Understanding the Financial Aid Game - How to Pay for School

If you are concerned about the price for attending college, investigate it carefully.  It may end up being a lot cheaper than you think!  The price you pay is rarely the stated or published price for attending.  Usually it is much, much lower.  These days many colleges and universities are giving away $$ to have you attend -- and these funds are not just restricted for top students or for students from lower income families.  Today it is open season for getting a good financial aid package at many institutions just by stating your need.

Twenty plus years ago, when my children were entering college, my husband and I were hopeful for some scholarship money to help offset the sticker shock of the yearly tuition bill.  Well, there was fat chance of that.  There was basically nothing coming our way. It was so discouraging. Both children were strong students, but we fell within a financial aid band that was basically ignored. My husband and I had steady jobs and although you would never call us rich, we fell somewhere between middle class and upper middle class on the socioeconomic scale.  To this day we are still paying off our children's undergraduate education (they shouldered graduate school tuition on their own).  

Things have changed for the better for today's student entering college.  Due to fewer students in the academic pipeline, there is fierce competition for students among many colleges and universities. And admissions directors are given target goals they need to meet in terms of incoming students. 

So how does a college woo a student away from another institution?  First, the student needs to fit the profile of who the institution wants.  Is there a major they need to fill, a sporting team in need of talent or might the student be somehow connected to potential contributions in the future??  While these things should not matter in admissions, they are all on the admissions radar.  We all know about sports scholarships and music scholarships.  There also also some academic scholarships named after major donors.  Then there is that other category -- supposed academic scholarships that really are not based on anything. These are institutional awards that the college awards incoming students in order to build the class and keep you from going elsewhere. These awards can often approach $20K per year and are automatically put against the tuition bill.  It costs the college nothing (except needed revenue), the student feels good, and it helps build a link between the college and the prospective student.  Some schools give these dollar awards fancy names but in other cases they are simply billed as institutional grants or awards.  And quite often they are renewable providing the student keeps a good GPA.

Don't be afraid to reach out to the financial aid office once accepted, and ask what they can do to help you.  Most colleges and universities need you due to the decline in the number of college age students, so they will do whatever they can possibly do to have you attend their institution.  It doesn't hurt to state your case.  Many students do and are quite successful.  I've also seen students reach out to financial aid (and also to their incoming major department chair) and explain their "better offers" from another university in instances where they have been accepted and would rather attend (but believe they cannot afford) another school.  Pitting one school's award against another is a bold move but if you have your heart set on a different college offering less aid, then why not!  Tell financial aid you would rather attend their college.  You have everything to gain and really nothing to lose.  So don't be shy.  Sometimes there really is no additional money for grants/scholarships available, but very often the school will find some at the last moment.  Especially if they feel you can help solidify the incoming class.  It all boils down to how you make your case, how badly the school needs to fill seats, and whether there are any dollars available to award.  Don't be afraid to try.  You have everything to gain.

Why It Is Easier To Get Into College Than Ever Before

 There was a time when a college acceptance was an achievement graduating seniors and their parents held in high regard.   And for some students -- notably those applying to the top 50 national universities and the Ivy League, receiving that special acceptance letter remains life changing.  Standards remain high with admissions selective.  Here are some current acceptance rates at popular institutions in the United States:

Harvard = 4.7%

Penn = 5.9%

Duke = 6%

MIT = 6.7%

Northeastern = 7%

Northwestern = 7%

UCLA = 10%

Berkeley = 14.8%

Getting into these institutions is extremely difficult and an incredible achievement. Quite honestly, it sounds next to impossible. But it is important to remember that these highly selective institutions do not represent the norm.  So where does that leave the remaining 3.5 million graduating U.S. high school seniors?

Fortunately there are close to 4000 degree granting colleges and universities in the United States.  And for the majority of graduating seniors, getting that college acceptance letter has never been easier.  

Many small well-known private colleges are scrambling for students and regional public and private universities have felt similar stressors.  The number of applications has been declining for several years -- something admissions directors call the enrollment cliff.  (Hopefully we are nearing the top of the cliff and things will slowly begin to improve in the years ahead.) Some of the worst declines have been felt at New England colleges and at schools in the Midwest.  These significant declines are due to a declining birthrate coupled with a demographic shift, as people frequently move from one section of the country to another.

