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Federal student loans are based on need, so they take into account what he made last year or even his parents, if he is under 24 (from tax info). Private loans and some federal loans (PLUS) are based upon credit, so they may be more difficult to obtain if you are younger and lack credit history (like most students). I never had any trouble obtaining federal loans; however I needed a cosigner for a private loan. Do your research on private loans and do not take out more than he needs to attend school, as he will be paying them back no matter what after he finishes.
Well he has called and talked to the school a few times, and they said he will not have time to work at all. The school is finished in 5 months and there is pretty much no free time and no playing around. They said like 95% of their students borrow extra to pay for their living expenses. There is no way i could even come close to making enough to pay for that. He has 2 jobs and my job just so we can survive. So how does he borrow extra. He is 20, makes about $21,000 a year with both jobs, has never been in the military. The guy said he wouldnt be surprised if FAFSA covered the whole costs, but i filled out his fafsa form and it confused the hell out of me and im scared i didnt do it right. I'm just freaking out so bad. And his grandma cried bc she felt bad, so he feels bad. She said $28,000 is way too much for a school and she cant support that.......
At the end of the fafsa it should have told your your EFC (expected family contribution). He should also get information from the financial aid department that will lay out the aid package that he will be able to receive, then he can accept all, or part of the offer. When I said "don't take out more than he needs" I meant, don't take out extra to help pay for a wedding, or go on a fancy vacation...just take out enough for tuition and living expenses
Oh lol i see. No, our wedding will be done and over with by then and the school is in florida thats a vaction in itself when you've lived in missouri your whole life lol, and i DO NOT want debt. Its scary scary. Okay, EFC? It says his EFC is 0? What does that mean? I'm sorry if i sound stupid. I've never known anyone who went to college but my mom and she has a lot going on so i cant talk to her. It says based on his EFC of 0 he can recieve a federal pell grant of up to $5500. But the school is about $28,00, but $5000 of it is equipment he gets to keep.
You might want to check out your library to see if they offer help with filling out fafsa forms. I know ours does. And just remember that everything you take out you'll be paying plus interest. $28,000 seems like a lot for a five month program. Is the course through your local vocational school? Those normally have better prices.
If his EFC is zero he should not have any trouble getting student loans/financial aid.
If his EFC is zero, he should be fine getting a Pell grant, and possibly some student loans, though they limit how much you can take out in student loans. For example, if you are a first year student with X amount of credit hours, you can only take out a certain amount- and it's not a ton. Then the amount increases each year with the more credits you have earned. I'm not sure he'll be able to borrow the entire $28,000 with Federal loans; he may have to go through private lenders like Sallie Mae to try and make up the difference. Federal loans just will not disburse $28,000 in a single loan to a first-year student.
It's $28,000 for 5 months? Is that just for tuition or cost of living expenses as well? Either way, it seems pretty high. Is it a "for-profit" school?
Edit: if you're concerned about paying back loans, you may want to look at this loan repayment calculator. It looks like if you pay back a $28K loan over 10 years with a 6.8% interest rate, the payments are about $322/month.
Oh they aren't all that hard to get. Paying them off is the hard part. I am still paying mine off and I graduated 15 years ago!
Well this is what is hard to everyone to explain. Its $28,000 for the 5 months. But like my mom took only 2 classes a semester for 4 years and probably owes about the same. The days are 12 hours long, plus they say you have to study on your own. And its not a regular vocational school. Its for underwater construction specialists. People go from all over the world to go to the school and its the only commercial diving school to give some of the certifications they do. He can do so many ranges of jobs from government work, to underwater welding, building bridges, to taking samples for study. And he gets to keep everything he will need for his job. And there are only 6 schools that will certify you for this in the us, none offering as much as this one.
I'm just confused. The guy he talked to said FAFSA might very well cover the whole $28,000, hes seen a lot of ppl in the same salary range and age get all of it paid. If his EFC is 0 is that what that means?
No, if his EFC is zero, that is just so FAFSA understands that his family has no money to contribute and can't be expected to help him pay for school. It's just a guideline they use to determine how much money someone is eligible for. Like when I was applying for college, I had to use my parents' tax information so the government could see how much they made, and from that, they determined my dad could afford to contribute $40,000 a year for school. (How they came up with that I have no idea, he certainly doesn't have 40k in extra cash floating around every year, LOL.) So basically, they weren't going to offer me any need-based grants and only a certain amount of money toward school, figuring my parents made enough to help pay for some of it. It's done on a case-by-case basis, so it's impossible for us to know just how much they will offer your fiance, though if his EFC is zero and his income is not very high, he might get a good amount. It's just hard to say.
http://www.commercialdivingacademy.com/
Is this the school? I don't know... I'd be weary of it. It looks a lot like a for-profit school. $28,000 for five months is outrageous, and I would question their projected salaries.
