{"id":573,"date":"2009-11-12T16:11:51","date_gmt":"2009-11-12T21:11:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.butler.edu\/convergegroup\/?p=573"},"modified":"2011-08-10T13:56:58","modified_gmt":"2011-08-10T18:56:58","slug":"students-transfer-to-avoid-college-expenses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blogs.butler.edu\/convergegroup\/2009\/11\/12\/students-transfer-to-avoid-college-expenses\/","title":{"rendered":"Students transfer to avoid college expenses"},"content":{"rendered":"
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photo credit: ivanx<\/p><\/div>\n

Government aid for college students has increased for the 2009-2010 school year. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid will provide more grants to those considered low income. According to the application policies, families are considered low income when they have at least three family members, with a total household income of $30,000 or less per year. In 2007, every low income student received $4,087 in aid; in 2008 the budget increased to $4,731; this year shows the biggest increase to $5,350.<\/p>\n

While more money is being granted to students this year, those not considered low income are not on the receiving end. Sophomore IUPUI transfer student Ingrid Scott falls in that category.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was forced to transfer. I was paying full tuition at Butler,\u201d Scott said. \u201cI didn\u2019t receive financial aid or loans, so I decided instead of being in debt to transfer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Scott\u2019s situation is much like many students who fall right above the low income line. Scott, along with sophomore IUPUI transfer student Ashley Hammond, says Butler didn\u2019t offer her any financial aid. However, when they transferred, most of their college was paid for.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was more my choice,\u201d Hammond said. \u201cMy parents didn\u2019t pressure me into it. But I felt the tension on their side, so I felt bad for going to a school where they\u2019re paying full tuition without any help.\u201d<\/p>\n

The need for change<\/strong><\/p>\n

Each year, more than 3,000 students apply to transfer to IUPUI from other leading schools across the nation. Although Butler is taking steps to help more students financially, it still isn\u2019t enough. Butler\u2019s vice president of enrollment management, Tom Weede, said Butler reallocated $1 million this year to help more students.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe knew going into this year, based on what was happening in the economy, that our families would probably show greater need, and we wanted to help to the extent that we could,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd that certainly happened.\u201d<\/p>\n

Weede said financial aid is a \u201ctouchy topic,\u201d because nobody receives the amount they think they deserve.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt becomes a question of what we\u2019d like to do and what we\u2019re able to do, because we don\u2019t have a magic pot of money that\u2019s simply available to give out more financial aid,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Students’ options for help <\/strong><\/p>\n

Students who face such problems have several choices to help afford tuition. Some colleges offer the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant, which is reserved for students with the greatest need. The school makes a professional judgment to determine eligibility. Several factors go into the formula. These include the student\u2019s income, parents\u2019 income and assets, household size, number of family members attending postsecondary institutions and the expected family contribution. The school then looks at the student aid report and decides if the family is deserving of the grant. The maximum amount one can receive is $4,000 per year.<\/p>\n

Although the supplemental grant helps many students, it has some drawbacks. Not all schools participate in this grant and it is given on a first come, first serve basis.<\/p>\n

Loans, as well as grants, also present challenges with limits. Loan provider Sallie Mae allows students to borrow a subsidized loan, which means students do not have to pay interest. The amount for which students can apply increases with each year of school. Freshman can apply for up to $3,506; sophomores $4,500; juniors $5,500 and seniors $6,500.<\/p>\n

Like the supplemental grant, subsidized loans have stipulations. The maximum amount to borrow is $31,000. For some students, like those attending Butler, these loans barely make a dent in the $28,460 tuition (not including room and board).<\/p>\n

\u201cI really miss the one-on-one attention with the professors,\u201d Scott said of Butler. \u201cNone of my professors know my name or what I look like or anything like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hammond said she\u2019s not alone in her decision to transfer. \u201cThere\u2019s so many people that transferred just because it\u2019s too expensive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Butler students struggling with tuition can visit the financial aid office to talk about their individual situations. Weede said the advisors will talk to anybody about their financial aid package.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe will do the best that we can,\u201d he said. \u201cAt the same time, the best that we can often doesn\u2019t mesh with what a family thinks it should be.\u201d<\/p>\n

Weede said the reallocation has helped tremendously with retention this year. But he also recognizes that it cannot affect all students.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt works better on the wide scale than it does the individual level,” he said.<\/p>\n

<\/object><\/span><\/h2>\n

Related Links<\/strong><\/p>\n

FAFSA application<\/a><\/p>\n

Financial Aid Finder<\/a><\/p>\n

Butler University Financial Aid Homepage<\/a><\/p>\n

IUPUI Financial Aid Homepage<\/a><\/p>\n

Ivy Tech Financial Aid Homepage<\/a><\/p>\n

Scholarships<\/a><\/p>\n

Facebook<\/strong><\/p>\n

Scholarships.com is on Facebook! Become a fan <\/a>and get updates on new and upcoming scholarship deadlines.<\/p>\n

