financial aid – Page 2 – The CNM Chronicle

By Daniel Montaño, Staff Reporter | Photos By Daniel Montaño
CNM’s new financial aid policies have students’ best interests at heart, but the students’ themselves have had mixed reactions to the new loan revisions.
The Chronicle asked students receiving financial aid how these changes will affect their student loans.
The new policies, which will begin in the fall 2013 semester, will reduce the maximum amount of money that students can take out in loans per year by $2000, and increase the yearly award for work-study employees by $1500, Joseph Ryan, administrative director of Financial Aid, said.
The policies have been put in place in order to reduce the chance that students will default on student loans after they graduate by lowering students’ overall debt, Ryan said.

Jeanie Castillo, Surgical Technology major Chronicle: How is the change in Financial Aid’s policy going to affect you? “I have two kids and having the loans helps me with my children, because in my program they expect you not to work. They actually tell you during intro; ‘that’s why you have the loans’. “They tell you to get loans to help pull you through the term so you can concentrate on the program. Not having the full loans only gives you a certain amount of money that can’t cover rent and electricity and everyday costs.” Chronicle: Do you think the increase in work study will help students cover those everyday costs? “I don’t think so because once you are in a program or even taking classes full time you’re not going to have time to do that work-study. “I mean, in the Surgical Tech program we’ll have clinics all week long and we’re not going to have time to do work-study after class. I mean maybe for an hour but that’s not going to come close to covering what we would get from loans. So, basically, students are screwed.” — Jeanie Castillo, Surgical Technology major
Chronicle: How is the change in Financial Aid’s policy going to affect you?
“I have two kids and having the loans helps me with my children, because in my program they expect you not to work. They actually tell you during intro; ‘that’s why you have the loans’.
“They tell you to get loans to help pull you through the term so you can concentrate on the program. Not having the full loans only gives you a certain amount of money that can’t cover rent and electricity and everyday costs.”
Chronicle: Do you think the increase in work study will help students cover those everyday costs?
“I don’t think so because once you are in a program or even taking classes full time you’re not going to have time to do that work-study.
“I mean, in the Surgical Tech program we’ll have clinics all week long and we’re not going to have time to do work-study after class. I mean maybe for an hour but that’s not going to come close to covering what we would get from loans. So, basically, students are screwed.”

Corinne Kilgore, Pre-Health Sciences major Chronicle: What’s your reaction to the changes in Financial Aid’s policies? “I have to say that for me personally, I kind of like it. “I do think that we’re in a dangerous situation where people are taking out all these loans and then they get out into the real world and, with the way the economy is, they can’t find a job. Then they have to immediately start paying back all these loans and can’t. “So I can see the reasoning as to why they want to raise the work-study and lower the loans but on the other hand, work-study is only $8.50 an hour and you can only do 20 hours a week, or even now with 30 hours during the summer, people aren’t going to be able to pay their bills on that. “If they don’t have the loans to back them up then they may be forced to drop out of school to get a full time job.” “I can see both sides of it I guess because I’m a little unbiased. I don’t do work study or loans. I’m one of the lucky ones that have been able to get by with just my Pell grant.” — Corinne Kilgore, Pre-Health Sciences major
Chronicle: What’s your reaction to the changes in Financial Aid’s policies?
“I have to say that for me personally, I kind of like it.
“I do think that we’re in a dangerous situation where people are taking out all these loans and then they get out into the real world and, with the way the economy is, they can’t find a job. Then they have to immediately start paying back all these loans and can’t.
“So I can see the reasoning as to why they want to raise the work-study and lower the loans but on the other hand, work-study is only $8.50 an hour and you can only do 20 hours a week, or even now with 30 hours during the summer, people aren’t going to be able to pay their bills on that.
“If they don’t have the loans to back them up then they may be forced to drop out of school to get a full time job.”
“I can see both sides of it I guess because I’m a little unbiased. I don’t do work study or loans. I’m one of the lucky ones that have been able to get by with just my Pell grant.”

Jack Pettigrew, Biology major Chronicle: How is the change in Financial Aid’s policy going to affect you? “I don’t think the lower loans will affect me personally, but I definitely think it will affect some of the students here. “My girlfriend for example, she pays rent on her own apartment and her rent is kind of expensive because she pays it all in advance and now I don’t think she’ll be able to take out a loan big enough in order to pay her rent. So she might struggle a little bit” Chronicle: How do you think this might affect students in general? “I think if people need those loans to pay their bills they will probably drop out, only because the work-study pays minimum wage. So they probably won’t be able to pay for what they need.” — Jack Pettigrew, Biology major
Chronicle: How is the change in Financial Aid’s policy going to affect you?
“I don’t think the lower loans will affect me personally, but I definitely think it will affect some of the students here.
“My girlfriend for example, she pays rent on her own apartment and her rent is kind of expensive because she pays it all in advance and now I don’t think she’ll be able to take out a loan big enough in order to pay her rent. So she might struggle a little bit”
Chronicle: How do you think this might affect students in general?
“I think if people need those loans to pay their bills they will probably drop out, only because the work-study pays minimum wage. So they probably won’t be able to pay for what they need.”