Has he applied for financial aid from the school? Generally, and I'm speaking from experience with Universities, schools offer financial aid but require you to fill out a FAFSA to determine eligibility. Therefore a EFC of 0 would likely make your FI eligible for some level of financial aid. Usually you fill out the FAFSA and also apply for financial aid at the same time as applying to the school and then you get acceptance as well as a financial aid package. Usually this aid package covers all costs in some way. For example, considering total cost of $28,000, the package may entail $5,000 financial aid, $5000 Pell grant, $12,000 federal student loan and 8$ private loan. So, it accounts for the fact that he does not have a contribution and suggests loan possibilities to cover what they can't offer in aid. Wioth luck, this is slightly negotiable if he calls the school financial aid officer, sometimes they can increase the financial aid (not by much but it'S worth a try).
If he's looking for a career in a highly in demand profession, would he be able to get a job which trains him? If he can get a job the will reimburse his tuition even it would be a great improvement and help him/you avoid the debt. I would also suggest start saving now to cover living expenses during the course or even defer enrollment a year so he can save money and reduce loans. I tool out student loans to live during my Masters and know now, it would have been smarter to prepare for such an expense beforehand if possible.
@ohheavenlyday- Okay, i understand now. Thank you!
@GoldfishPie- That is the school. I know they do make a profit, but i also know they have to have a way to pay their teachers, etc. And I'm looking at the Harvard tuition, and its $60,000. I think its deffinately worth it. Like I said, ppl come from all over to attend their school since its the top rated and offers the most certifications. And I don't go by any info any school website gives, I know any school will talk themselves and the careers up. This is something we've researched for about half a year now. So we know pretty much all there is to know about the career.
@slicey19- He filled out his FAFSA, but im not sure which financial aide he should apply for. This is what it says on the website
Commercial Diving Academy accepts Title IV federal financial aid, including the federal Pell Grant, subsidized Direct Stafford loan, unsubsidized Direct Stafford loan, and Parent PLUS loans. CDA also accepts Florida Prepaid, the GI Bill, State and VA Vocational Rehabilitation funding, Workforce Investment Act and works with Fifth Third Bank and Sallie Mae to provide private student loans, known as Smart Option loans, which are credit-based and may require a co-signer.
Then it gives the link- Which one(s) should he apply for?
@truitjen: I think the best way to determine what he should apply for/what he could qualify for is to call a financial aid councelor at the school. It's clear he won't qualift for the GI Bill and his parents won't take out a loan for him and it sounds like he does not live in FL and some of those sound local. Other than that, I would suggest also looking online for outside scholarships. www.scholarships.com offers a meta search if I remember correctly where you can see what external options exist. Also, when considering tuition, remember this is not a University and thus the certificate is not a University degree so comparing the cost of one semester to a year at an Ivy League institution is not realistic. Having the certificate qualifies him for the job and once he has the certificate, I doubt the institution would matter so if what he wants is offered somewhere else cheaper, it would be valid to consider despite the fact that this school may have a better reputation for offering a variety of programs, it's not worth the extra debt in the long run. Finally, I would suggest checking if the certificate he wants is offered by a state college or University. For example, this cite says the certificate typically costs around $8000 http://www.dtmag.com/Stories/Dive%20Careers/getting_in_deep.htm I'm not trying to discount the school to which he applied as it is clearly a leader but point out the value in reducing costs instead of taking out more loans. Here are some alternatives in other parts of the country which don't offer campus housing but, campus housing is usually more expensive http://www.ehow.com/list_6661145_commercial-diving-certification-schools.html
I'm in no way trying to necessarily compare them, im just saying I think $60,000 is rediculous, but this is worth it to us. And to some, Harvard is worth it. This school offers certain certifications that none other do, some that you have to have to work overseas and other jobs. We want him to have as many job oppurtinities as possible. Its not programs, he is only doing the one program. Its the certifications. Even on the link it says its the only fully accredited school in the southwest part of the country. Your always going to pay more for better training or schooling.
And his interview is tomorrow, so hopefully they will go over financial aide, etc.
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FI applied for the commercial diving academy, but we will need to borrow some money from student loans. He has about $2400 in debt, not sure if thats a lot. We asked his grandma to cosign but she doesnt want him to go to the school, so she wont. Now I'm freaking out about the fact that we payed the app fee for the school and he might not even get the loan which means he cant go. Has anyone had any experience with student loans? Oh and he did apply for FAFSA, but im not sure how much he will get. Either way we will need to borrow extra to cover his living expenses since the school is 12 hour days plus u have to study after that.