Aid low this year

The federal work-study and Perkins loan programs have taken a beating this year from scarce financial backing and a surplus of applicants.

The programs have been strained since the priority deadline for applicants on March 15. 

The federal work-study program gives part-time jobs to both undergraduate and graduate students, whereas the federal Perkins loan program provides low-interest loans to those who qualify. Both are awarded on a basis of the applicant’s timeliness and financial need.

The funding for this school year was allocated almost as soon as the application deadline passed. The Assistant Director for Operations of the Fiscal Financial Aid Office David Williamson said the work study program closed immediately. Though the Perkins loan program stayed open longer, the funds for this school year are currently all spoken for. 

  
“Sometimes it opens back up,” he said. Depending on how many students have denied the funding, Williamson said students who keep trying may get lucky around mid-September.

Williamson said there were over 17,000 applications for these two programs this year. They receive applications for people who may not come to the university, he added, but they are presently over-spent for work study.           

Some students are frustrated with the lack of funding now available. 

Jalisia Johnson, a freshman nursing major from Memphis, Tenn., has been trying to get work study to offset her out-of-state tuition fees.

“I’ve been talking to them for a month now,” she said. “I go every day, or I call.”

Courtney Miller, a junior from Louisville, Miss., believes the system produces unfair results. The business administration major with an emphasis in finance said the people “that really need it” are not receiving enough financial assistance.

“[I don’t understand] why those who really need it can’t get it,” she said, “and why those who don’t need it as much get more than enough.”
Williamson said the amount of funding available is distributed to universities based on enrollment and need.  He hopes funding increases by the spring semester, but said that information will be available late this year at best.