Jesse Hawthorne, Welding major Chronicle: What’s your reaction to the changes in Financial Aid’s policies? “It’s going to affect me greatly because I don’t have work-study. I have to pull out those loans and I have a job. I don’t have work-study because every time I look into it, they’re all filled up; there are hardly any jobs available. “So that’ll affect me greatly. I rely on that; I only have about another year left, but because this is starting in the fall semester it’s going to affect me greatly. I’m going to have to find another job or something. “Even if you’re aloud $1500 more through work-study but they’re taking $2000 off of loans, that’s a $500 dollar difference. When you’re a broke-ass college kid like myself it’s hard enough as it is. “If they’re cutting loans by $2000 dollars, I mean that’s four months of rent right there that I usually pay out when I get those loans. That’s essentially what that’ll be for me.” Chronicle: In the long run do you think this will help you stay out of debt and reduce your chances of defaulting on a loan? “Well, if I were to stay in school and continue on to UNM afterwards it could potentially help me. But the fact of the matter is that here (at CNM) we are taking out such a small amount anyway because it’s our first couple of years. “I’m going to be about $20,000 in debt, but when I leave here I’m going to be working and making more than enough money to pay that off. This is not really going to help me out. It’ll actually hurt me because it’ll be harder for me to stay in school. “If they make it easier for us to stay in school we can then get a better job and pay them back easier. If it’s harder for us to stay in school, how are we going to pay back those loans as easily? It doesn’t make sense, at least not to me.” — Jesse Hawthorne, Welding major
Chronicle: What’s your reaction to the changes in Financial Aid’s policies?
“It’s going to affect me greatly because I don’t have work-study. I have to pull out those loans and I have a job. I don’t have work-study because every time I look into it, they’re all filled up; there are hardly any jobs available.
“So that’ll affect me greatly. I rely on that; I only have about another year left, but because this is starting in the fall semester it’s going to affect me greatly. I’m going to have to find another job or something.
“Even if you’re aloud $1500 more through work-study but they’re taking $2000 off of loans, that’s a $500 dollar difference. When you’re a broke-ass college kid like myself it’s hard enough as it is.
“If they’re cutting loans by $2000 dollars, I mean that’s four months of rent right there that I usually pay out when I get those loans. That’s essentially what that’ll be for me.”
Chronicle: In the long run do you think this will help you stay out of debt and reduce your chances of defaulting on a loan?
“Well, if I were to stay in school and continue on to UNM afterwards it could potentially help me. But the fact of the matter is that here (at CNM) we are taking out such a small amount anyway because it’s our first couple of years.
“I’m going to be about $20,000 in debt, but when I leave here I’m going to be working and making more than enough money to pay that off. This is not really going to help me out. It’ll actually hurt me because it’ll be harder for me to stay in school.
“If they make it easier for us to stay in school we can then get a better job and pay them back easier. If it’s harder for us to stay in school, how are we going to pay back those loans as easily?
It doesn’t make sense, at least not to me.”

Magen Wells, Integrated Studies major, transferring to UNM for nursing Chronicle: How is the change in Financial Aid’s policy going to affect you? “Well I graduated and I’m going to UNM in the fall but I think it’s going to really affect the single parents who are trying really hard to make something of themselves. Being a single mother going back to school was the one thing that I could do, that I knew I needed to do, because I was left with nothing. “Being in school has done a lot of things for me. It’s kept me afloat financially, it’s been able to progress me towards my big goal and I really think it’s going to affect single moms, single dads and lower class citizens who are trying to do better. Chronicle: Was it the student loans themselves that actually enabled you to go to school? “Yes, because if the full student loans weren’t available to me I wouldn’t have been able to go to class, because I would have had to work. You’re stuck between a rock and a hard place. You’re either going to school, getting student loan money to keep you afloat, or you’re working. “It’s one or the other because then something will fail if you’re going to school and trying to work at the same time. There’s always one that you’re weaker at that catches up to you and you struggle with. — Magen Wells, Integrated Studies major, transferring to UNM for nursing
Chronicle: How is the change in Financial Aid’s policy going to affect you?
“Well I graduated and I’m going to UNM in the fall but I think it’s going to really affect the single parents who are trying really hard to make something of themselves. Being a single mother going back to school was the one thing that I could do, that I knew I needed to do, because I was left with nothing.
“Being in school has done a lot of things for me. It’s kept me afloat financially, it’s been able to progress me towards my big goal and I really think it’s going to affect single moms, single dads and lower class citizens who are trying to do better.
Chronicle: Was it the student loans themselves that actually enabled you to go to school?
“Yes, because if the full student loans weren’t available to me I wouldn’t have been able to go to class, because I would have had to work. You’re stuck between a rock and a hard place. You’re either going to school, getting student loan money to keep you afloat, or you’re working.
“It’s one or the other because then something will fail if you’re going to school and trying to work at the same time. There’s always one that you’re weaker at that catches up to you and you struggle with.

