Semester bill part II
August 26, 2013 1:15 PM Subscribe
I went to academic advisement around the time when I made this post.
I made an appeal with the Geology department and also got in contact with the Dean of Science and academic advisement (by email and in person). I came with one of my classmates from that class who saw me there and knew that the WN that I had received was unfair. Basically the statement was that I was not in class the first 5 weeks of class. This wasn't true as I was absent the first week due to a certain infection that I had and the third week due to sickness. I wasn't insured at the time as my work health insurance hadn't taken effect and the insurance I had from my parents expired. (I have issues with family and they haven't spoken to me due to their fundamentalist religious beliefs and them shunning me.) As such I was unable to see a doctor at the time. My classmate from that class was told to write a statement regarding me and he mentioned in his statement - which went into the appeal as well, including my personal statement, a statement from work, notes from class, and my syllabus.
Two weeks later and I've been calling almost every weekday since and I've gotten word from both the Dean of Science and from the administrative assistant that the department chair will look into my appeal soon. I don't know what soon means.
Until I pay off this $1,300 bill or the appeal gets approved, my next college semester is a complete impossibility. My college loans are blocked due to the WN grade which made me have financial aid liability, I owe the bill due to the liability, and I can't register for classes due to the bill.
Classes start in two days and my job does not give loans as I've inquired and I went to Citibank (my bank) and tried to get a loan. My credit is not bad according to them however I don't have a long enough credit history with them to warrant getting a loan. I don't have any physical credit cards as I was in process of paying them off and I shredded the credit cards themselves and closed one of them to keep the interest from rising when I was trying to pay them off. Even so, my credit limit was only around $800 a card and I can't get it raised.
Is there anything I can do?
I made an appeal with the Geology department and also got in contact with the Dean of Science and academic advisement (by email and in person). I came with one of my classmates from that class who saw me there and knew that the WN that I had received was unfair. Basically the statement was that I was not in class the first 5 weeks of class. This wasn't true as I was absent the first week due to a certain infection that I had and the third week due to sickness. I wasn't insured at the time as my work health insurance hadn't taken effect and the insurance I had from my parents expired. (I have issues with family and they haven't spoken to me due to their fundamentalist religious beliefs and them shunning me.) As such I was unable to see a doctor at the time. My classmate from that class was told to write a statement regarding me and he mentioned in his statement - which went into the appeal as well, including my personal statement, a statement from work, notes from class, and my syllabus.
Two weeks later and I've been calling almost every weekday since and I've gotten word from both the Dean of Science and from the administrative assistant that the department chair will look into my appeal soon. I don't know what soon means.
Until I pay off this $1,300 bill or the appeal gets approved, my next college semester is a complete impossibility. My college loans are blocked due to the WN grade which made me have financial aid liability, I owe the bill due to the liability, and I can't register for classes due to the bill.
Classes start in two days and my job does not give loans as I've inquired and I went to Citibank (my bank) and tried to get a loan. My credit is not bad according to them however I don't have a long enough credit history with them to warrant getting a loan. I don't have any physical credit cards as I was in process of paying them off and I shredded the credit cards themselves and closed one of them to keep the interest from rising when I was trying to pay them off. Even so, my credit limit was only around $800 a card and I can't get it raised.
Is there anything I can do?
Also, start going to class. At least you won't miss out on lecture and etc. Most of your professors will let you add if they see you there while you're getting this sorted out.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 1:36 PM on August 26, 2013 [3 favorites]
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 1:36 PM on August 26, 2013 [3 favorites]
If you can manage the time, try physically walking in to the relevant office, not just calling. Do it as often as possible.
posted by nat at 1:48 PM on August 26, 2013
posted by nat at 1:48 PM on August 26, 2013
Ruthless Bunny's advice is good. Also, if you do start going to classes without being enrolled, talk to the instructors in those classes. See if they can add you to email lists etc. so you know about assignments and other stuff (often those automatically include the addresses of enrolled students). Make sure that there is a possibility of being added to the class when your administrative problems are sorted (and that you are at the head of the line to be added as an active, engaged participant in the class). Best of luck.
posted by yoink at 1:49 PM on August 26, 2013
posted by yoink at 1:49 PM on August 26, 2013
Response by poster: @nat: I have a full time job. If I do this often, I will likely lose my job as well.
posted by antgly at 1:52 PM on August 26, 2013
posted by antgly at 1:52 PM on August 26, 2013
Go to classes and talk with the instructors about your situation. You may then be able to register late with little or no administrative penalty.
