<p>fafsa gave me barely anything last year when applying to Loyola College in Baltimore. what are my other options. im applying for FAFSA again, but other than merit based scholarships, what can i do??</p>
<p>FAFSA doesn’t “give” anything to anyone. The FAFSA is the application used to compute need based federal aid. That aid is dispersed by the federal government and the universities. You don’t apply for “FAFSA”. You fill it out and it gives your school information regarding what it computes your family can contribute to your education (that’s the EFC). If you are saying that your family income is such that your EFC does not make you eligible for need based aid, that is a different issue. Loyola Baltimore does not meet full need. So even if you have financial need, that university will not necessarily provide you with the difference between your the cost of attendance and your EFC (expected family contribution). Also, doesn’t Loyola also require the Profile? That’s the other finaid application form some private schools require. Maybe they don’t require that one.</p>
<p>Now regarding next year…check with the finaid office at Loyola (I’m assuming you are a student there). See if there are any scholarships for upperclassmen. Find out what the criteria are for those. Also, if you have declared a major by then, contact the department. At some colleges there are departmental scholarships given to upperclassmen. And lastly look near your home for local scholarships that are awarded to upperclassmen. I know that around here there are a few that are awarded to continuing students.</p>
<p>There are always private loan options. There’s a ton of them out there, including a new one from a company called Think Financial. With them, you can apply in minutes, get your money in a week, and don’t have to pay until 6 months after graduation. <a href=“http://www.thinkfinancial.com%5B/url%5D”>www.thinkfinancial.com</a></p>
<p>You can also check out <a href=“http://www.studentloan.com%5B/url%5D”>www.studentloan.com</a>, which is a private loan option from Citibank. And there’s <a href=“http://www.astrive.com%5B/url%5D”>www.astrive.com</a> too.</p>
<p>The cheapest way for many/most students to attend college is to find a state school in-state which will accept them. State Us are subsidized by tax dollars and have tuition discounts for their residents. Another option some students choose is to go to a local community college for a few years & then transfer to a more expensive school after they’ve completed their basic requirements & know what they want to major in. Everyone can always apply to private scholarships, but they are quite competitive to get.</p>
<p>RightCoast…it appears from some of your other posts, that you are currently attending a junior college somewhere. On some forums, you say you plan to transfer to UDel or PSU and on others to Loyola. If finances are a consideration, you might want to complete as much as possible at that JC. Then transfer to YOUR instate flagship U. If you live in PA, that would be PSU. If you live in Delaware, it would be UDel. If you live in a different state, you might want to look into your state’s universities. The reality is that financial aid for transfer students to private schools (merit aid) is much harder to come by than for incoming freshmen. If Loyola is your dream school, you will have to go to their finaid website and see what they offer transfer students. Some schools offer NO finaid to transfer students (other than what they would be eligible for in federal monies)…in other words, no institutional money, and no merit aid. I do not know Loyola’s policies. From your original post, I am gathering that Loyola did not offer you much in financial aid as an incoming freshman applicant. Is that correct? I hate to say it, but it is likely that they would offer you even less as a transfer student.</p>