xixstar Posted March 9, 2016 Share Posted March 9, 2016 I apologize is this question seems so ignorant. I have to admit that my oldest has navigated college on their own, completely. And at this point had managed to pay for community college by working as much as possible but that will soon end and they want to give up going forward because all the transfer options look cost prohibitive. Are there schools that may meet need based for transfer students? I assume that student loans can cover the EFC and if the difference can be made up by the school, then oldest may feel they have a few more options. I feel like I need to finally step in and help a little more but am unsure how to get started in looking. Their current interest is social work and art and would love to find a place with a strong LGTB community and possibly eventually work with LGTB youth eventually. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gwen in VA Posted March 10, 2016 Share Posted March 10, 2016 Colleges differ WIDELY on how they treat transfer students. Some colleges will treat the transfer student much the same as any other student in terms of FA. Some colleges basically require the transfer students to pay everything. Call any college you are interested in and ask the FA people if transfer students are eligible for the same fin aid packages as "regular" students. (The silly thing, of course, is that transfer students turn into "regular" students as soon as they are enrolled!) But do tread carefully. Some colleges really do expect transfer students to do the full pay routine. And some colleges will consider transfer students for all the standard merit packages. It really depends on the school! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted March 10, 2016 Share Posted March 10, 2016 Is your student eligible for Federal financial aid (the Pell grant is the primary one)? If so, this will still be available after transferring. Direct student loans will also be available. Do you have any 4-year schools within commuting distance? Living at home can save a bundle. If the student is already working a lot of hours to pay for their education, can they keep working and just take courses part-time at a university? It will take longer but the cost can be spread out. Not many schools "meet full need" of the students but the ones that do apply that to freshmen and transfer alike, I believe. Otherwise, both financial aid and scholarships are more scarce for transfer students. I recommend having the student meet with a transfer counselor at the community college and/or at potential 4-year schools. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xixstar Posted March 10, 2016 Author Share Posted March 10, 2016 unfortunately there is no good advising/counseling services at the school, my oldest has tried getting help and little has been offered. And considering the advising they've received for the past two years, we are not surprised. There are a couple schools in commuting distance and we can look into those but I was wondering how you look into other schools that may lean more to towards adding more need based aid. Oldest got a very small pell grant last year and that may increase slightly this year. Also might need to figure out if you must reapply to a school that previously accepted you but financial need has changed -- the award package wasn't enough previously to make it worthwhile but maybe it would change. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted March 10, 2016 Share Posted March 10, 2016 Yes, you would need to reapply to a school that accepted you earlier and you declined. A place to start to research schools that meet full need: http://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/articles/2015/09/14/colleges-that-report-meeting-full-financial-need Have your son contact the schools within commuting distance and ask to meet with a transfer counselor. Scour their website first for transfer information. Some websites are more informative than others. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JanetC Posted March 10, 2016 Share Posted March 10, 2016 Have your son contact the schools within commuting distance and ask to meet with a transfer counselor. Scour their website first for transfer information. Some websites are more informative than others. Good idea, if the CC doesn't have good advising, maybe the school he's going to will. If all the schools are farther away, perhaps he could make contact by email and make an appointment for a phone call to discuss? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted March 10, 2016 Share Posted March 10, 2016 I can only state our transfer experience. My daughter knew she wanted to transfer, and re-applied at two colleges that she had actually originally applied at when she was first applying for colleges a couple years earlier, but had declined. One of them offered her a scholarship for far less than if she had come in as a freshman. The other offered her a great scholarship -- just as good as when she first applied as a freshman -- and even added on more when we stated our circumstances. So, I guess you never know. Every college is different! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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