Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with aid

Being an adult sucks. Can I be 18 again?

lizjohn — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 17:44:25 -0800

Help me/us gain perspective about working while in school, please! My husband and I have been going back and forth about what to do about school and work.

The boring background information: I worked full-time while I put myself through my first degree. My grades were good enough to graduate with honors from a state school, but they weren't stellar. I believe in accruing as little debt as possible while in school. When my husband attended college (he didn't finish) he was in a very time consuming program and only worked at his college radio station one night a week. He essentially didn't work and took out a loan to get by. We only recently paid off that loan.

Now: We are both going back to school and both have eyes on very competitive programs. My husband in struggling balancing school and work. We both have about 50 hours of school work left until we can apply to our professional programs. We have our two school days off, but the problem lies in the rest of the week. We both work in the retail world and could be scheduled anytime between 7am and 11pm. Simply to keep these jobs, we must maintain very open availability. The job market here is poor and most job moves we could make would be laterally in pay and in requiring open availability.

My argument: It's better live off your current wages and take out loans for tuition only. No point compounding loans when we can just take out as minimal as possible. Caveat, I know that once we get into professional school we will definitely take out loans. The question lies in the undergraduate and prerequisite courses.

His argument: School loans are among the cheapest/best type of loans to take. It is better to do your very best in school to get into the best programs then to just get by and get into an OK program (if you get in at all). We could power through school faster and with the "good jobs" we could get with these degrees, the loans would be easily paid off. We could scrape by living simply for years.

Further financial details: We own our car and we rent an apartment. We have some credit card debt and we are actively paying it down. My husband receives some grants for school, which cover most of his tuition. I have 5k in bonds set aside for emergency, some of which will mature soon. In 2012 we will receive the proceeds from a moderately sized annuity which we had earmarked for a down payment for a house. I have decent health insurance through my job, for which I need to maintain full time status. Neither of us could support both on one paycheck.

What to other people do? Do most adults work through college? What about when their spouse in attending school as well? How common is it to live off loans?

Sorry if this is rambly, we'd just like some outside prospective. We've been going back and forth about the loan situation for months.

If it matters, I'm going into pharmacy and he's going into law

College & Fin Aid Issues

nameinruins — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 15:41:22 -0800

College & Fin Aid Issues Here's my situation:

I'm 24 years old and unemployed. I have been attending a state university on and off since 2004. However, due to some extreme personal circumstances, my GPA was adversely affected to the point of losing financial aid and causing the university to place me on academic suspension. That was over a year ago.

--I signed up for summer courses at the university and successfully passed them with flying colors. I had hoped this would bring my GPA up to at least 2.0, but it did not. I am still ineligible for financial aid. As of now, it is at 1.905 with the cumulative completion rate of 53%. That needs to be at 67% or above also. Since I was only able to afford summer classes with the help of a few people in my family, it is doubtful I would be able to attend college this fall. So, my plan was to attend community college in the meantime and earn enough credits to raise the GPA. Unfortunately, I was told by an advisor at the state university that the credits earned at any other college, including community colleges, would not count towards the cumulative GPA and completion rate at the university. In other words, this is the "Catch-22" of financial aid for me. I cannot receive financial aid unless I raise my GPA to 2.0 or above and the completion rate to 67% or above. The only way to do that is take courses at the state university. Unfortunately, I cannot afford it without financial aid, since it is practically impossible to find a job right now.

--All of this really came to a full boil two weeks because I never had an idea about the true shape my GPA and such were in, because my advisor at the time never told me. She never sat me down and flat-out told me, "Okay, your academic transcript here is looking bad. You need to do this and that." None of that. She had my transcript up right in front of her. She did not make recommendations for what I could do, etc., other than sign up for courses.

--I worked out my issues and I did really well last summer and I have no doubt that the trend will continue into the fall and onward. All I need to do is find means of getting money so I can attend classes in the spring and finally graduate in 2011, so I can move on with my life.

--I just hate that there's such a struggle for my "second chance" when I know I will do well. And yet, people are not willing to take their chances with me, and they never fail to remind me of my own mistakes in the past. I was young. I learned my lesson the hard way. That's all I have to say about this.

--Oh, and yes, I've applied for alternative private loans. I was denied because of bad credit, and there isn't anyone creditworthy in my family I could ask to be my cosigner.

--What are my options other than keep trying to find a job and save up?

