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The Daily Utah Chronicle > Opinion

Financial aid office at U fails students

By West Valley

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Published: Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Updated: Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Editor:

The financial aid office at the U needs to be held accountable. Why are students not a top priority? Why must they wait two weeks to speak with a counselor who can give them direction and help? Why must they wait 30 days to have an appeal reviewed? Why are students not allowed to speak with the people who can give them resources and guidance to help them financially so that they can be successful at the U? How many students does the university lose each semester because they don’t get the help they need? And finally, why are students treated so poorly by the staff at the financial aid office?

I believe students endure terrible treatment and the unnecessary delays in getting their financial aid processed, because they are not aware that they do not have to put up with it. I would encourage any student who has had to withdraw from the U to write to the dean of students and/or the president of the U and detail to them how the financial aid office not only did not help them, but because of the delays, they were not able to attend the university.

I have been frustrated, outraged and completely astonished at the treatment and the policies of the financial aid office at the U. I expected better from this institution and frankly, their students deserve better. If I or any of the people who worked with me in either of the colleges I worked at behaved in such a manner, or had policies that required students to wait two weeks for appointments and 30 days for appeals, we would have been fired for failure to do our job.

Sheila Holfeltz,
West Valley

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13 comments

Jeff
Wed Oct 21 2009 15:24
I love how the inability to understand satire causes people to attack me instead of trying to understand what I'm actually saying. First, I didn't say that the financial aid office is a gem when it comes to service to students. I've dealt with the financial aid office, and indeed it sucks. Everyone acts suprised that a heavily regulated service is hard to gain access to. And imagine what it must be like for financial aid staff when every snot nose student that thinks they are God's gift to college and that they deserve every dime the government has taken from those who rightfully earned it storm into their office acting like they should be treated like the queen of England. Reality check: you aren't buying a ferrari, you're coming to ask for money, so don't expect to be treated like you are doing the world a favor by showing up at financial aid. If you really want to know why getting financial aid is an extensive and frustrating process, just research the federal rules governing student aid. And its funny how many U students probably voted for Obama and would love government run health care yet they cry about how the financial aid office is full of rude people and they can't get the money they "deserve." Its a state government office and staff regulated by federal rules, of course its going to be time consuming and difficult to get aid.
Anonymous Student
Wed Oct 21 2009 14:01
I am COMPLETELY agree with this article on financial aid I have only been to their offices ONCE in my entire undergrad career this far because my parents make too much money I don't qualify for pretty much MOST of the aid that they grant- I did not receive ANY HELP WHATSOEVER!! I will NOT go over there ONE MORE TIME because they treat students like CRAP!! Like I am some cow waiting in line to be branded!!! how ridiculous and not to mention they only help INCOMING FRESHMAN!!! I HATE FAFSA and I HATE Financial Aide Office!!!!!
Anonymous Student
Wed Oct 21 2009 14:00
I am COMPLETELY agree with this article on financial aid I have only been to their offices ONCE in my entire undergrad career this far because my parents make too much money I don't qualify for pretty much MOST of the aid that they grant- I did not receive ANY HELP WHATSOEVER!! I will NOT go over there ONE MORE TIME because they treat students like CRAP!! Like I am some cow waiting in line to be branded!!! how ridiculous and not to mention they only help INCOMING FRESHMAN!!! I HATE FAFSA and I HATE Financial Aide Office!!!!!
A Different Brett
Wed Oct 21 2009 13:13
I will start with the disclaimer that I used to work in the U's financial aid office. I have also been the recipient of financial aid while at the U while attending graduate school.

I understand that the financial aid process can seem overly complex and difficult, but as Stephanie said federal law and regulations require that things get done in just the right way, or the entire University can loose it's federal funding. I will say the key to have the best experience possible is planning ahead. Fill out the FAFSA as early you can, and then check your online account and email to make sure that the financial aid office doesn't need any more information. If you wait until the week before the semester you are going to have a delay because the financial aid office takes an "all hands on deck" approach to dealing with the students the first few weeks of classes. More attention is paid to dealing with students at the office and on the phone, than processing paperwork.

The same thing applies to the appeal process. When you file an appeal, make sure you include as much supporting information and documentation as possible. If you just write a letter asking to have aid reinstated it will probably be denied, and they will request more information about why they should reinstate your aid. You also want to get it in as quickly as possible. The appeal process is a first come, fist served process, and if you wait 2-3 weeks after you are notified, there will be a lot of people in front of you.

I think that the U's financial aid office does a great job. They have 30,000+ students on campus to help, and only around 30 employees to do so. Thanks financial aid!

