I should've said, does the government (national or state) offer money to graduate students - based on income - that they don't have to pay back (in
dollars or service)? (Excluding any scholarships that might have an income-based component.)
Financial Aid for Grad School?
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 P5 Teacher RN |
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Posts: 17266 (11/03/2009 12:49 AM) |
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talksalot83 |
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Posts: 89353 (11/03/2009 12:50 AM)
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I think that all you're really offered is federal loans for grad school. And then whatever else you can come up with: scholarships, grants for research,
fellowships, etc...
I'm going to see if I can get an assistantship of some kind for spring. If not, I'll just stick with the two jobs I have right now. |
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whitgirl09 |
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Posts: 18737 (11/03/2009 12:53 AM) |
You should be able to see your finaid status through your school online at like bannerweb or whatever they use for registration and student accounts. . .
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whitgirl09 |
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Posts: 18738 (11/03/2009 12:57 AM) |
Glory Glory Hallelujah wrote: My parents did all the fafsa/finaid for me in undergrad. But for graduate school I've managed to figure it out for myself. So yea, I'm kind of concerned too that the OP can't figure it out  If all else fails email and call the schools FinAid office
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multiplescreennamesfreak |
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Posts: 91 (11/03/2009 12:57 AM) |
Graduate Financial Aid overview
A research grant is different than an educational grant, because it is expected that a research grant will cover the research you do in addition to classes/tuition. An education grant only covers the cost of tuition/fees. You could be funded by the Graduate School, your department (which typically means a professor has a research grant they are using to pay for you), a scholarship, gov't or private loans...It depends on your field of study. You really have to know what you're getting into because graduate school is much more expensive than undergrad. Your graduate school's website should have a section on financial aid that you should check out. |
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sjk1010 |
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Posts: 1425 (11/03/2009 1:06 AM) |
For all who are questioning my intellect, I'm not a moron...had a 4.0 in my major and minor as an undergrad. I am perfectly aware of the costs of school as
I worked and paid my own way through the past 4 years.
For anyone who's actually tried to help, thank you so much...I'm really just a bit confused because I haven't received any information from my program about financial aid besides requesting that I fill out a FAFSA. I am expecting only loans which I will need to accept, but when I click on my award status, it comes up blank. I thought maybe I need to send back my admission acknowledgement form before any loans etc. are offered to me, but then again, how can they expect you to firmly decide you are attending without knowing what kind of aid you can expect to receive? I just e-mailed the financial aid office so maybe they can clarify a few of my questions. |
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jrtluver17 |
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Posts: 4007 (11/03/2009 1:34 AM) |
For anyone who's actually tried to help, thank you so much...I'm really just a bit confused because I haven't received any information from my program about financial aid besides requesting that I fill out a FAFSA. I am expecting only loans which I will need to accept, but when I click on my award status, it comes up blank. I thought maybe I need to send back my admission acknowledgement form before any loans etc. are offered to me, but then again, how can they expect you to firmly decide you are attending without knowing what kind of aid you can expect to receive? You have until January or February of next year to complete the FAFSA. They will probably send you something then. When accepted, your graduate program should have given you information about the various loans and scholarships available for your program. Sometimes merit-based awards are embedded in your completion of the application and your specific department will award those to you. Otherwise, you have to complete the FAFSA before you hear any information about federal aid. Once the school gets your FAFSA information, then they should send you a detailed list of the possible loans you are eligible for (usually Stafford, both subsidized and unsubsidized, as well as the Grad Plus loan). But you should be in contact with both Financial Aid and the Bursars office, because a lot of times they don't know what's going on with the other office, lol. So just keep checking up on it. |
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sjk1010 |
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Posts: 1426 (11/03/2009 1:49 AM) |
jrtluver17-I am planning to begin in January, so I think some things may be easier or more straight-forward when you begin in the fall instead of the spring. I
will contact the Financial Aid office and hopefully get it straightened out...When I checked online it said that they had received my FAFSA and had no other
information/documents outstanding that they still needed. However, I have a blank awards page.
I just wish I knew whether there was a problem, or if I just need to be patient while things are processed. Thanks so much for the information. 
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dogfoot75 |
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Posts: 1119 (11/03/2009 2:06 AM) |
It takes time for things to be processed, and every school is different. I would go talk to the people at the FA office physically. Not email, not phone, in
person. They can't brush you off or ignore you then.
In the case of my school, it takes months and months, and I had no idea what my "award" would be until two days before classes started when I sent out the info they needed back at the end of April before the deadline. |
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sjk1010 |
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Posts: 1427 (11/03/2009 2:34 AM) |
Thanks dogfoot...that makes me feel better. And it is a good suggestion to pay them a visit.
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lolitachic05 |
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Posts: 3887 (11/03/2009 2:53 AM) |
Yes, I work in a college financial aid office and I would go in person, if possible, and inquire. I would say , as a general rule of thumb, if you have not
heard anything from the financial aid office within 2-3 weeks of submiting your FAFSA, I would give them a call or stop by in person.
As long as you've applied for admission to a college, then there should be nothing holding the financial aid office from awarding you. Unless you got selected for the verification process by the federal government. |
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The graduate school should have provided you with information
regarding the financial aid process when you requested an application. But I'm baffled why you would apply to grad school without fully understanding
the financial costs/aid associated with it. 