Twitter<\/strong><\/p>\n

Click here<\/a> for 50 tips and tools to find scholarships on Twitter.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Filling out a FAFSA?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Click here<\/a> to view the documents and records you’ll need to fill out the application.<\/p>\n

Click here<\/a> to calculate your Expected Family Contribution (EFC). The results are only an approximation of the Federal EFC figure that is calculated when you file the FAFSA form.<\/em><\/p>\n

“The Five Minute FAFSA”<\/strong><\/p>\n\"YouTube<\/a><\/span><\/span>\n

Acronyms on the FAFSA Student Aid Report (SAR)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
EFC<\/td>\nExpected Family Contribution<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
TI<\/td>\nTotal Income<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
ATI<\/td>\nAllowances Against Total Income<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
STX<\/td>\nState and Other Tax Allowance<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
EA<\/td>\nEmployment Allowance<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
IPA<\/td>\nIncome Protection Allowance<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
AI<\/td>\nAvailable Income<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
CAI<\/td>\nContribution from Available Income (Independent Student)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
DNW<\/td>\nDiscretionary Net Worth<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
APA<\/td>\nEducation Savings and Asset Protection Allowance<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
PCA<\/td>\nParents’ Contribution from Assets<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
AAI<\/td>\nAdjusted Available Income<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
TPC<\/td>\nTotal Parents’ Contribution<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
TSC<\/td>\nTotal Student’s Contribution<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
PC<\/td>\nParents’ Contribution<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
SIC<\/td>\nDependent Student’s Income Contribution<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
SCA<\/td>\nDependent Student’s Contribution from Assets<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Butler University Tuition and Expenses<\/h3>\n
\n\n\n<\/colgroup>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Cost of Attendance<\/th>\n$41,836<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n
Tuition and Fees<\/div>\n<\/th>\n
$29,246<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Room and Board<\/th>\n$9,740<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Books and Supplies<\/th>\n$800<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Other Expenses<\/th>\n$2,050<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Payment Plans<\/th>\nCredit card, installment plan, prepayment discount<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n\n<\/colgroup>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Profile of Butler’s 2008-2009 Financial Aid<\/strong>Freshmen<\/caption>\n
Financial Aid Applicants<\/th>\n866 (92.7%) of freshmen<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Found to Have Financial Need<\/th>\n585 (67.6%) of applicants<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Received Financial Aid<\/th>\n585 (100.0%) of applicants with financial need<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Need Fully Met<\/th>\n135 (23.1%) of aid recipients<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Average Percent of Need Met<\/th>\nNot reported<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Average Award<\/th>\n$21,260<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Need-Based Gift<\/th>\nReceived by 579 (99.0%) of aid recipients, average amount $16,381<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Need-Based Self-Help<\/th>\nReceived by 414 (70.8%) of aid recipients, average amount $4,652<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Merit-Based Gift<\/th>\nReceived by 144 (24.6%) of aid recipients<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Merit-Based Gift<\/th>\nAverage amount $12,476<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n\n<\/colgroup>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
All Undergraduates<\/caption>\n
Financial Aid Applicants<\/th>\n3,455 undergraduates<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Found to Have Financial Need<\/th>\n2,417 applicants<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Received Financial Aid<\/th>\n2,417 (100.0%) of applicants with financial need<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Need Fully Met<\/th>\n464 (19.2%) of aid recipients<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Average Percent of Need Met<\/th>\nNot reported<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Average Award<\/th>\n$19,880<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Need-Based Gift<\/th>\nReceived by 2,297 (95.0%) of aid recipients, average amount $15,109<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Need-Based Self-Help<\/th>\nReceived by 1,816 (75.1%) of aid recipients, average amount $5,704<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Merit-Based Gift<\/th>\nReceived by 457 (18.9%) of aid recipients<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Merit-Based Gift<\/th>\nReceived by 918 undergraduates without need, average amount $11,401<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n\n<\/colgroup>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Borrowing<\/caption>\n
2008 Graduates Who
\nTook Out Loans<\/th>\n		62%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Average Indebtedness of
\n2008 Graduates<\/th>\n		$24,000<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Parents Borrowing PLUS Loans<\/th>\nNot reported<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Parents of Students
\nReceiving Aid<\/th>\n		Not reported<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Parents of Students Not
\nReceiving Aid<\/th>\n		Not reported<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Government aid for college students has increased for the 2009-2010 school year. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid will provide more grants to those considered low income. According to the application policies, families are considered low income when they have at least three family members, with a total household income of $30,000 or less […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":73,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11974],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-573","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/blogs.butler.edu\/convergegroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/573","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/blogs.butler.edu\/convergegroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/blogs.butler.edu\/convergegroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blogs.butler.edu\/convergegroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/73"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blogs.butler.edu\/convergegroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=573"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"http:\/\/blogs.butler.edu\/convergegroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/573\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1175,"href":"http:\/\/blogs.butler.edu\/convergegroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/573\/revisions\/1175"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/blogs.butler.edu\/convergegroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=573"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blogs.butler.edu\/convergegroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=573"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blogs.butler.edu\/convergegroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=573"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}