Comments
Can anyone recommend (or share) a spreadsheet that would easily keep track of loans, payments, due dates, etc.?
This is an important way to help those who are not rich borrow for their education.
TICAS- thank you for the work you do!
Does anyone know how I can get a document with all of the qualifying payments (and their date) I have made toward PSLF? I have been bounced between loan servicers, and my current servicer (PHEAA) isn't of any help. Thank you for any direction you can provide.
To Whom it may concern,
My name is Michelle Dodgion, I am a student at Los Angeles Valley College.
Since the start of the new semester I have been to the financial aid office twice to check on my student loan. Mind you, waiting in the hot sun for two hours only to be told they don't have the applications yet. If they knew they didn’t have the applications, and they knew the new software was not updating with any useful information, couldn't somebody have come out to make that announcement and save us all that time of waiting? Why couldn’t they have just sent out an email blast back in August or July to let us know to expect delays? I was told that they would not have the loan application forms till October and then it will be an additional 4 to 6 weeks before any loans are processed and approved. This will put me in a serious financial bind. In past years’ loan money was disbursed in October, this year it seems there are nothing but delays due to new procedures and new software. I can't get any information on when my CAL grant will be disbursed either.
This is my last year before I apply to the nursing school, but if the financial aid does not arrive soon, I will be forced to drop out. My textbooks alone come to about $350, in the past I could show the bookstore my award letter and get the textbooks and supplies I needed "on credit", but this year my award letter is non-existent. If I try to view it on the new SIS, it along with much of my information has not populated yet. I can’t even get a copy of my unofficial transcript which I need to apply for a tutoring job on campus.
Bear in mind that if I do have to drop out, my past student loans will become due and I will be asked to start paying for a degree that I do not have. My end of the bargain was to perform up to a recognized standard; yours was to fulfill the financial commitment you agreed upon when I enrolled at LAVC.
I entered into an agreement with parties that said they will loan me funds to go to school and upon graduation I would go to work in my chosen field and repay said loan.
I understand the nature of the problem; we have a new computer system that frankly is not working yet. The system that Financial Aid uses is new, but that does not concern me. If my car breaks down or my computer crashes, I am still responsible for my work. No excuses. The people responsible for this short sightedness need to realize that they are responsible too, including the very real likelihood that they are altering lives forever – and not in a good way. This situation would have been prevented if you had more carefully considered how your new system would disrupt lives. My education now hangs in the balance. I know that I am not the only student facing these consequences. I have made the dean’s list twice now, and I plan to make the Presidents list at the end of this semester. I have never missed a day of class.
If there is anything you can do to help it would be greatly appreciated. Surely our administrators understand that the school will suffer from this just as much as the students. If there is no timely resolution to this issue how many more students will simply drop?
I realize you cannot make federal money appear out of thin air, but LAVC or the LACCD must do something to make up for broken promises, and bridge the gap for students like me who are in desperate need so we can continue our studies.
I urge you to please bring this matter to those who can do something to help before it is too late. The students who depend on financial aid need an advocate, and it should be you, not me.
Respectfully, Michelle Dodgion 884916059