Continuing educational opportunities in humanitarian law

Nothing — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 09:17:44 -0800

Looking for continuing educational opportunities related to my field (international humanitarian law) to best take advantage of a few months off work. I will have a few months off this summer / fall, from mid August to mid November, and I would like to spend them in the U.S. (DC area or Boston area are what I am looking at now, but I am flexible) taking a course, attending a seminar, or doing a training. It is too late for most summer courses and too early for fall, so I am looking for additional options.

I am most interested in international relations and refugee / idp protection, but related things like monitoring and evaluation, project management, and security are good too. Or even an intensive Arabic course.

Reasonably-priced insurance for hearing aids

psc1860 — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 19:35:19 -0800

I'm seeking insurance for my hearing aids that won't bankrupt me. I need insurance to cover my hearing aids if they fail, get broken or lost which won't bankrupt me.

The insurance provided by the manufacturer is super expensive and my regular insurance company which I use for personal property, liability, my home and autos won't touch it.

Huh?Filter: Advice needed on getting a hearing aid

mad_little_monkey — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 10:22:59 -0800

Huh?Filter: Advice needed on getting a hearing aid My beloved husband has suspected hearing loss for years. It's time we get him a hearing aid, he has trouble hearing basic conversation. Can anyone advise on the first step and maybe the best device that is out there now? What kind of doctor should he see?

Low cost or pro bono legal aid for domestic violence / abuse victims in California?

sergeant sandwich — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 22:00:41 -0800

My friend and her ex-boyfriend got in a fight, he got violent and beat her up pretty bad. She got in the car with their baby and fled cross-country to stay with her parents. There is a hearing next month to determine custody of the child, and she doesn't want to lose the kid to what is likely going to be an abusive father. Lawyer up, right? Problem is, not a lot of money. Can you point me to any organizations in California that provide pro-bono / sliding-scale / low-cost legal aid services for abused women? So, my friend and her (now-ex) boyfriend had a child together and were living together in Fairfield, CA. In April of this year, they got in a fight over something (I don't know what), he snapped and beat the shit out of her. She took the kid and the clothes on her back and drove to her parents' house in the midwest, where she's been staying since.

There's a hearing in Fairfield at the end of July to determine the custody of the child, and she's scared that without a lawyer she's gonna lose her son and/or be forced to regularly see Mr. Violent if there's some kind of joint custody agreement.

As you can probably imagine, having to leave all your belongings and job behind on a moment's notice with toddler in tow has put her in a financial pickle, and she's having a hard time finding the $3k it will cost her to hire the cheapest lawyer she can find, and on top of that there's tickets for the flight back out to the hearing, etc. I and other friends have lent some money to help, but none of us can pony up that kind of cash on short notice.

I imagine there must be some organizations and/or social service groups which provide legal aid or representation for women who are victims of domestic violence. I've done some googling and found a few in California, but I suspect there are some knowledgeable people on AskMe who can set us on the right direction as far as finding help.

I'm not personally involved in the situation in any way, just trying to lend a hand after the fact. Any assistance anyone can provide would be appreciated in a big way.

Are expensive American undergraduate educations worth it for foreign students?

Mo Nickels — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 04:44:41 -0800

Is it worth it for a foreign parent to squeeze his budget to manage very expensive undergraduate educations for his children in elite American schools? A respected colleague in Asia writes with this query. It's not so much about how to get financial aid when you are a parent of foreign student seeking an undergraduate education in the United States so much as it is a question as to whether it is worth it at all, even if you can pay.

His words are below, posted with his permission. I have stripped out identifying information. The family is not in Singapore, for what that is worth.

«I have 2 children entering university at the same time this year.

My son has won a partial scholarship to the Eastman School of Music, but even then, the amount we'd have to come up with to send him there is rather forbidding.

My daughter has been accepted into New York University to do Liberal Arts -- but without any aid, which makes it virtually impossible for us to help her realise her dream.

What resources can I apply for in the US or elsewhere to help them? We've tried ones in our country but so far without success.

Would you recommend they take up the places offered them by the 2 schools, given the constraints? Are the schools really worth the astronomical expense? (Well, I know Eastman is about second to Juilliard, and NYU is reputable, although its Arts programme is 15th in the world.)

Would it really count so much that these would be for undergraduate study? Do people look more at one's postgrad pedigree? Would it be just as well that they did their first degree elsewhere (more affordable) and seek to go higher at Eastman and NYU afterwards? (In fact, my son has also obtained a full scholarship to theYong Siew Toh Coservatory of Music in Singapore. But then, what is YST compared to Eastman?)

