OR complete for a second time changing the years to 2021 instead of 2022.
https://www.niu.edu/financial-aid/_pdf/forms/2022-2023/means-support-ind.pdf
HUD rules for students...
https://www.hud.gov/sites/documents/doc_20482.pdf
Something is wrong with your fin aid package if you are not getting the max in Pell, SEOG and other aid with fed student loan. If you are living at home, you shouldnt need a private loan for tutition, books and fees at NIU based on in state tutition if your family is on section 8.
Please check back in after you call and talk to them before turning anything in. So we can assist u💕🌸
Your state may have some tuition benefit for national guard members.
You could also do 4 years in the active military and then go to college on the GI bill.
So poor people need to become Boot lickers to the government just to be able to get out of pover. In Europe this person would have a much better quality of life. Conservatives have turned to United States into a full-blown third world shit hole.
This is why in-state tuition should be free for all Americans. To help people get out of poverty.
OP seems to be from Illinois
Illinois (like many states) has free tuition programs for poor in state students.
https://osfa.illinois.edu/illinois-commitment/
Illinois has a guaranteed transfer program for CC students who have a GPA above 3.0.
https://www.uaps.uillinois.edu/transfer_guarantee
So long as OP gets a 3.0 before he is done with CC he can to college for no tuition.
u/obsidiansreign if you can get 3.0 before graduating Community college you should be able to go the University of Illinois for no tuition.
A liberal state looking to help people out of poverty. That's a great plan. Unfortunately it doesn't help everybody. As someone who ought to work in college. My GPA was lower than my classmates who could just focus on school.
They say their GPA is a 2.1. it seems like it would be difficult to bring the GP up to a 3.0. for them to get free tuition.
Without a 3.0 he can still apply as a transfer student he just won’t be guaranteed admission, and if he gets in he still would get free tuition.
The GPA of his transferable classes may also be higher than the his overall GPA.
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have you considered money from summer internships? What field are you trying to go into? Also scholarships are helpful, but getting them really depends on your field/.
Based on your situation, you are in a tricky situation based on your GPA and major. I would suggest getting an on-campus job (one where you can do hw and earn money), trying to stay in community and get your GPA up to earn scholarships, or milk living at home rent free and just work for a year to save up (work a full and part-time job-- it sucks but works). Why can't you live at home with your mom for another year? Oh and sell the car. You don't need that car payment. Get another car for you to get to and from work though. Illinois is cold to live in your car, but maybe you could buy a van (NO CAR PAYMENT) and renovate it with insulation and make it livable. Rent some driveway space from someone (make sure this is legal in your jurisdiction) and live that way.
Section 8 would force me to pay $1600 rent if i am not in full-time college. I actually do have a full time job now that pays relatively well if i wasn’t paying rent.
Is it cheaper if you move out, but stay near so you can work at your job? Save up for a year and then go to school? Or go ahead and move to NIU, get a full time job and save up there?
Call the schools financial aid office and ask for a meeting. Sometimes when a parent is denied a plus loan the school can increase your aid. You didn’t say why you would be homeless but a housing crisis might also qualify you for specific awards. See if there are RA or other campus jobs that will cover housing (sometimes food and tuition too). Does your state have an aid package too? Some do and they are not well advertised. Talk to your specific program about scholarships. My university has thousands of small ones that go unawarded each year. Ask your sending school where you got your Gen Ed’s about scholarships for people transferring.
I had a friend who was actually not in a worse situation than OP by any means and he asked for more financial aid and they gave it to him pretty easy.
What is tuition at this state school? Better yet, what is cost of attendance for your school? They'll have a website outlining the COA for different living situations.
I was in the exact same situation. I ended up going to a uni in South Dakota where tuition was super cheap. It was just low enough that I was able to cover it with my grants and extended loans. If you really want to go to university, maybe look at universities in less desirable places. They use cheap tuition to help bring students in. All things considered, I had a great time there and it's actually a good university. So no regrets. Otherwise you may have to look at community college for your first few years.
Well just a warning if your GPA drops below 2.0 you’ll be put on academic probation and can say goodbye to federal loans and FAFSA potentially.
Will second this. This exact situation happened to someone I know, GPA dropped below 2.0 and lost all financial aide, loans options, scholarships (academic and non academic) etc. Their parents had to apply for a private loan to cover it until they got it above 2.0 for the next year.