By Daniel Montaño, Staff Reporter

Editor’s note: It is important to note that everyone’s financial aid situation is different on a case-by-case basis. Students should call 224- 3090 to schedule an appointment with a financial advisor to discuss any financial aid concerns.

Starting in the fall 2013 semester, Financial Aid is restricting access to loans and increasing the award for work-study students, said Joseph Ryan, associate director of Financial Aid.

Due to an increase in defaulted student loans, Ryan said that CNM will only be offering student loans to sophomore students with 30 or more credits, and the only loans offered will be subsidized, which are loans that don’t accrue interest until after the student has finished school. Unsubsidized loans that begin accruing interest immediately will not be offered to any students at all, he said. That does not mean, however, that loans will not be available to students.

If students wish to receive loans but does not see any offered on myCNM, students will then have to schedule an appointment to meet with a financial aid advisor in order to have loans granted to them, he said.

“We’re just trying to educate our students more about what student loans are, and trying to help them see that there are other things they could be doing that could help them cover their expenses without taking a student loan,” he said.

CNM is also reducing the amount of unsubsidized loans students can take out— by $2000 in most cases, Ryan said.

Students taking developmental courses or lower level college prep courses will not be eligible for any unsubsidized student loans whatsoever, unless they are enrolled in a coordinated entry program, such as Nursing or Diagnostic Medical Stenography, Ryan said.

The changes to unsubsidized loans

come by way of a federal student aid program CNM is participating in and are being put in place to reduce defaulted student loans, he said.

“CNM is going to be taking part in the Department of Education’s Experimental Site Initiative. They allow schools who take part to modify how they participate in federal financial aid. CNM is taking part in an experiment that deals with ‘over-borrowing’,” Ryan said.

While access to loans has been restricted, the award for work-study has gone up from $7500 to $9000 per year, Ryan said.

The increase in the work-study award was approved in order to cover a raise given to work-study employees in the spring 2013 semester, which Ryan said had led to problems with some work-study employees.

After the raise went into effect, some employees actually surpassed the $7500 allotted to them, and were either unable to work for the remainder of the fiscal year, which ends July 1, or were forced to forgo some or all of their loans in order to continue work, he said.

“It shouldn’t happen next year, we’re taking a ballpark estimate with the $9000 and we built in a buffer which should get us through, but we’ll look at it closer to the summer (2014) term and see where we’re at with all of our students,” he said.

Because the award for work-study has gone up, Ryan said that some work-study students might not be able to take out the full amount of loans that have been awarded to them.

Students will have to look at their ‘award overview’ section in the financial aid tab on myCNM and pay close attention to the amount listed under ‘initial need,’ he said.

If the amount listed minus the total of loans and grants accepted by the student is less than $9000, Ryan said that the student might not qualify for a full work-study award.

“What happens a lot of times with work-study and student loans is that they kind of counteract each other, so if you want work-study you have to take less in loans, and if you want higher loans than you might not be eligible for work-study. It’s hard to get both at the same time,” Ryan said.

Students do have, and have always had, the option to take out a lower amount in student loans in order to qualify for a full work-study award, he said.

Students also have the option of taking a reduced work-study award, which would translate to lower hours worked per pay-period and thus less money per paycheck, but Ryan said that students should focus on working more so they can avoid paying back loans and interest.

“I would always encourage students to take less student loans and more work-study because that way you’re working and earning money as opposed to borrowing money with interest that you would have to pay back with the loan. So I think that’s always the smarter bet to make,” he said.

The change in how student loans are handled is coming as a response to the amount of student loans issued at CNM that have gone into default, that has jumped from around 13 percent in recent years to “the mid 20s” in the past year, Ryan said.

There is a penalty for any school that has a high default rate for multiple years, including institutional suspension that would cause the school in question to lose federal funding, and Ryan said that CNM is trying to avoid any penalties before they happen but that CNM will always support its students in need.

“The Department of Education has made it clear that we cannot deny a student a loan. If they want a loan we will give it to them if they have eligibility for it,” he said.

For more information, or to schedule an appointment with a financial aid advisor, call 224-3090.

2013 to 2014 Financial
Aid changes:

Subsidized loans only offered to sophomores or higher
Unsubsidized loans not offered at all Eligible students not offered loans
must speak to an advisor to get loans

Students taking college prep courses not eligible for unsubsidized loans

Maximum unsubsidized loans reduced by $2000 per year

Work-study award increased
by $1500 a year

Tag: financial aid

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