They suck at responding to emails

ttgiang15
Fri, 23 Jun 2006 18:25:34 +0000

To date, I have not seen a college exercising the right to give less than the established amount for Cal Grant B’s. Keep in mind that the amount posted on any Cal Grant informational website is “up to $such+such,” not a guaranteed sum. From what I’ve heard, and as my brother tells me, that Cal Grant A always starts you off with ridiculously high (compared to B) amounts for students of low- to middle-income families to make financial aid packages more enticing, but as the years go on, that amount progressively drops. With my brother’s Cal Grant B, he was awarded more money every year after freshmen year than peers with Cal Grant A. Cal Grant B is created for students from disadvantaged or low-income backgrounds, circumstances with more pressing need for money. Rest assure that what you got is what you deserve, and it’s the best plan out there. Also, if you read the description of Cal Grant B, this money can be used to cover costs outside of Room&Board and Tuition. If you look at Stafford Loans, whether it is Subisidized or Unsubsidized, it must be used first to pay off tuition, then room, then extra money is for you to pocket. Both Stafford Loans and Cal Grants give you more money after your first year on a graduated scale. Let’s take a Cal Grant A and a Stafford Loan. The first year, Cal Grant A students are eligible to receive more than $1551.00 (set Cal Grant B amount) and couple this with Stafford Loans, keeping in mind that Cal Grant A is to be used for tuition. Once Year 2 comes around, the FAO will increase your loan amount along the scale but reduce your Cal Grant A amount, because this new amount will be sufficient to meeting tuition costs. If you had Cal Grant B, you’d get the maximum Stafford Loan amount in addition to the maximum Cal Grant B amount, because Cal Grant B can be used for calculated expenses outside of tuition. In the end, you will receive a whole lot more money with Cal Grant B.

Hope that clears thing up,
TTG