Financial Aid Denial???

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Does anyone who attended STLCC have experience with being denied financial aid? I was denied because I have "too many hours" since I completed a bachelors back in 1997. I am kinda freaking out because I was unaware of this rule and was depending upon loans to help me through school. If you have any insight, please share it with me because I really don't know what to do. Can I appeal their decision? If so, how do I go about it and what information would be appropriate to provide in the appeal? I definitely have the financial need....my EFC on my FAFSA is zero. It is soooooo disappointing to think that I may not be able to attend because of my financial situation. I have worked so hard to get straight A's on all of my prereqs and am finishing my last prereq this semester. I never have applied for financial aid before so just am not sure what to do from here.

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I think you might be able to appeal it, my husband was able to appeal his before, but it was due to being on academic probation/suspension, etc. He succeeded in appealing, but if he slacks off again, no more PELL for him. Besides, it sounds as if you've already been recieving financial aid already, so if they were going to deny you, they should have done so BEFORE you started all your pre-reqs. I understand you may not be eligible for some scholarships if you already have a bachelor's but you should still be able to acquire loans, if not from the school, then maybe privately (but I'm not sure where, other than maybe your bank/CU?), and I have no idea with how grants work with that. I would definitely make an appointment with the fin. aid office and discuss with them. It could also possibly be an oversight (they did that with my PELL this year..had $600 taken out of my check right before rent was due. That was fun.)

For the record, I go to SCCC though, not STLCC. Whatever happens, you'll make it through!

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All federal student loans have a cap on them.

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Specializes in NICU, Post-partum.
Does anyone who attended STLCC have experience with being denied financial aid? I was denied because I have "too many hours" since I completed a bachelors back in 1997. I am kinda freaking out because I was unaware of this rule and was depending upon loans to help me through school. If you have any insight please share it with me because I really don't know what to do. Can I appeal their decision? If so, how do I go about it and what information would be appropriate to provide in the appeal? I definitely have the financial need....my EFC on my FAFSA is zero. It is soooooo disappointing to think that I may not be able to attend because of my financial situation. I have worked so hard to get straight A's on all of my prereqs and am finishing my last prereq this semester. I never have applied for financial aid before so just am not sure what to do from here.[/quote']

I think you need to call your financial aid counselor...I am certain you have interpreted something wrong.

Unsubsidized Stafford loans are NOT based on need. It would be very, very rare that you would be denied these. In fact, I have never heard of someone, that has completed a degree, would.

Once you have completed a Bachelor degree, you are no longer eligible for things like Pell Grants, etc.

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I know that I am not eligible for grants or some scholarships since I have a degree already. And I have never had a loan/grant or any type of federal financial aid before. They said that financial aid is only available up to 150% of the hours required for a degree. Therefore, since I already have a bachelors degree I am well past the maximum hours for assistance to receive an associates degree. They do not take into consideration that you are changing careers completely, only how many total hours that you have accumulated. Does that make sense?

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The government does it to avoid people that would stay in school for 30 years living off of student loans that never have to be repayed because they are still in school. ;)

Makes perfect sense. :)

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Specializes in Medical/Surgical/Transplant ICU.

Have you looked into the Saint Louis Scholarship Foundation? They make interest free loans to students. The application process is pretty lengthy but you still have until April 15th to apply for the fall. You can borrow up to $6000 per academic year and $40000 lifetime. Worth checking out.

sfstl.org

Best of luck to you, I know its frustrating.

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Specializes in NICU, Post-partum.
I know that I am not eligible for grants or some scholarships since I have a degree already. And I have never had a loan/grant or any type of federal financial aid before. They said that financial aid is only available up to 150% of the hours required for a degree. Therefore since I already have a bachelors degree I am well past the maximum hours for assistance to receive an associates degree. They do not take into consideration that you are changing careers completely, only how many total hours that you have accumulated. Does that make sense?[/quote']

Send me a PM and let me know who (as in, what their position was...not a name) of who you talked to. I know that several people in my ADN school already have a BS degree in another field and have gov't loans to pay for school...not private ones.

I did know that if you had NOT graduated, yes, there is a cutoff for a number of hours...b/c they will only give you so much financial aid before they will stop if you have not finished a degree....however, I haven't heard of someone being cut off from gov't loans when going back for a second degree...I just know too many people who are doing it.

That is why I am wondering if the person that gave you the information is getting the two mixed up.

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Like you, I do not qualify for any pell grants either. I contacted my student loan lender and was told I could use up to 138K for a second Bachelor degree since I have a M.Ed. My aggregate loan amount would be reviewed and the blance of the 138K can be used for additional degrees/certifications.

I am willing to utilize what I need to in the event to complete a BSN (hopefully someone will pay for my MSN).

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k&k'z mom:

I know this is an older post, but did you get the financial aid problem resolved? I'm currently in the same situation. I was accepted to a community college in calif. and I was denied all financial aid because I have a B.A and too many units. I've appealed twice and I'm waiting to hear back from the asst. dean of financial aid. I expected to get federal loans since I'm an independent student and I'm not from the area (400 miles away). I borrowed less than $7K for my first degree and have been paying it back since I graduated, so I know I haven't met the lifetime cap. I have enough saved to make it through the semester, but I'll be broke by December. I'm trying to avoid private loans since I don't have a co-signer and I haven't generated enough income in the last couple of years. Any advice would be helpful...

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