Run Me My $.
Okay, so. We know I'm a college student. I'm sure I've stated this before; if not, now you know. Since high school, I've been busting my ass, trying to get the grades necessary to earn some type of financial help for college. During my last two years of HS, I took Advanced Placement[AP] courses: AP English Language, AP US History, AP English Literature, & AP Calculus [which is the devil in a textbook, I'm convinced!]. I took these courses in hopes of padding my transcript, so that when a college looks at it, I'd be accepted immediately. However, unbeknown est to me, colleges primarily look for diversity so that they can meet their quotas. In my attempts to pad my transcript, I destroyed my GPA: I went from the Top 10% of my class, to a place I'm ashamed to admit. Because of the downfall of my GPA, I was no longer eligible for the HOPE scholarship. Even with the added points AP classes give you, it wasn't enough because HOPE takes the extra points off when calculating your GPA. And my parents apparently make too much for me to be eligible for the Pell grant, or Financial Aid. Basically, GA wasn't giving me a damned thing.
The purpose of this post is to RANT about Financial Aid & the Georgia HOPE Scholarship. Day after day, I work my behind off to obtain some type of aid that I feel I should have gotten. By taking AP classes, I put my GPA & eligibility for the state scholarship at risk. I feel as if, because I attempted to take these classes, I should be at least rewarded with a couple hundred bucks, by either GA or my school's FA office. Instead of them doing that, they basically said "Nice try, but hell no. We DGAD what you tried to do; screw you, pay me. You better run us our $." And at the same time, giving out $ to the kids who took Advanced Coloring in HS. These are the kids who are here for FREE, yet spend their days at the club, drunk &high, wasting valuable scholarship $, & have a cumulative GPA of .85. Hell no, why are you here, again??
Maybe I'm just bitter b/c I sacrificed my GPA for a better transcript, but oh well. Personally, I think certain things should be taken into account, such as: your GPA, but your GPA based on which classes you took. And if you went the extra mile & took AP classes, perhaps a type of 'reward' should be granted to those brave individuals. Alas, Uncle Sam, as always, will have the little people on the back burner.
Off my Soapbox.
Much Love,
Lexxaye.
P.S.- before you say "okay, so what? just work harder for a scholarship & quit whining," I'm way ahead of you. I made Dean's List my FIRST semester of college by earning a GPA of 3.5. I was asked to join The Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society, & got an email from The National Society of Collegiate Scholars, asking to be a member. I'm tending to mine, baby. How about you? :)
The purpose of this post is to RANT about Financial Aid & the Georgia HOPE Scholarship. Day after day, I work my behind off to obtain some type of aid that I feel I should have gotten. By taking AP classes, I put my GPA & eligibility for the state scholarship at risk. I feel as if, because I attempted to take these classes, I should be at least rewarded with a couple hundred bucks, by either GA or my school's FA office. Instead of them doing that, they basically said "Nice try, but hell no. We DGAD what you tried to do; screw you, pay me. You better run us our $." And at the same time, giving out $ to the kids who took Advanced Coloring in HS. These are the kids who are here for FREE, yet spend their days at the club, drunk &high, wasting valuable scholarship $, & have a cumulative GPA of .85. Hell no, why are you here, again??
Maybe I'm just bitter b/c I sacrificed my GPA for a better transcript, but oh well. Personally, I think certain things should be taken into account, such as: your GPA, but your GPA based on which classes you took. And if you went the extra mile & took AP classes, perhaps a type of 'reward' should be granted to those brave individuals. Alas, Uncle Sam, as always, will have the little people on the back burner.
Off my Soapbox.
Much Love,
Lexxaye.
P.S.- before you say "okay, so what? just work harder for a scholarship & quit whining," I'm way ahead of you. I made Dean's List my FIRST semester of college by earning a GPA of 3.5. I was asked to join The Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society, & got an email from The National Society of Collegiate Scholars, asking to be a member. I'm tending to mine, baby. How about you? :)
Dang girl! I feel your pain because when I was trying to get some assistance they gave me the run around until I won their game. GA isn't doing shit for me so I'm moving to Miami, FL and transferring. It's a cryin shame that the "Hope" scholarship surely isn't living up to its name.
ReplyDeleteI know, right? If I had the support I desired from my parents, I'd ship off somewhere in the North, because Lords knows I want to escape the South. 'Tis all right, though. I'm going to boost my GPA up as much as I can, then give a school in Boston or Detroit the puppy eyes & ask for some scholarship money, ha!
ReplyDeleteGet it girl! I am trying to go to graduate school, but it is a MUTHA to get money for the major I am in.
ReplyDeleteTrue that. I've heard that it's best to [if necessary] accumulate student loans during graduate school than undergrad, but why would anyone WANT to? scholarships & FA needs to be re-evaluated.
ReplyDeleteSecondary options is better than AP classes b/c you get college credit--which is a better indicator of success than AP classes. Sorry you didn't have better guidance.
ReplyDeleteAnd no, it's not just about meeting quotas. I won scholarships to two great schools based on my ability--not quotas. Don't use that as a cop out. If you had done the research and found grants and scholarships your load would be easier. Just saying , own up.
With regard to student loans, only use what you need and give the govt their money back.
Love you. Lessons learned by experience are the best ones.