I'm sorry if I sound inane but this issue of my children's further education has been keeping me from sleep for quite a while.»

Help with financial aid!

mikedelic — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 17:14:03 -0800

College financial aid question - Here is a question about the best way for my wife and I to fill out the FAFSA... Here's the background - 2nd marriage for both my wife(widow) and I(divorced). In Sept '09 my stepson will be going into his last year of college and my stepdaughter into her 2nd year of college. I have a son in HS who is my full financial responsibility. We married at the end of '07 and filled out our taxes married filing separately, thinking this would work out better for financial aid. My wife listed her income on the FAFSA and they arrived at her EFC (Expected family contribution). However, the college asked for my income, added that in, and reduced the financial aid package to almost nothing. We appealed to the financial aid office(begged really) of my daughter's school and they revised the aid up a little.
My question is how should we fill out the financial aid info to maximize the aid package? Is there a website or book with this information? We don't want to do anything dishonest but all we hear about is people who make more than us working the system to get great aid packages. Also, would married filing jointly matter? Filing married separately is costly.
Thanks for your help!!!

How to treat split fingertips?

skechada — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 08:38:34 -0800

How to treat split fingertips? About once a month, I pretty routinely get a crack in my fingertip, at the corner where the nail meets the fingertip. It appears to go down through several layers of skin and is pretty painful for a few days. After moving in the cool air this weekend and handling dozens of boxes, my hands dried out and I've got (ouch) four split fingers.

Is there anyone else that gets these and if so do you have any tips at either preventing them or treating them? It doesn't seem that bandaids help, and I try to use moisturizer, but otherwise it's a guaranteed three or four days of pain regardless of what I try.

Can I take a Stafford loan without the help of my school?

serazin — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 19:29:07 -0800

Can I apply for a Stafford loan without going through my school? I am enrolled in a nursing program at a very disorganized and poorly funded community college. I started August 20. Due to "the new computer system isn't working" type problems, no one's financial aid paperwork has been processed for this year. So I've received no aid and neither has anyone else. The person in charge of loans is refusing to even talk to any students until "the computer system is fixed" which could be "never" as far as I can tell. I'm a broke single mama and I'm starting to get desperate.

I want to apply for subsidized and unsubsidized federal loans. Is there any way I can do this on my own - since the financial aid department will not help me or even talk to me?

Thanks folk!

Please teach me about hearing aids

Acari — Wed, 14 May 2008 22:30:52 -0800

I need advice on purchasing hearing aids in Canada. My Canadian mother has come to the realization [more than a little while after being told by her doctor...] that she needs a hearing aid. She's currently unemployed, and really unsure about hearing aid technology in general, so I'd like to try and offer her some advice.
Only I don't have any. Do you?

Is there any kind of funding available to help her out? What are key features / things to avoid in hearing aids these days?

Other general tips?

I want to be able to present this to her as a relatively non-daunting thing that can happen, but at first glance it seems pretty daunting, and like it might not happen soon.

Can has higher education?

Anonymous — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 04:09:34 -0800

How does one apply for financial aid at a public university as an independent party? This is to imply there will not be financial assistance from the parent/guardian; is there a way for their income to be excluded as criteria in evaluating aid eligibility? The situation is this. A student has been attending a public university for the past two years and has been denied financial aid from the government and university for both years. These applications included the parents financial records/income.

The situation has changed and the parent will no longer be financially able to assist in payment for tuition/housing for certain reasons and the student will be one their own. The income of the guardian is such that financial aid requests have been denied in the past but various obligations/expenses make supporting multiple college tuition bills unfeasible.

Is there a way for the student to prove financial independence from the parents and have their request evaluated solely on their income and financial situation? Would this simply require not being claimed as a dependent?

This is for a California university if this impacts the situation at all. This question at MeFi is meant to serve as the groundwork prior to meeting with the university financial aid office. I assume this it's not possible for one to just say their parents will not be assisting in paying for one's education since most everyone would do that. Any help is appreciated, MeFites.

Grasshopper and Ant

Corky — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 18:46:00 -0800

Will a single parent selling a home that has appreciated a lot and that has a very low mortgage payment, then buying a much more expensive house with all of the proceeds help make the child more (or less) eligible for financial aid (not loans) for college? My SO and his ex are the parents of a 17 year old girl, junior in high school. College plans are being discussed by everyone, although the parents haven't had a sit-down to talk about particulars since last summer. Each is obligated by divorce decree to pay for 1/2 of in-state tuition for the state college (in this case U of MD). FAFSA forms have not been completed, primarily due to a reluctance on the part of the ex to disclose her substantial income. (This came out in the only talk the two parents had on the subject, sometime last summer.) Mom did hire a college financial aid "expert" last summer. His suggestions included having the kid move in with Dad because Dad makes less money, and "goggling" for scholarships. (He really did misspell Google!) That was $500 thrown down the toilet, but I'm not sure that Mom isn't getting equally bad advice from someone else. Here's why...

