completing financial aid forms can be a daunting task, personally it has been rewarding to work with families through the process—from beginning to end. When a family discovers college is possible, it can be joyful. Benny, for example, disclosed: “I didn’t quite know how to read the financial aid He went on to describe what he thought forms.” when receiving his Expected Family Contribution (EFC) of zero by stating: first I “At thought it meant I getting Also, David recalled the convenience of wasn’t anything.” having knowledgeable professionals on his high school campus. He stated: I had any “If questions regarding deadlines or scholarships—financial aid questions, they were there to go and talk to instead of me having to come all the way over to [the college.].” Lack of financial aid knowledge in particular seemed to impact the participants early on in terms of not thinking they could go on to college due to their lower parents’ SES and lack of ability to support them financially. However, when students learned about financial aid, it made a huge difference for many of them—and more often than not it was the career coach that told them about opportunities for aid and special programs to meet their needs. was similar to many other participants who relied on a Heidi’s situation career coach for information and assistance about applying for financial aid. Heidi described her feelings as being going into it. I just where to start. . . “scared didn’t know . She helped me so much—it’s been a blessing.” Trying to Balance Their School, Work, and Personal Lives Seven participants in this study were employed part time while attending college on a full-time basis. Some participants spoke of their financial hardships which family’s required them to take on a job themselves. Having to balance school, work, and social activities was a challenge for nearly all of the students.
completing financial aid forms can be a daunting task, personally it has been rewarding to work with families through the process—from beginning to end. When a family discovers college is possible, it can be joyful. Benny, for example, disclosed: “I didn’t quite know how to read the financial aid forms.” He went on to describe what he thought when receiving his Expected Family Contribution (EFC) of zero by stating: “At first I thought it meant I wasn’t getting anything.” Also, David recalled the convenience of having knowledgeable professionals on his high school campus. He stated: “If I had any questions regarding deadlines or scholarships—financial aid questions, they were there to go and talk to instead of me having to come all the way over to [the college.].” Lack of financial aid knowledge in particular seemed to impact the participants early on in terms of not thinking they could go on to college due to their parents’ lower SES and lack of ability to support them financially. However, when students learned about financial aid, it made a huge difference for many of them—and more often than not it was the career coach that told them about opportunities for aid and special programs to meet their needs. Heidi’s situation was similar to many other participants who relied on a career coach for information and assistance about applying for financial aid. Heidi described her feelings as being “scared going into it. I just didn’t know where to start. . . . She helped me so much—it’s been a blessing.” Trying to Balance Their School, Work, and Personal Lives Seven participants in this study were employed part time while attending college on a full-time basis. Some participants spoke of their family’s financial hardships which required them to take on a job themselves. Having to balance school, work, and social activities was a challenge for nearly all of the students.
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