Physically walk to the bursar's office and ask what the minimum amount is to get the hold released from your account.
Go back to Citibank and ask them if you can have a copy of the credit report they used to deny you a loan. I think you're entitled by law to a copy if you've been declined. If your credit is indeed good, and you need to pay the full $1,300, you might want to consider going to other banks or a peer-to-peer service. I'm not sure if peer-to-peer loan services allow education loans... but in this case I think you might call this a personal loan. Once you get that resolved, you'll be able to pay the loan off early (which looks good on your credit).
(MeMail me if you want a referral link to Lending Club. The issue is there's a two week wait period for a loan to be funded there, and it sounds like you'll need the money in very short order.)
posted by tckma at 1:57 PM on August 26, 2013
Physically walk to the bursar's office and ask what the minimum amount is to get the hold released from your account.
Go back to Citibank and ask them if you can have a copy of the credit report they used to deny you a loan. I think you're entitled by law to a copy if you've been declined. If your credit is indeed good, and you need to pay the full $1,300, you might want to consider going to other banks or a peer-to-peer service. I'm not sure if peer-to-peer loan services allow education loans... but in this case I think you might call this a personal loan. Once you get that resolved, you'll be able to pay the loan off early (which looks good on your credit).
(MeMail me if you want a referral link to Lending Club. The issue is there's a two week wait period for a loan to be funded there, and it sounds like you'll need the money in very short order.)
posted by tckma at 1:57 PM on August 26, 2013
Response by poster: @tckma: I got declined for Lending Club. It's due to not having a long enough record of credit.
posted by antgly at 2:12 PM on August 26, 2013
posted by antgly at 2:12 PM on August 26, 2013
Another option besides often is to see if you can get a few hours off for, say, tomorrow afternoon. Call the office and tell them "I have taken time off work to deal with this issue. I will be in at 1 pm and will stay until you resolve this." This would work best if you could ensure a person with the power to actually resolve the issue will be around when you go in.
posted by nat at 2:13 PM on August 26, 2013
posted by nat at 2:13 PM on August 26, 2013
If the issue is that the department chair needs to look at your case, first find out if he's even been in the office in the last two weeks. There should be some sort of admin or assistant to the chair (NOT the assistant chair) with a telephone number that they'll actually answer. Call and ask if the chair has been in and if they (the admin) know anything about the status of grade appeals (probably not). I'd only identify yourself if they say yes, but that may be overly paranoid. Next ask what the best way to schedule a meeting with the chair is. It's probably email, in which case you should send something saying, blah blah blah can I drop by at X time blah blah blah. I,f like most professors, he's terrible about replying, drop by at that time anyway, but be prepared to wait. (This is where your earlier phone call comes in handy, because you'll know if he's in town/expected in to the office.)
Once you're face to face with the chair you can figure out what's taking so long with your appeal and/or beg him to speed it up. It's a lot harder for him to put it off if you're right in front of him.
Finally, if he still doesn't respond when he says he will, contact the Dean again. Explain that it's been several weeks and that the chair is still unresponsive. Explain that your enrollment for this semester is in jeopardy and that you are unable to temporarily pay tuition while this gets sorted out. They should be able to light a fire under the chair.
But first find out if the chair is even in town and try to talk to him face to face.
posted by matildatakesovertheworld at 2:40 PM on August 26, 2013
Once you're face to face with the chair you can figure out what's taking so long with your appeal and/or beg him to speed it up. It's a lot harder for him to put it off if you're right in front of him.
Finally, if he still doesn't respond when he says he will, contact the Dean again. Explain that it's been several weeks and that the chair is still unresponsive. Explain that your enrollment for this semester is in jeopardy and that you are unable to temporarily pay tuition while this gets sorted out. They should be able to light a fire under the chair.
But first find out if the chair is even in town and try to talk to him face to face.
posted by matildatakesovertheworld at 2:40 PM on August 26, 2013
This is probably the single busiest time of the year for the department chair, and he probably has other things that are a much higher priority for him. It's quite possible that "soon" means after the start of classes. So a plan that involves attending classes until this is resolved may be quite a good idea.
The department in question appears to have an Undergraduate Deputy Chair. Have you talked with that person at all?
I will be in at 1 pm and will stay until you resolve this.
You'd better be ready to leave when asked if you try this approach. At some institutions this could result in a criminal trespass warning or citation, and you might be banned from campus until you enroll. I wouldn't even try it.
posted by grouse at 2:40 PM on August 26, 2013 [3 favorites]
The department in question appears to have an Undergraduate Deputy Chair. Have you talked with that person at all?
