Week 12 Readings #TempleSocEd
The student population receiving financial aid is more diverse than ever. Students from the study such as Nima, Ian, Tyler, Sophie, Chloe and Norbet each come from different backgrounds and face different struggles . For example, Chloe faced hardships of keeping her grades up and remaining in good standing with financial aid due to working long hours. Also, Tyler endured alcohol and law problems, and Nima had to deal with the pressures of family expectations.
Individuals receiving financial aid are people who need help and assistance in order to be able to afford the increasing expenses of a higher education. The list or worries for a college student doesn’t end with tuition being paid. Students have to worry about money for housing, food, books/supplies, transportation, bills etc. Financial aid is essential in order for me to attain my degree. It‘s’ a struggle achieving higher education especially when you have a full load of family, bills/expenses, full-time job and other responsibilities which leave you drained and financially stressed.
It’s no secret that college is expensive, however it was a surprise to find out that the financial aid structure has not improved with time. The investment of state resources to higher education hasn’t changed since 1966, which was approximately $5 for every $1000 of personal income. In 2015 the state contributed $81 billion. Furthermore, 35% of pell grant funding is given to a student for a 4 year college, not even half of funds will be taken care of. Student circumstances and lifestyles change on a daily basis. Many individuals do not receive monetary support from their family, simply because it’s not possible. Majority of students come from working class families and have made extreme sacrifices in order to attend college.
From this weeks readings and personal experience, it’s clear that financial aid does not take care of all college cost, in most instances loans will be taken out too. Many individuals lack the correct information concerning financial, such as being aware of deadlines, withdrawals negatively affecting ones SAP, the difference between grants, scholarships, work study and federal or private loans. To overcome shortcomings of financial aid, students obtain part-time/full-time employment to survive. Six percent of students stated that they went without food for a day due to lack of money. This adds to the stress to succeed and can cause grades to decline, withdrawal from classes and some students have taken a break to earn money in order to pay for school. The readings from this week highlights the barriers students face with education, a broken system, & economic gaps are the main problems. Having to take out more loans does not solve the problem, it only leaves the student to drown in debt. Professor Goldrick-Rab’s perspective to construct policy around students seems more beneficial than the crisis which has been put in place for the past 55 years. It’s important to know all there is concerning financial aid because a student should be able to qualify for the best funding and he/she will know what to do and what not to do so there aid will not be put in jeopardy. Each students path to education will be an arduous journey. In order to make this journey less stressful and equal to all individuals, revisions should be made to upgrade the states contributions of aid and a students circumstances should be taken into account also. Such changes will represent equal opportunity all students would have in achieving higher education.
