<p>Has anyone heard about this? What do you guys make of it?</p>
<p>[USC</a> Students Face Financial Aid Uncertainty | Facebook](<a href=“Facebook Public Group | Facebook”>Facebook Public Group | Facebook)</p>
<p>I saw this too. Fortunately for me, my parents had saved up money for my sister’s and my college education so I didn’t have to deal with the fiasco of Fin Aid. However, some of the stuff does seem to be having major effects on people. There was some discussion on here recently about Fin Aid. Should be a board somewhere. Truthfully, I really can’t imagine USC cutting so many students Fin Aid without some just reason, it just doesn’t seem right. Or maybe, it’s just me not wanting the students suing the school causing other things to go downhill. I don’t think they realize what the effects of suing the school could be.</p>
<p>Yea I think the world of USC and I don’t wanna see my school’s rep tumble but then again when you put yourself in the shoes of the affected students, many of whom have no other financial alternatives or personal resources to fall back on and are now in very difficult positions, I struggle to see how the school can go back on her word to her students. I’m not affected by this either but its understandable how these affected students are pretty desperate and will want to do something about it. Perhaps the school administration should be give more time before it all blows over.</p>
<p>It’s unfortunate when any student can no longer afford a school but it most of these cases it seems that the reason for decreased aid was valid – siblings no longer in undergraduate school, increased income etc. Unfortunately those things often don’t result in increased money for the family to spend on education but USC is bound by federal rules for some of its aid like Cal Grants, work study etc. I think these students just don’t want to face the fact that unfortunately they are screwed by the economy or circumstances but NOT by USC. Why on earth would USC damage their reputation by doing this? Its a very small percentage of disgruntled students and I don’t think we can make a judgement against USC without knowing all the facts – and we’ll never know them for each individual.</p>
<p>I agree rosie, I didn’t want to directly tell them so I’ve been hinting but:</p>
<ol>
<li>USC meets 100% of demonstrated need, not what YOU think you need.</li>
<li>NCP are supposed to pay $5,500 this year, student contribution went up to $3,500, and imputed home values / equity is being factored more heavily.</li>
<li>Siblings leaving undergrad.</li>
<li>They did increase financial aid, the recession has caused this years freshman class to require on more on average than previous classes, hence reducing the maximum amount to some of the older students with less time left, but spreading the overall scope of the aid.</li>
</ol>
<p>The idea that USC meets 100% of demonstrated need for everyone is wildly incorrect. Just take a look at some of the stories on the Facebook group mentioned above. It will astound you to know that some students lost as much $40,000 in grant money, even though their financial situations have not changed or have worsened. Honestly, it breaks my heart to know that some of my peers will not be able to return to a school we love because of inadequate aid.</p>
<p>I won’t even touch upon the treatment others have received from the Financial Aid Office, who has taken to “losing” files in order to deem applications as late and therefore ineligible for comparable aid.</p>