Very recently, the ex put her house on the market. She and the daughter went house-shopping, and when we saw the girl next she was absolutely thrilled with the prospect of moving into a beautiful new home near her school. The new home would be in the $1,000,000 range... which nearly made me choke. The house the ex is selling is on the market for $619,000. The daughter wasn't supposed to share these details with me, but we're very close. She slipped up in her glee and when I asked her why they were thinking of moving, she said "Mommy thinks it would be bad for financial aid for her to have a really low mortgage payment and a large income."

I did some research, and I'm still confused. It appears that the income from my SO is not counted toward family ability to pay. It also appears that FAFSA doesn't take into consideration what they call "lifestyle choices" against a parents ability to pay. Several articles I read said that it is a choice to live in a nicer neighborhood or drive a newer car, and that those choices are not reasons to qualify for more aid.

My SO fully intends to help his daughter in every way, but we're limited by our not-substantial incomes. We own a modest townhouse, he drives a six year old Honda, we don't take expensive vacations or spend a lot of money on ourselves. We carry our lunches to work. A big night for us is a movie date in front of our tv. Plus, neither of us has any real money set aside for retirement. Our retirement plan is to pay off our house by the time he retires. Mom, on the other hand, drives a new Lexus SUV, has a timeshare in the Bahamas, takes vacations each year to Sonoma AZ, and other resorts, and has expensive tastes. She's passed some of these tastes on to the daughter, who wants to attend a presigious school. Columbia is at the top of the daughter's wish list. Columbia is very, very expensive. Mom is pushing for Columbia, among other pricey schools.

My SO and I still hope that she would decide to attend U of MD and perhaps get merit scholarships (she will graduate from an IB school with honors, has taken AP tests and scored 5s, and just took her SATs... no surprise that she has an excellent score). If she was able to finish her undergrad schooling without incurring a ton of debt, that would be great. Her dad would still set aside in her 529 plan any money he didn't have to pay for undergrad years. This would go toward her grad school costs. We have heard no such plans from her mother, and my SO hasn't yet asked her what her plan would be. We don't think she has any plans to set aside money for college out of the proceeds from selling her house... the daughter told us that "Mom is going to put it all on the downpayment so she can afford the monthly payment, but it will still be a lot more than she pays now."

It's a touchy subject. He doesn't know how much money she makes, and has never asked; she doesn't have a clue how much (or how little) he makes, and she's fiercely independant. Aside from this potential tension, we all get along fine. Really. We actually like each other.

So. For any of you who have faced anything similar, can you shed some light? I'm primarily concerned that the daughter isn't somehow penalized in the financial aid department because her mom is receiving lousy advice. If this new home purchase is being made to make the ex look poor on paper and it backfires, the daughter will have to pay the price. That price might mean taking out student loans, or attending a less expensive school. While a less expensive school is not the end of the world, I would hate to see this child saddled with a huge debt burden, while her mom gets to live in a $1,000,000 house and plead poverty. We've already told the daughter that the ultimate choice about where to go will be hers - her first adult decision. If she decides to be prudent and not go into debt, that will be a good thing. If she is forced to take out many thousands of dollars in loans because her Mom made a mistake... well, it's not too late to have that discussion and at least give Mom a contrarian opinion.

Grasshopper and Ant.

If I work out of my apartment, will I be my only client?

pantheON — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 20:54:21 -0800

Can I run a criminal law practice out of my apartment? I'm in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. I'm currently articling (for my American friends, that's a mandatory one-year apprenticeship I have to complete to get called to the bar) at a mid-sized insurance defense firm. I've concluded that I want to get out of this area of the law and I'm interested in pursuing a career in criminal defence. I've been told that I'll likely have to take legal aid cases almost exclusively until I gain some more experience and can establish a full practice. My question is a narrow one: What are the practicalities of working out of my apartment until I can build a practice that can support office space. My apartment is in the business district of the city and about a 10 minute walk from the courthouses. Could I, for example, work out of my apartment, store my files there, and meet clients in public places?

Financial-aid-filter: Is saving money for suckers?

