Saturday, May 10, 2008
Helpful Information On Student Loans
In spite of all the confusing information about student loans, I've found nothing better than this source: basic recommendations for shopping for a loan
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Buyer Beware: The College Environment
Parents are paying through the nose to send their children into this kind of environment, as described by this paragraph in the news today:
"Individuals were arrested on charges ranging from possessing marijuana to selling cocaine. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration reported that evidence seized includes four pounds of cocaine, 50 pounds of marijuana, 48 hydroponic marijuana plants, 350 ecstasy pills, psilocybin (mushrooms), 30 vials of hash oil, methamphetamine, a variety of illicit prescription drugs, one shotgun, three semiautomatic pistols, three brass knuckles and $60,000 in cash."
The "individuals" described are 75 San Diego State University students. But they could have been on any campus.
In March of 2007, Columbia University released a study indicating that 49% (read: HALF) of ALL college students are either drug abusers or bindge drinkers. "Bindge drinkers" is defined as 5 drinks in a row for guys and 4 drinks in a row for girls. And the girls abuse more than the guys.
Gutless college presidents and their administrators repel at the thought that they should police the behavior of its students, since drug abuse and drinking represents a perverted version of free speech rights in a so-called adolscent's "right of passage." It's a blind toleration of unacceptable behavior that good behaving students are forced to endure.
And if you as a parent don't like it, college officials believe, send your student somewhere else. The signature arrogance of these colleges knows no bounds.
The problem of drug abuse and wanton drunkenness will continue on campuses across the land as long as college officials continue to look the other way as they remain dedicated to increasing your cost for this environment on an average of 6 percent a year.
The old standard of "party school" as a way of selecting a college is naive. They're ALL party schools. With a full resevoir of hope, maybe your student doesn't show up to the parties, and then the school isn't a party school.
The awful reality is this: when we send our kids off to college, we have to worry about them getting shot, getting mugged, getting drugs, and getting drunk. And to top it off, we parents are getting gouged to pay for it.
What we have in today's news story is just more evidence that higher education is getting lower.
"Individuals were arrested on charges ranging from possessing marijuana to selling cocaine. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration reported that evidence seized includes four pounds of cocaine, 50 pounds of marijuana, 48 hydroponic marijuana plants, 350 ecstasy pills, psilocybin (mushrooms), 30 vials of hash oil, methamphetamine, a variety of illicit prescription drugs, one shotgun, three semiautomatic pistols, three brass knuckles and $60,000 in cash."
The "individuals" described are 75 San Diego State University students. But they could have been on any campus.
In March of 2007, Columbia University released a study indicating that 49% (read: HALF) of ALL college students are either drug abusers or bindge drinkers. "Bindge drinkers" is defined as 5 drinks in a row for guys and 4 drinks in a row for girls. And the girls abuse more than the guys.
Gutless college presidents and their administrators repel at the thought that they should police the behavior of its students, since drug abuse and drinking represents a perverted version of free speech rights in a so-called adolscent's "right of passage." It's a blind toleration of unacceptable behavior that good behaving students are forced to endure.
And if you as a parent don't like it, college officials believe, send your student somewhere else. The signature arrogance of these colleges knows no bounds.
The problem of drug abuse and wanton drunkenness will continue on campuses across the land as long as college officials continue to look the other way as they remain dedicated to increasing your cost for this environment on an average of 6 percent a year.
The old standard of "party school" as a way of selecting a college is naive. They're ALL party schools. With a full resevoir of hope, maybe your student doesn't show up to the parties, and then the school isn't a party school.
The awful reality is this: when we send our kids off to college, we have to worry about them getting shot, getting mugged, getting drugs, and getting drunk. And to top it off, we parents are getting gouged to pay for it.
What we have in today's news story is just more evidence that higher education is getting lower.
Monday, May 5, 2008
A College's Bait & Switch
Your child was accepted to a college which offered a financial aid package. And chances are good that the last paragraph of the award notice stated that the offer was good for all 4 years if a certain minimum GPA is maintained.
So far, so good. Everyone is clear on what is expected.
CAUTION: Some colleges do NOT write in this last paragraph for a reason: money. Their money. Money they don't want to give away next year.
If your student's award letter has no mention of maintaining a minimum GPA all four years of college, call the college and ask for the Director of Financial Aid. Ask if the award amount you received is guaranteed all 4 years. If the answer is "Yes," but you don't see it in the letter, it's possible that it's stated in the school's financial aid policy statement. "Possible" means you'd better find out soon.
If you have access to the college's policy statement on financial aid, but you see no mention of a guarantee for all 4 years based on a minimum GPA, ask for an email confirmation of the director's "Yes" to be sent as soon as you conclude the conversation. If you don't receive the confirmation within 5 days, call back the same person and discretely and gently ask for the email confirmation again. The email acts as a legal document in case you need it later.
I bet you see where this is going. Protect yourself against the possibility that the school is pulling a fast one. Most colleges don't use this tactic, but if you don't notice it, what will be your explanation to your child next year if there's not enough financial aid coming from the school in the second year? What will be your recourse if the school says that they have a policy of not guaranteeing a similar aid package based on a minimum GPA, and that it isn't their fault if you didn't notice?
