College aid offices offer students tuition help, hope

8.30.10 – About half of the 250 students on the Ferris State University campus last week for student orientation had needs more pressing than just signing up for classes: They were trying to figure out how to pay for those classes.

Similar scenes have been unfolding in financial-aid offices at colleges and universities across Michigan as students, for reasons that range from procrastination to a sudden drop in income, find themselves searching for what may seem like a miracle.

Most students are discovering a sliver of hope. Financial-aid experts say they can still apply for some federal loans and grants. Some scholarship money also may be available.

“It’s definitely not too late,” said Rob Wirt, president of the Michigan Student Financial Aid Association and director of financial aid at Ferris State, where classes are scheduled to begin today.

Students scrambling to pay for tuition

Nijal Journey usually has his financial-aid situation squared away well before the academic year begins at Wayne State University. But this year, with just weeks to go before the start of classes, he found himself in the financial-aid office looking for a way to pay his college bills.

“It was definitely a concern. … If I didn’t get that taken care of, I wouldn’t have been able to start,” said Journey, 27, of Detroit, a senior secondary education major.

The financial-aid staff at Wayne State helped Journey find enough scholarships and loans that he could use not only to pay off the $1,900 he owed for two summer classes he took this year — a balance that would have prevented him from registering if it went unpaid — but also to pay for classes that begin Wednesday.

Financial-aid directors said last-minute problems with paying tuition keep their offices bustling this time of year.

Education News

College aid offices offer students tuition help, hope

Students scrambling to pay for tuition

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