Anonymous — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 12:32:54 -0800

I worked hard when I was single and saved a bunch of money. Now I'm married with kids, not able to save much, and I want to send my child to private school. Private school says OK, but no tuition assistance for you. My friends have no savings, but otherwise similar situation, and were granted a huge tuition break. What gives? More practically, how can I convince the school to provide financial assistance, this year or next? Buy a Porsche then tell them I have no savings? :-) Pay down my mortgage? Transfer my savings to a 529 plan in the child's name?

How should I complain about this?

GrooveStix — Sun, 23 Dec 2007 19:11:33 -0800

Help me write a good complaint letter so I can get my $99 back. The billing department in my college failed to notify me that they changed their billing practices for the payment plan I use - a four installments plan.

In the past, when my financial aid passed, it respectively cleared the installments of my payment plan. This provided me enough time to gather enough funds, to pay what was left if my aid was short. It usually cleared the first three and I paid the last one.

In this semester when the financial aid passed, it was disbursed onto each payment equally, which left me with a due date in the beginning of the semester.

Now, had I known this, I would've saved and not spend cash on silly things during the summertime, but the problem is that I didn't know AND I wasn't notified about it when I signed up for the payment plan. It ultimately led me be late for three of the payments and pay $99 in late fees, which I believe belong to me. I have never received ANY late fees in my life (yes, I am young. I know. lol)

My question is, what arguments can I use to write a good complaint letter, besides the obvious inconsistency with their past practices. Is this legal? Is there a policy or an act that forbids things like this from happening? From an ethical point, it seems very unfair but I do think that our MeFi hive will have a better idea than me. Please help!

Suddenly homeless in Seattle

Atom12 — Mon, 03 Dec 2007 06:46:34 -0800

Friend in Seattle is suddenly homeless. Can anyone recommend some resources? A friend of mine broke up with his girlfriend. He moved into his new apartment Friday and got all his stuff out of the storage unit and into the new apartment.

Today at 4am he wakes up to the sound of rushing water. The fire department tells him to grab his stuff and get out. He's got three bags of clothes and that's it. The area flooded and his apartment is now under 5+ feet of water. He didn't have renter's insurance.

The SFD tried to get ahold of the Red Cross but nobody answered. He does have a job, but obviously no apartment anymore. I just got off the phone with him and he hasn't talked to the landlord yet.

Has anyone been through something similar? Obviously he's learned a lesson about insurance, so let's leave that one alone if we can. Thanks in advance.

Your what is in your what?

Skyanth — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 06:55:03 -0800

My grandmother is hard of hearing/deaf but refuses to wear a hearing aid. Conversation with her is becoming all but impossible. I'm thinking of giving her one of those old-fashioned horns, because although it will look a bit silly, it will at least be functional, and available to her when necessary. And it's not "some electronic thing" she has to "fiddle" with. My question is, where would you get one of those? Preferably not an antique.

Entry into NGO aid work

iamck — Thu, 28 Jun 2007 12:15:35 -0800

How does one groom oneself for development/aid work in developing countries? What are your experiences (or resources for experiences) landing positions with NGOs, and the difference between bottom-up and top-down approaches for contact? In the Amazon I met friends of Dorothy Stang who traveled to the (then) poorest district of Pará, utilizing her dedication and international attention to drastically change the area (establishing schools and sustainable development projects). Her story is inspiring and surprising - to alleviate poverty, to fight "on the ground" what does one need?

In the small villages in Northeast Brazil, I discussed the possibility of teaching in exchange for food and a place to live and was welcomed with open arms. Acquaintances with a hospital in Mozambique said they need translators, and I was welcome to come.

All of these options are voluntary of course. I'm not independently wealthy, and would like to be able to get home to see my family at least once in awhile - so it would be beneficial to someday work this into some type of work. Before diving headfirst in, is there something I should know? Would I be better off training and specializing in a field, or am I better just to hit the ground already? (I currently hold a Bachelors in Bioengineering, practically sans skill set besides speaking English and Portuguese).

This ain't yo' mama's crack!

quadrinary — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 13:33:38 -0800

What sort of paperwork/license/whatever do you need to transport prescription drugs internationally? In 3 weeks I'll be in Central Asia doing some consulting with humanitarian aid agencies. One of the groups has requested a long list of prescription drugs to be used in their clinics, but before I even bother trying to see if I can find health agencies willing to donate the needed medicines, I wanted to find out the technicalities of moving medicine/drugs internationally.

