Erin Ryan, a physics and astronomy junior, said she did not know about the new online system until she came back to Tucson on Aug. 18. She received her financial aid one week after school started. Nametz said students who had problems receiving their financial aid might have either misunderstood the system change or thought the old process was still in effect. The UA Financial Aid Department sent out the award letters that included online loan instructions, but some students did not act on it, he said. For those students, the university sent out reminder postcards in late July.
Nothing ever works perfectly for everybody.
Schuyler Heimlich, a business management junior, said although he applied for financial aid in March, he did not know about the online system until he called the university to check his financial status three weeks before school started. He received his financial award letter in July, but the online instructions did not grab his attention, he said. Heimlich said he received his financial aid yesterday. The previous system, however, required a longer process - students were required to receive a financial award letter, sign a promissory note and choose a lender. About 80 percent of UA students used the online system.