Be aggressive and ask people if they know of any private scholarships you could apply for, to help reduce your college tuition. Ask your parent's employer, your guidance office, clubs your family may belong to, and don't forget the local library. There's a federal regulation that says aid cannot exceed the cost of education, so when students whose aid eligibility is being met by SHU receive outside aid, we are required to reduce the aid package. On the up side, if students subsequently lose their outside scholarship, for whatever reason, SHU will restore the original pacakge. Besides free financial planning, the Office of Student Financial Assistance also provides personalized family counseling concentrating on debt to income ratios and loan repayment projections.
Financial aid is complex because of the importance of the end results.
We're typically talking about investing thousands of dollars in an individual for a college education. We also want to include as many different sources of aid as we possibly can. Organizing all of the different types of aid as well as their individual application and eligibility requirements is a huge job. At Sacred Heart University we make every effort to lessen the burden, however we are required by federal law to collect substantial documentation on every student we help. Each financial assistance counselor in the office is well-versed on the federal requirements and can help you with the process.