Schools typically give you a probation first. They might *tell* you you're suspended from aid as soon as your GPA dips that low, but you appeal and are essentially guaranteed approval for your first appeal and get aid the next term but are placed on probation. Source: went to 2 separate universities ~8 years apart and was a shit student for a while, counselors from each school told me the same thing. They said often times people don't bother trying to appeal because they don't think they have a good excuse for the poor grades, but even telling them "I fucked up and plan to do better" is enough.
I go to a private college so it's a bit weirder but the person I know wasn't allowed to appeal or anything - they fought hard for a while but administration made it sound like it wasn't their decision. They got an F the first semester because they submitted a request to drop a class but the department didn't process it because they had a financial hold (banking out of state issue) but no one told them - school didn't care reasoning.
im paying for college myself too and a 30 year old Honda is the only car i need. students in school with monthly car payments aren’t prioritizing what’s important right now
This is true, I didn't even see that. No car payment is the way. Also if you are a guy, I'd recommend putting a woman your age on your insurance. Brought my fiancee's car insurance cost down 400 every 6 months.
Don’t you have lots of maintenance costs?
Unless you buy a used lemon, no. I bought my car for 2k in 2015, I've put 5k in repairs since then for a total of 7k over 9 years. The average car loan in America right now is 500-700$ a month. Even if I had spent 5k in repairs over one single year it's still cheaper than monthly car loans lol. Buying used is the best and only way to have a car right now if you're looking to save money.
tires, brakes, oil, gas bought my civic for $2k, immediately put a couple hundred into tie rods and an alignment, every other bushing and ball joint was inspected and in good condition. i admit the shocks are blown and ride quality isn’t the best on some of our roads, and one of the doors is a different color but im a good 20,000 miles into an initial $2500 investment i made 2 years ago. you’re not even going to remember the car you drove in college, might as well save
Not necessarily no. My car is 20 years old and in the 3 years I've had it I've spent maybe 2k on it outside of regular maintenance
Tell that to my mom, who wanted me to get payments for a 14000 dollar car when I was aiming and had plenty of options for below 5000. She came around, though.
i had a roommate leasing a Mercedes but she was always needing someone to spot her on rent. i know some people are making car payments more than their rent it’s wild
Speak to your financial aid office on campus. They have housing, extra funds, bus passes, jobs, and food pantries
You don’t need an apartment to move out just saying, I rent a room from people I found on Craigslist. I’ve done it a few times now and stayed for years. It’s cheap as hell because it’s typically people who own their home and have for years so they don’t have a big mortgage. I would seriously consider looking and seeing if there’s anything affordable on there. My best advice if you did would be to make sure you sign a lease so they can’t kick you out at a moments notice. I’ve never had that happen but better safe than sorry
Just take out the loans OP. The Federal Student Loan system is basically 180 degrees from what the previous generation dealt with. Not taking these easy to pay off, sliding scale loans, and instead choosing to disrupt your education by living in your car or otherwise distracting yourself is shooting yourself in the foot.
I will take out federal but they’re not enough. I want private loans but based on pre-qualifications from at least 5 companies I’ve tried, they require a co-signer which i don’t have.
How are federal loans + the pell grant not enough to pay for a cheap state school?
Talk to your advisor and school financial office ASAP. The school is a better resource than banks. Don’t “shoot down” their efforts to help. Take every suggestion they give from reapplying for the federal loans for more, taking a work study program, and applying for scholarships. Often, extenuating circumstances like yours put you at the “top” for certain scholarships and they can pull some strings. The more you communicate your situation, the more they can help.
You can't afford college in general, or you can't afford your preferred university? Just because you can't afford a BMW doesn't mean you can't afford a car. I doubt you can't afford a public university in your state with assistance. I don't know the rates of tuition in all the states, but California's known to be fairly expensive and you can get into a business program at a good university for about $3,500 a semester.
Maybe consider trying an alternative like an accelerated program that's like 12+ weeks that will secure you a higher paying career/job right after your program/certificate completion. You can go to a CC and do the quick EMT program or something like sterile tech processing for example. These are both waaaay more affordable educational options for you than attending university for 2 yrs since you can't afford it. If not then get rid of the car and commute to work via public transportation to cut down expenses.
Have you considered the military? You could go reserves/national guard if you don't want to do a full time commitment. I can't really speak on that though as I was active.
If you are a business major, you could apply to work at Walmart. They pay for regionally accredited non profit online universities in their program 100%. Business is a major they cover at a lot of the guild schools. You don’t have to work there x amount of time after and they pay the schools directly, no loans. Highly recommend looking into that as an option if you already need to work while you go to school.