Deborah
Tue Oct 20 2009 20:10
Thank you Stephanie for writing a well thought out response to a poorly written rant. It sounds to me like Sheila waited too long to try to apply for Financial Aid and wasn't prepared during the process. The Financial Aid Office helps THOUSANDS of students EVERY semester. Imagine if everyone who needed to get their stuff done RIGHT NOW jumped to the front of the line? Nothing would get done and those students that were prepared would actually be punished. I'm ashamed of the students that bicker over their student aid- they need to understand where their money is coming from and what role they have in getting that money. Yes, financial aid is there to assist students through college but grow up and take responsibility for yourself. If there are problems with your file or your aid isn't going to come through fast enough, it's likely because it's YOUR fault and not the office's- give the Financial Aid Staff a break. They are students too and know first hand the difficulties each student faces- it might be nice if every student that had a problem thanked the staff for the extra work they are doing to try to resolve it quickly instead of writing the dean a letter to complain.
Stephanie
Tue Oct 20 2009 12:44
I used to work in financial aid at another university and have been a student myself. I would not be so quick to condemn the financial aid office. When I was a student in college, I would sometimes get frustrated with the financial aid process, like some students. However, as an employee I really learned to appreciate what financial aid employees go through. It is a thankless job, that requires a lot of processing. While most students have a positive experience, some yell at you over things that they do not understand or that are not the fault of the office. Student financial aid is a federal program and therefore schools must abide by federal standards. If they cut corners to provide aid, they are in danger of losing federal funding. From what I have heard, the Federal aid applicant volume has increased dramatically in the past 2 years due to the economy. Staffing has been cut because of overall state budget cuts. In other words, there are less employees to do more work. Don't blame the employees. Sure, you could have everyone do counselor appointments and leave no one for processing paperwork. Then you might get answers faster, but you would be waiting months instead of weeks to get your aid! Get more educated in the conditions of the office before you make assumptions that the office and its employees don't care. Because trust me, they do! Do you really think that they want to make things difficult and be yelled at constantly? How would that make their job better?
Ellen
Tue Oct 20 2009 12:21
Tim, I have to agree with you. I had the same experience. Except this was my first time getting aid. I was totally confused with how to get aid, but got a lot of help with their workers at the front windows. They have always been nice to me and I have been there several times.
Brett
Tue Oct 20 2009 12:12
I have been an engineering major for 4 years now (good grief) and am now in graduate school. The longer I stay here, the more entitled people seem to feel. Sheila only had two specific complaints...waiting for 2 weeks to speak to a counselor and 30 days to appeal. The other statements seem to be unsupported rants borne out of frustration with the current situation. Waiting can be frustrating, especially since 30 days is a large chunk of a semester, but what are you waiting for? Free money. I worked full-time all through my undergrad (not in financial aid for those who wish to through unsupported accusations) so that I could pay for school; I had pretty good grades, too. I was also proactive in communicating with financial aide to get as much as I could from them. In my experience, they were very helpful, even over the phone (once you got through), and though I didn't get all the grants that I wanted or felt that I qualified for - so what - the money wasn't there to begin with so I wasn't any poorer. I was amazed that all I had to do to get just about all of my financial aid was fill out a FAFSA and a uform and everything fell into place with almost no effort on my part. So, suck it up. They are doing there job (many of them to pay for school), if you are worried about paying for YOUR school, get a job yourself. You are not entitled to a free check just because you are here, try working for it for a change.
Tim
Tue Oct 20 2009 11:54
I have been to other schools over my college career. I just transferred here. University of Utah financial aid has provided me with the best experience thus far. I applied early, had my aid awarded to me in May, and got my aid the first week of classes. At my previous school, I did not get my aid until October. I have met with a couselor before and talked to the people at their windows and have always got the help that I needed.
MBA Jeff
Tue Oct 20 2009 10:40
I tried to get help from the financial aid office but received none. I never got through on the phone. Not one of my emails received a reply. I was left to fend for myself. So to Jeff, who probably works for the financial aid office, compare the U's service to similar offices in the state and country, and you'll find the U's service is way behind. It's embarrassing and inexcusable. (Oh, and blaming the government for your problems? How original.)
kt
Tue Oct 20 2009 10:25
Nate I second your comment and my experiences also support Sheila's thoughts. In fact I basically forgot about getting help and had to figure a way to pay for school on my own. I luckly had enough resources to make this happen for myself but I know may students wouldn't be able to scrap it together.
Nate
Tue Oct 20 2009 10:03
Jeff, I don't think that the author is scrutinizing how much financial aid is being distributed. I think she is scrutinizing the quality of service that the office provides when assisting students with financial aid. Frankly, my experience supports her claims and it is my belief that the people in the financial aid office are less than helpful and despicably rude.
Jeff
Tue Oct 20 2009 03:20
yeah, you know, I agree, the financial aid staff should just walk around the union patio at lunch time and write checks to make it easier for everyone to afford going to college. If you are mad that the process is difficult, just thank your federal government.






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