Anyone out there have any insight on the matter? Pharmacists/Doctors/etc?

Thanks!

Finding a way out of a tangled web of financial aid

dead_ — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 10:05:20 -0800

I've reached the end of the road for graduate school loans. Well, I was finally accepted to a master's program at my first choice school: Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan. Little did I know that funding my adventure in higher education would prove so ridiculously troublesome and depressing.

My situation is easily summed up as follows: no one wants to give me a loan.

In detail, it goes something like this: I cannot receive any kind of federal loan for graduate school, as my university doesn't admit many American students and as such has no relationship with the Department of Education here in the states--this means that Stafford loans are out of the question. Also, it is an impossibility for the university to get a FAFSA number through the DOE (thus allowing for federal funds) due to the length and intensity of the process and the relatively few American students at the school. I've talked with both the university, and the DOE on that one.

I also seem to have hit a roadblock with private loans. I have found many loans that allow deferred payment and disbursement of funds directly to me, yet during the application process I always encounter the mysterious "eligibility list" of universities they approve or do not approve of--which of course Waseda is not on, excluding me from the loan. After speaking with a few financial aid officers, I realized that these lists are of universities that banks have relationships with so they can determine if the student is still enrolled at full-time (and thus still eligible for the loan). So it looks like private loans are out, too. I've checked hundreds of them, with no luck.

The university itself offers no loans to foreign students, and has no relationships with any US financial institutions.

As for scholarships, I will undoubtedly get them--and have been told as much--however they are not awarded until after matriculation and the initial tuition payments, which I would need a loan to make. I also have no way of knowing how much I'm getting yet.

So what is a foreign-enrolled US citizen to do, with no one to loan him a dollar and his dream school slipping away? That's what I'm asking you.

This has been one of the most disheartening experiences of my life: a long, detailed admissions process fraught with doubt that eventually resulted in the wonderful news of admission to my dream school, and yet now I have no way to finance it--even with the almost certain possibility of scholarship.

Are there any options I haven't tried, or haven't thought of here? Is there anything I can do?

Making Visual Teaching easier on XP (OSX equivalents needed

filmgeek — Tue, 29 May 2007 13:30:04 -0800

As a followup to this question (2 years ago)... I need in WinXP to have three features (and I'll take any of the three, preferably all). 1) Bordered Cursor (round ring, called Pinpoint for OSX). Bonus for a visual change when you click (and right click) 2) Key overlay like KeyCastr for OSX, showing the audience control/alt keys as you type them in an overlay. 3) Dynamic Zoom (yes, I know it's open gl based, I have only open GL cards) to push in. MacOS Universal Prefs.

Small-scale hydroelectric generators for developing countries?

nomis — Tue, 17 Apr 2007 17:52:17 -0800

I need information on a non-profit organisation that sets up small-scale hydroelectric generators in developing countries. I'm talking very small-scale - perhaps enough to charge a couple of 12v batteries each day. I have heard that such an organisation exists, and I would like to find information on behalf of native communities in Peruvian Amazonia.

Can anyone help me with information on small-scale hydroelectric schemes or ANY other kind of development project that would give sustainable benefit to a rural jungle community?

Help me budget for a free education

hamster — Mon, 09 Apr 2007 13:13:48 -0800

What will my free degree cost me, and how can I make it pay? What can I expect to pay on my free tuition benefit?

My job pays for me to attend a graduate program one class at a time. I've been told to expect to pay taxes on this benefit because it counts as income. I take 12 credits/year at $400/credit, plus about $60 in annual fees. ($4860/annum)

What expenses can I write off while I'm in school? I know I can defer my undergraduate loans because I'm enrolled half-time. Can I write off books and transportation (I'm not living on campus)?

Fianlly, can I apply for federal or state loans for my education, even though it's being covered by my employer? For instance, can I take out a lower-interest Stafford loan and pay off my high-interest credit card?

Thanks in advance!

Unexpected windfall

hamster — Wed, 10 Jan 2007 11:27:28 -0800

My boyfriend recently received $25K as part of a settlement after his father's death, and he'll be filing the FAFSA for graduate school soon. This question begins to address some options, but I'm wondering how adversely he'll be affected by the influx of cash. How important a factor is the bank statement in determining his EFC?

Right now the money is sitting in his bank account. Does he have any options for investing it that won't count as assets? Does he have time to do this (I know the IRA option requires more time)? Does he have any favorable options for next year?

He makes about $37K a year, little else by way of savings, if that affects anything. Thanks in advance.