Graduation Hold

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Anyone else in this situation? I am supposed to graduate in December. I have a balance due on my account due on my account because my husband lost his job and we are basically struggling at the moment. I will not be able to pay off this amount prior to graduation. I will be able to pay it off the first week in January. Because of this my transcripts will be held. My question is will this prevent me from taking my NCLEX until May since I won't "graduate" on time. I can't get a straight answer from the Business Office at my school and my nursing office is closed today due to weather. I am sick over this. Anyone else have this happen or know someone who did?

Specializes in Critical Care.

Can't you just ask the school if they will send the transcripts as soon as you pay up the account? I can't think of any reason for them not to send your transcript in as soon as the hold is released. It seems like a very unreasonable thing for them to effectively deny you the opportunity to make tens of thousands of dollars just because your account didn't get paid until shortly after graduation.

ETA: It's not that tough for them to send the transcripts/verification in. My school was able to submit it all over the internet, they did it the day after we graduated. When the state claimed it hadn't received the transcripts, I called the school and it was the matter of a few clicks for the registrar to re-submit the transcripts, and it didn't cost them a darn thing. I guess I just don't see why them sending your stuff in a little late would be a problem for them.

Specializes in Varied.

Truthfully, it shouldn't delay anything past the time you pay.

Can you pull a single student loan? I can't help with the other stuff, but a subsidized loan literally won't cost you anything if you pay it off as soon as you get money in Jan. Even if you have to take a small unsub loan, it'd be paid off quickly. Obviously this is only if you can't sit and have to wait to test. I cannot help with that part, as I don't know the answer.

Specializes in EMS, ED, Trauma, CEN, CPEN, TCRN.
Truthfully, it shouldn't delay anything past the time you pay.

That is what I was thinking. I would not think that satisfying the requirements for graduation would be tied to the final bill; however, releasing transcripts is definitely related to being in good standing with finances. I don't understand why they cannot answer a simple question: will transcripts be released when the bill is paid?

If you have to have transcripts in order to test, then you have to clear the balance due. No ifs, ands, or buts.

This is common practice at any college or university. Any balances owed to the college and this will cause you to not get transcripts until the balance is paid. In some cases, you cannot even be "officially graduated," but this varies.

I graduated from a university (non-health care degree) and I actually knew a person who "graduated," but was not issued a diploma because they owed $12.00 in lab fees because something was missing from their chemistry locker! Yeah, no joke. We all laughed about this, but it sure wasn't funny to the person it happened to.

Colleges do not play around when it comes to owing fees!

(sheepishly raises hand) ... Definitely wasn't very funny to me when I "graduated" but didn't receive a diploma until I payed about a $95 library fine for a book that I had lost a year earlier. I felt like someone who ignored a parking ticket until they had a court date over it. Now, the semester on my diploma doesn't match the actual time I graduated (an oddity on the re'sume'), but it hasn't been an issue with any employers, thankfully.

Paying for everything in cash was very good, very responsible, until it put you in a spot where you have no access at all to emergency credit.

That is a lot of money to borrow from family, even if they had it.

You'll get through it one way or another, and hopefully it won't put you too far behind.

I graduated a long time ago, but they had the same policies then.

When this is over, you should work on establishing basic credit. It doesn't sound like you are at risk of abusing it.

Basic credit, and then work on 6 months of living expenses in a liquid account, but now I am sounding like Dave Ramsey.

I know financial pain, and it is scary. It motivated me to change the way I live.

You've actually done things the right way, cash only, but credit is needed too. Everyone has to borrow at one time or another.

I wish I had a better answer.

Here is an update. As soon as I pay and have the hold lifted, they will send my transcripts. It sucks that I will be a little later than a lot of the other students in my cohort, but I am ok with it. I officially passed my Exit HESI today so I am just happy that it hasn't hindered anything else.

Specializes in EMS, ED, Trauma, CEN, CPEN, TCRN.
Here is an update. As soon as I pay and have the hold lifted, they will send my transcripts. It sucks that I will be a little later than a lot of the other students in my cohort, but I am ok with it. I officially passed my Exit HESI today so I am just happy that it hasn't hindered anything else.

Hang in there, you are so close!

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