The impact on our colleges and universities has been significant.  With fewer students applying, schools with previously strong reputations have often had to lower their admission standards in order to fill the class (and pay the bills). This is playing out at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. During the pandemic, the government helped keep struggling colleges afloat with significant grant money, but now that things have returned to a new "normal",  schools are struggling - some facing catastrophic financial shortfalls in the years ahead.  This will lead to increased mergers and closures as administrations seek acceptable solutions.  

What does that mean for college seniors?  It translates to increased opportunity for the vast majority of graduating seniors.  You should not shy away from schools you previously considered out of reach.  You might just be surprised.  But how can you pay for your education and do you even need to go to college?

I'll address these soon in my next installments.

How To Make A Quick Career Change Into Nursing - Part II

My last entry discussed the ABSN degree and what you should consider in finding an ABSN program.  This installment takes it one step further -- how do you find out which schools offer ABSN programs and what courses do you need in order to qualify for admission?

There are numerous ABSN (accelerated nursing programs) that can totally change your career and life in 18 months or less.  But how do you find a program that meshes with your timetable for beginning classes, geographic location and pocketbook. The key to identifying nursing programs quickly is registering on the web with NursingCas.  NursingCas is a centralized application system that is being used by the majority of private university nursing programs in the United States.  (Many public universities still require you to go directly to their webpage to find out which programs are being offered but I predict more and more will shift over to NursingCas in the next few years.)  Establishing an account on NursingCas is quick and easy to do.  Once you have signed up you have access to scanning nursing programs throughout the country.  Since these programs are all competing for you as a potential student, most have virtual open house days each month where you can meet and question faculty and even their Dean in some instances.  You also have the ability to shoot off an email with questions to the NursingCas liaison for that particular university.  As a centralized portal for nursing school admissions, NursingCas allows you to submit your credentials and apply to several schools at once.  There is a $50 dollar fee if you decide to apply, but many colleges and universities will give you a voucher that waives the $50 fee if you simply ask for it, so applying to their school will be free.  

Most nursing schools require a 3.0 or close to it for serious consideration for their ABSN program.  In addition to the B average, you also need to have taken Anatomy and Physiology with labs, Microbiology, Nutrition, Statistics and Developmental Psychology during your undergraduate degree years.  These are fairly standard requirements.  There was a time when Chemistry was also required, but colleges are beginning to move away from that requirement.  Anatomy and Physiology with labs are considered your most important science courses, and some schools will put a time limit on the age of those college credits. 

Say your science credits are old or perhaps you were a "late bloomer" and although your first two years of college reflected poor grades, you later began to turn things around.  My suggestion would be to retake or take the prerequisites online or at your local community college.  Shoot for As. This makes your grades reflect your current ability and eagerness to enter nursing -- something not lost on ABSN admissions committees.  Many colleges and universities want to see science credits that are not more than 7 years old, so taking courses as a refresher can also be a great idea.

Let me know if you have any questions about ABSN programs.  Always happy to help.

How to Make a Quick Career Change into Nursing - Part 1

There was a time when college graduates stayed in a field their entire career.  With a degree in history or economics you went into politics or law school.  A degree in elementary ed saw you teaching in an elementary school; business students gravitated to business opportunities.  So there was a natural progression from school to work.  And once you entered a field, your family usually expected you to stay there.  After all, isn't that why you studied a particular area within college?  How else could you justify those student loans facing you or your family?  Even if the career turned out to be not what you envisioned, what could you do about it?  Many people simply felt stuck or that they had made a mistake they simply had to live with.  But that need not be the case.  

We change as we mature and likewise our career interests evolve as well.  Due to fast-track career options and direct admit graduate fields, it is possible explore a number of career paths and/or change careers after obtaining that initial college degree.  Let's talk about one opportunity - the ABSN.

ABSN stands for Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing.  This is a fast-track degree that usually takes anywhere from 14-18 months to complete, depending on your school.  The idea is simple -- the college takes your existing college bachelor's degree in any area and gives you credit towards a second degree - but this time the degree is in nursing.  

You graduate with a new bachelor's degree and are eligible to take the national nursing board exam (NCLEX) and upon passing you can work as a registered nurse (RN) anywhere in the United States.  

Close to 300 ABSN programs are offered throughout the United States.  Tuitions vary wildly, as do class sizes.  The curriculum is fairly standard but since the NCLEX is known as a very difficult exam to pass, you want to attend a program that will give you the best shot at success.  How do you know which program to choose?

1 - Pick a program that has an entering class of less than 40 students.  Otherwise it is easy to get lost in the crowd.  You want a school that will give you the individual attention you need to be successful.