I will be in at 1 pm and will stay until you resolve this.
You'd better be ready to leave when asked if you try this approach. At some institutions this could result in a criminal trespass warning or citation, and you might be banned from campus until you enroll. I wouldn't even try it.
posted by grouse at 2:40 PM on August 26, 2013 [3 favorites]
Department chairs are not really known for their ability to process paperwork in a timely manner. They are academics who are doing a thankless job, usually because they have to. they'd rather be teaching or researching or writing, not dealing with students who need them to sign papers and resolve issues. So, first it is important to know the beast with which you are dealing: this isn't the bursar's office or financial aid, where you could expect this to be a bureaucratic quagmire. It's more likely that the chair has forgotten or has put it on his desk or that he keeps thinking to address the issue and then forgetting. Add to this the fact that it is likely the first or second week of classes and there's always a bunch of shit to deal with at that particular time.
So, call the chair, not the Dean. The Dean can tell a chair to do something, but can't actually force them to do it in two weeks (I'm sure there are exceptions, but I doubt this is one). Call the chair's secretary, ask for an appointment, go in and tell him why this needs a resolution quickly. It's doubtful the Dean even explained anything beyond: this is a grade change. If possible, ask the chair to resolve it while you are there. I don't really agree with @nat -- I don't think staging a sit-in will help you here. Again, it's most likely the chair has no idea this needs immediate resolution and keeps putting it on the stack of things. See him (or her), tell them why you need it fixed and then be prepared to have to wait on the actual bureaucracy in financial aid, etc.
Also: if you do start attending classes, DO tell the professor/TA. Obviously, you want to make them aware that you are there and also because they could potentially agitate on your behalf.
Good luck.
posted by mrfuga0 at 2:44 PM on August 26, 2013 [3 favorites]
So, call the chair, not the Dean. The Dean can tell a chair to do something, but can't actually force them to do it in two weeks (I'm sure there are exceptions, but I doubt this is one). Call the chair's secretary, ask for an appointment, go in and tell him why this needs a resolution quickly. It's doubtful the Dean even explained anything beyond: this is a grade change. If possible, ask the chair to resolve it while you are there. I don't really agree with @nat -- I don't think staging a sit-in will help you here. Again, it's most likely the chair has no idea this needs immediate resolution and keeps putting it on the stack of things. See him (or her), tell them why you need it fixed and then be prepared to have to wait on the actual bureaucracy in financial aid, etc.
Also: if you do start attending classes, DO tell the professor/TA. Obviously, you want to make them aware that you are there and also because they could potentially agitate on your behalf.
Good luck.
posted by mrfuga0 at 2:44 PM on August 26, 2013 [3 favorites]
Seconding grouse that this is an incredibly busy time of year for everyone working on a college campus, so try to call at 8am (if possible) because (in my experience) people are more likely to get things done if it's the first thing they have brought to their attention that day.
Also, I want to second cjorgensen's advice to speak with accounts receivable. I worked in the financial aid office of two large state universities and we often dealt with students who had issues like these. Both of the accounts receivable offices were able to temporarily lift a hold so that a student could register. You should speak with their office and find out what would be sufficient to get the hold lifted. You may need to make a payment (you could probably do that over the phone with the number from your shredded credit card - I know this is not ideal, but it sounds like it might be your only option) or you may just need to provide proof that you will be able to pay this off once your financial aid comes through for this semester (I often called accounts receivable on the behalf of students to have holds temporarily lifted so that the student could register).
I know this situation is a giant pain in the ass, and especially so if you have a full-time job and are trying to navigate the bureaucracy of a large school, so be persistent. Good luck!
posted by vakker at 3:54 PM on August 26, 2013 [1 favorite]
Also, I want to second cjorgensen's advice to speak with accounts receivable. I worked in the financial aid office of two large state universities and we often dealt with students who had issues like these. Both of the accounts receivable offices were able to temporarily lift a hold so that a student could register. You should speak with their office and find out what would be sufficient to get the hold lifted. You may need to make a payment (you could probably do that over the phone with the number from your shredded credit card - I know this is not ideal, but it sounds like it might be your only option) or you may just need to provide proof that you will be able to pay this off once your financial aid comes through for this semester (I often called accounts receivable on the behalf of students to have holds temporarily lifted so that the student could register).
