The next part starts with me trying to enroll in the financial class, because according to the Dean - a Business Degree (regardless of it being General or not) means sooo much more than just a General Studies Degree. And I totally understand that.
Well he told me to give myself a two year limit to retake the class; knowing myself it was a now or never situation. He and several other people assured me that my financial aid would remain the same. And it did.
I was ecstatic. I got to paid less than $25 for my last class. And to a student who has been paying out of pocket for my classes and study abroad program, that was an amazing way to end it all.
There was an issue with me actually getting into the class, as it was completely full. But since, it was the last one I needed, I was able to email an advisor and they had an a way to override it and let me enroll.
Then there was an issue of graduation going through the system, and I had to apply to TSU as a Post-Baccalaureate. Once approved, the system automatically dropped me from my class. So I had to add it back - naturally this caused a late registration fee to pop up on my bill. Thankfully, that was easy enough to explain and get it taken off.
Smooth sailing right?
Three weeks ago, I noticed a couple of emails regarding missing paperwork. So naturally, I start digging around the student backoffice and first off, they had the wrong form attached. But I also noticed that my grant had been removed from my account. I figured it was just being held back because the form was missing.
After a bunch of back and forth with the financial office (and when they say they will call you, never believe it - you need to take things into your own hands - I waited over a week for a call) they sent me the correct link for the form and naturally I couldn't' just fill it out and fax it back, oh no, I had to set up an advisor appointment, so she could fill out half of it and then I had to fax it in.
So that was taken care of. But I found out why I got my grant pulled, it was because federal and state grants are only eligible for undergraduate students - not post-bac students. In fact I learned that there are almost no grants or scholarships available for post-bac's and especially for students who are only taking one class. According to the financial aid and scholarship offices there was only two options - loan or pay out of pocket.
Feeling defeated, I started another student loan application. I was legit waiting for approval, so I could accept it and get it sent to TSU. But trusted family friend told me to go to the top and write a letter to the president. And I did. I mailed a letter to them and two days later emailed the same letter.
In that letter, I explained the situation. That students should not be the ones getting punished for the universities mistakes. The balance - the amount of the Pell Grant - that is on my account is not my fault and should not be my issue. And if it is was, I would hope it is worth more than one email, that I never even saw. It is as if a car dealership, months after you had signed all the paper work with the agreed amount, emailed saying ‘Oh we made a mistake and it should have been $35,000 instead of $30,000.’ How can universities get away with going back on their financial word, when any other company could not?
Late yesterday afternoon, shortly after checking into the AC Hotel in Raleigh, NC, I received a phone call from a VP at TSU. He told me that they used local money to cover it and in the future to only take financial aid advice from people in that office.
I am soo thankful that the university stepped up, even though it sounds like they did it because they got called out. Either way, thankful they did the right thing.
XOXO,
Suzanne Marie
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