2-  Check out the faculty.  Do they have terminal degrees (meaning, do they have DNP or PhD degrees)?  You should apply to schools where the majority of nursing faculty have doctorates and where many have recent nursing experience.  You don't want to be trained by dinosaurs, rather you need faculty who are first rate and at the top of their profession.  What are their areas of research?  Do they still work at the area hospitals part time?  Do they have connections that can help you?

3 - What clinical sites are being offered?  ABSN curriculum consists of three parts:  lectures, labs and clinical.  Since nursing requires you to think on your feet and become confident in a wide range of settings, you want to be trained in a number of various healthcare settings -- both large and small.   Clinical experience at a small community hospital is wildly different from clinical at a 900-bed hospital and you need to understand and live the difference.  You want a program that offers both.

4 - Ask about the lab experience.  What manikins do they have?  Nursing lab experience has evolved to the point at which many state boards of nursing expect students to spend a significant amount of time training on manikins before ever entering a hospital setting.  This means the manikins must be capable of advanced simulations.  There are manikins we call "task trainers" where students learn basic nursing skills;  then there are high fidelity manikins that can mimic a number of serious healthcare and emergency situations.  You want a program that provides a significant amount of lab time with newer state-of-the-art manikins, so don't be shy about asking faculty to tell you about their manikins -- what do they have?  How old are they?  What types of experiences can be demonstrated and can be learned in their labs?  

See Part II of this blog article for more information on ABSN programs and prerequisites.

Nontraditional College Students: Returning to Complete Your Degree

I’m an adult who never finished college.  Is it too late to return?

The good news is that it is never too late to return for a college degree.   You can do it!  Millions of adult students return to college every year, in fact, nontraditional students are now the majority of college students in the United States.   Whether you are age 30 or 80, there are numerous possibilities for college.  Consider the program options:  day, evening, weekend and online.  The important part of returning is in finding the right college that provides an affordable major and a schedule that works with your every day commitments.  As a nontraditional student you can receive financial aid at many institutions, and depending on your major, you may be able to enroll and take courses at your own pace.  There are many options for enrollment, and we will discuss each within the days ahead.

Should You Get A Nursing Degree?

One of the first things to understand about nursing is that the job market for nurses ebbs and flows on a 12 year cycle.  This means that while jobs may be plentiful at any point in time, within twelve years the job market will change completely.  Some attribute this to burnout within the profession, while others see it as a function of young nurses leaving to have children. At the same time we see more and more men and women entering the profession, so even in times when many nurses have left the workplace, there is still a healthy competition for positions.

Nursing has changed dramatically during the past two decades.  One thing to understand about nursing school is that you do not become a nurse upon graduating from an associate or bachelor's degree nursing program.  After graduation you must take a national board exam known as the NCLEX.  The NCLEX is offered in every state, and your college will discuss it with you in the months prior to your graduation.  This is a very difficult examination, and you would be wise to take a review course prior to taking the NCLEX.  Once you pass the examination you can apply for your nursing license.   This license will qualify you for RN status.

Bedside nursing is very satisfying, and one of the wonderful parts of the job is getting to know and help the patients.    There are also numerous areas within nursing -- from psychiatric to working in the operating room.   Many of these areas require specialized training beyond the college degree and the RN license.  The additional training may be provided by the hospital, or may require additional education -- such as a master's degree.

Next -- Should I get a BSN?

Should I return to School?

The story plays out again and again.  In this economy, job security is nonexistent.   You lose your job unexpectedly and don't know what to do.  You tell yourself you are too old to return to school, but is that really true?   The answer is a resounding "No!"  It is never too late to return to school -- especially if you are the family breadwinner or plan to continue working for several years.  Rather than allowing yourself to become consumed with depression, think about turning back the clock.  This can be a great opportunity to start over and do that thing you've always wanted to do.  Here are a few interesting ideas for meaningful careers:

Nursing -- take it at a community college to save $$

Surgical Technician -- offers all the excitement of the operating room -- offered at many community colleges and you can work anywhere in the United States.

EMT -- offered at colleges and community colleges

Physician's Assistant -- a wonderful career with a fair amount of autonomy - think university

Professional Chef --  cooking schools are easy to find throughout the country

Radiation Therapist -- accredited programs are offered at many colleges

Teacher -- great programs at state schools and private colleges/universities

The next installment will discuss degree options in business.