I know this situation is a giant pain in the ass, and especially so if you have a full-time job and are trying to navigate the bureaucracy of a large school, so be persistent. Good luck!
posted by vakker at 3:54 PM on August 26, 2013 [1 favorite]
A lot of schools offer emergency loans for exactly this kind of thing. Can you look into that?
posted by fshgrl at 4:24 PM on August 26, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by fshgrl at 4:24 PM on August 26, 2013 [1 favorite]
I work at a school that sounds pretty similar to your school and see situations like these sometimes. Before you take time off work and such to deal with this, a couple things you should see if you can find out:
1. Is getting your appeal granted (and getting an F or different type of W) going to immediately remove your financial obligation to the school? At my school I don't think it would-there would have to be some re-processing of last year's aid which would then pay your bill, and at this time of year that process would not happen all that quickly.
2. Are you going to have financial aid for the Fall term coming up? Is your FAFSA for this year done? Does the F or W you will get for this class still leave you meeting the financial aid standards of academic progress? You certainly don't want to go through all of this and end up with a bill for your fall courses and no financial aid to pay it.
The biggest issue here is that two days is might not be enough time. I know you have been working on this for a while and it stinks that it has gotten to here. I'm worried that you could take off work, stake out the department chair, get your appeal granted and still not be in class in two days.
If we were thinking creatively, it sounds like the main pressing issue is that you can't register for classes that start in two days because you owe money to the school. Does your financial obligation to your school prevent you from registering for classes at another school in the system? Is there somewhere else you could take classes for 1 semester? If that is possible, you could give your school and yourself more time to get this appeal/financial aid issue resolved and then transfer your credits in at the end of the term.
If you think that getting your appeal granted would immediately allow you to register for classes (which totally might be the case), then I would follow the advice above and stake people out and get some firm commitments and timelines to get the appeal done. If you might still end up unable to register immediately even if the appeal is granted, looking at spending a semester somewhere else while this gets remedied might be the better use of your time.
Good luck!
posted by mjcon at 5:51 PM on August 26, 2013 [1 favorite]
1. Is getting your appeal granted (and getting an F or different type of W) going to immediately remove your financial obligation to the school? At my school I don't think it would-there would have to be some re-processing of last year's aid which would then pay your bill, and at this time of year that process would not happen all that quickly.
2. Are you going to have financial aid for the Fall term coming up? Is your FAFSA for this year done? Does the F or W you will get for this class still leave you meeting the financial aid standards of academic progress? You certainly don't want to go through all of this and end up with a bill for your fall courses and no financial aid to pay it.
The biggest issue here is that two days is might not be enough time. I know you have been working on this for a while and it stinks that it has gotten to here. I'm worried that you could take off work, stake out the department chair, get your appeal granted and still not be in class in two days.
If we were thinking creatively, it sounds like the main pressing issue is that you can't register for classes that start in two days because you owe money to the school. Does your financial obligation to your school prevent you from registering for classes at another school in the system? Is there somewhere else you could take classes for 1 semester? If that is possible, you could give your school and yourself more time to get this appeal/financial aid issue resolved and then transfer your credits in at the end of the term.
If you think that getting your appeal granted would immediately allow you to register for classes (which totally might be the case), then I would follow the advice above and stake people out and get some firm commitments and timelines to get the appeal done. If you might still end up unable to register immediately even if the appeal is granted, looking at spending a semester somewhere else while this gets remedied might be the better use of your time.
Good luck!
posted by mjcon at 5:51 PM on August 26, 2013 [1 favorite]
I also have worked in financial aid and agree with mjcon. Also have you looked into any other private educational loan companies, like Sallie Mae or Wells Fargo? They can have some ridiculous interest and fees but if you can get things straightened out for fall financial aid you may be able to take out federal loans to pay off or replace the private loan.
posted by wannabecounselor at 7:40 PM on August 26, 2013
posted by wannabecounselor at 7:40 PM on August 26, 2013
I think it is extremely likely that the academic staff who are supposed to be dealing with this do not actually realise how much it impacts your financial ability to take next semester's classes. They might think they can sort it out later in the semester, as it's only going to affect you when you need to graduate. If you haven't explicitly told them this already, ring them up and state that you are unable to enrol for the coming semester unless this problem is sorted out, because of financial issues, and you would appreciate them looking at it asap. Ask them if they have any advice for what you can do about your studies if you have to take next semester off due to this issue.
posted by lollusc at 8:21 PM on August 26, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by lollusc at 8:21 PM on August 26, 2013 [2 favorites]
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posted by cjorgensen at 1:23 PM on August 26, 2013 [1 favorite]