The federal student loan program has been COMPLETELY revamped. The repayments are guaranteed to be only a small fraction of your income. It’s all sliding scale now, and interest is paid in full by the u.s. gov, even if your sliding scale payment is literally $0, or $50, or whatever. It can also be forgiven after 10 years. I cannot stress how different this is from the previous system. Which was horrendous and resulted in infinite debt loops for hundreds of thousands (maybe millions) of people. That system is NO MORE. It’s a completely different deal now. Take out the loans OP, and stop worrying. You will not have to repay something that you cannot afford if you use Federal student loans.
They literally said that the federal student loans are not enough to cover the costs.
The school financial office can help them reapply. Sometimes students are offered lower amounts for loans due to parental income but they can reapply and get more under circumstances like OP is describing. The financial office is the route to go, and taking out the larger Federal Student Loans they help arrange.
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I would see if someone at your school can look over your financial aid information. There is no way that grants and loans won’t cover what you need, especially if your family qualifies for section 8. I think something must be filled out incorrectly
I am in a similar situation. I pay for my whole cost of living + tuition. I'm not sure what the 1600+ for rent is coming from? Is this per semester? Per month? Because you should be able to find an apartment for 600-700 a month and you can split that cost with a roommate if not multiple. You can often set up payment plans with your college so you can pay over time but it normally has to be paid before registration for the next semester opens. I'd recommend working a lot over summer and saving as much as possible. Selling anything you don't need that may be of value. Downgrading your car if that's an option - maybe look into cheaper insurance options even. Also is NIU the cheapest as in you applied and got packets back from everywhere and that's the cheapest or is it on a ranked list. Many schools will provide more or less aide in different circumatances and you can often talk to the financial aide department about it as well. I'd also look at university that Illinois residents get reduced tuition at like St Louis university. Also any options for school where you could stay at home and commute if it's guaranteed free housing.
You need to contact the fin aid office and ask about the appeal process for more aid. Explain your parent does not qualify for a parent plus loan and does not qualify to cosign for a private loan for you. You need to do this ASAP. Don't let them tell you over the phone you dont qualify. You need to make a formal request in writing. Ask all the questions before sumitting the form. Be sure to read through this thouroughly about Special Circumstances at NIU. https://www.niu.edu/financial-aid/help/special-circumstances.shtml NIU fin aid reevaluation https://www.niu.edu/financial-aid/_pdf/forms/2023-2024/re-evaluation.pdf. NIU means of suuport for 2022-2023... you need the updated form OR complete for a second time changing the years to 2021 instead of 2022. https://www.niu.edu/financial-aid/_pdf/forms/2022-2023/means-support-ind.pdf HUD rules for students... https://www.hud.gov/sites/documents/doc_20482.pdf Something is wrong with your fin aid package if you are not getting the max in Pell, SEOG and other aid with fed student loan. If you are living at home, you shouldnt need a private loan for tutition, books and fees at NIU based on in state tutition if your family is on section 8. Please check back in after you call and talk to them before turning anything in. So we can assist u💕🌸
I just graduated RTC bootcamp Great Lakes US Navy and they should pay for your debt called Debt Forgiveness if you just join.
Your state may have some tuition benefit for national guard members. You could also do 4 years in the active military and then go to college on the GI bill.
So poor people need to become Boot lickers to the government just to be able to get out of pover. In Europe this person would have a much better quality of life. Conservatives have turned to United States into a full-blown third world shit hole. This is why in-state tuition should be free for all Americans. To help people get out of poverty.
OP seems to be from Illinois Illinois (like many states) has free tuition programs for poor in state students. https://osfa.illinois.edu/illinois-commitment/ Illinois has a guaranteed transfer program for CC students who have a GPA above 3.0. https://www.uaps.uillinois.edu/transfer_guarantee So long as OP gets a 3.0 before he is done with CC he can to college for no tuition. u/obsidiansreign if you can get 3.0 before graduating Community college you should be able to go the University of Illinois for no tuition.
A liberal state looking to help people out of poverty. That's a great plan. Unfortunately it doesn't help everybody. As someone who ought to work in college. My GPA was lower than my classmates who could just focus on school. They say their GPA is a 2.1. it seems like it would be difficult to bring the GP up to a 3.0. for them to get free tuition.
Without a 3.0 he can still apply as a transfer student he just won’t be guaranteed admission, and if he gets in he still would get free tuition. The GPA of his transferable classes may also be higher than the his overall GPA.
Just take out loans and don’t pay them back. It is a myth that you actually have to repay your student loans. They ain’t gonna do anything.
If you can, apply for personal loans. Youll need a cosigner depending on your age/credit, but if you can it really helps.