The devil is in the details.
So far, so good. Everyone is clear on what is expected.
CAUTION: Some colleges do NOT write in this last paragraph for a reason: money. Their money. Money they don't want to give away next year.
If your student's award letter has no mention of maintaining a minimum GPA all four years of college, call the college and ask for the Director of Financial Aid. Ask if the award amount you received is guaranteed all 4 years. If the answer is "Yes," but you don't see it in the letter, it's possible that it's stated in the school's financial aid policy statement. "Possible" means you'd better find out soon.
If you have access to the college's policy statement on financial aid, but you see no mention of a guarantee for all 4 years based on a minimum GPA, ask for an email confirmation of the director's "Yes" to be sent as soon as you conclude the conversation. If you don't receive the confirmation within 5 days, call back the same person and discretely and gently ask for the email confirmation again. The email acts as a legal document in case you need it later.
I bet you see where this is going. Protect yourself against the possibility that the school is pulling a fast one. Most colleges don't use this tactic, but if you don't notice it, what will be your explanation to your child next year if there's not enough financial aid coming from the school in the second year? What will be your recourse if the school says that they have a policy of not guaranteeing a similar aid package based on a minimum GPA, and that it isn't their fault if you didn't notice?
The devil is in the details.
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Scholarships Forfeited. Is There An Opportunity?
The May 1 deposit deadline has come and gone. Without the required deposits, colleges no longer guarantee a slot or a scholarship they awarded to an accepted applicant. The lack of a deposit usually signals to the college that the student isn't coming.
Let's do a scenario. Student X is awarded $12,000 in grants from College Y. Student Z didn't get the aid he wanted from College Y. Student X doesn't send in a deposit thereby forfeiting his $12,000. Student Z is now thinking, "Hmmm...that's left-over money that's up for grabs!"
Maybe.
What really happens to so-called "left-over" money?
Let's do another scenario. College Y allocated X amount of dollars for scholarships in 2008. From years of past no-shows, they have already calculated what percentage of scholarships will be forfeited. Because such a calculation is not an exact science, the college still acted like an airline: they overbooked. For example, Boston College sent out over 7,000 acceptances to fill 2,250 slots. But BC has already calculated from past years that nearly 70% of the accepted students will not show up (yes...18-year-olds reject colleges).
What this means is that the college already calculated what scholarships would NOT be taken, a real gamble that every college takes this time of year: the college has no extra money because more students sent in their deposits than the college anticipated.
Or, it's possible that not enough students sent in their deposits. This could be interpreted as the school having "left-over" money.
Don't count on it. The colleges have no obligation to redistribute that money. Colleges are a business, and like any business, they watch their bottom line; however, to reallocate money could make good business sense to a college in this example: an affluent family is asking for some money. The college easily decides to award this family a little "feel good" grant because they'll make more money than they would from awarding a talented but destitute student a lot of money (a wealthy family is looked upon as a potential donor later - one of the many dark secrets colleges don't publicize. To the contrary, the Ivies do the opposite for better press releases).
Is it worth your time and effort to ask for more money now, especially if your EFC (Expected Family Contribution - what you're expected to spend) exceeds what it cost to attend College Y?
Wealth is power. If you've got it, use it.
Let's do a scenario. Student X is awarded $12,000 in grants from College Y. Student Z didn't get the aid he wanted from College Y. Student X doesn't send in a deposit thereby forfeiting his $12,000. Student Z is now thinking, "Hmmm...that's left-over money that's up for grabs!"
Maybe.
What really happens to so-called "left-over" money?
Let's do another scenario. College Y allocated X amount of dollars for scholarships in 2008. From years of past no-shows, they have already calculated what percentage of scholarships will be forfeited. Because such a calculation is not an exact science, the college still acted like an airline: they overbooked. For example, Boston College sent out over 7,000 acceptances to fill 2,250 slots. But BC has already calculated from past years that nearly 70% of the accepted students will not show up (yes...18-year-olds reject colleges).
What this means is that the college already calculated what scholarships would NOT be taken, a real gamble that every college takes this time of year: the college has no extra money because more students sent in their deposits than the college anticipated.
Or, it's possible that not enough students sent in their deposits. This could be interpreted as the school having "left-over" money.
Don't count on it. The colleges have no obligation to redistribute that money. Colleges are a business, and like any business, they watch their bottom line; however, to reallocate money could make good business sense to a college in this example: an affluent family is asking for some money. The college easily decides to award this family a little "feel good" grant because they'll make more money than they would from awarding a talented but destitute student a lot of money (a wealthy family is looked upon as a potential donor later - one of the many dark secrets colleges don't publicize. To the contrary, the Ivies do the opposite for better press releases).
Is it worth your time and effort to ask for more money now, especially if your EFC (Expected Family Contribution - what you're expected to spend) exceeds what it cost to attend College Y?
Wealth is power. If you've got it, use it.
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