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Financial
aid at CSULB unaffected by recent budget
cuts
By
Janina M. Quintana
Online Forty-Niner
Contributing Writer
Long
Beach's financial aid remains steadily available
to students into the 2005 school year despite
cuts in federal and state budgets.
At
a time when Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's
proposed budget calls for a 10.5 percent
cut in the maximum Cal Grants available
for students entering private colleges,
CSULB's financial aid availability has increased
from 2004-05.
The
total amount of financial aid available
to students this year, including federal
and state grants, loans, and work study
programs, has increased by $3 million from
$115 million in the 2003-04 school year,
said Dean Kulju, director of financial aid.
According
to CSULB financial aid publications, the
total average cost of living has increased
for all students, and according to Kulju,
the amount of financial aid disbursed has
proportionately increased too.
"Since
fee increases have started, the good thing
out of it is that the state has also increased
grant funds. Unfortunately that doesn't
mean everyone will get a grant," Kulju
said.
He
said this year alone about $118 million
in financial aid is being used to help around
17,000 CSULB students, about half of the
campus' total student population.
He
said the average amount given to students
qualifying for financial aid can be anywhere
between a few hundred dollars to $6,000.
Each type of financial aid has different
requirements and may take into consideration
the applicant's grade point average, family
and personal income, activities and various
other areas.
"If
anyone needs help financing school, they
should apply," Kulju said. "Just
fill out the forms. They may be surprised."
There
are different forms of financial aid available
to CSULB students: grants, loans, work-study
programs and institutional aid which include
athletic scholarships and the president
scholars program.
Joe
Baclig, a senior at CSULB who made use of
the student loans available, said, "[The
loans] are good for emergencies. It helped
me through two semesters when I needed help
with finances. They're hard to file for
and take a while to process, but they help."
According
to Kulju, the majority of aid comes from
the federal and state governments. The federal
government provides $26 million in grants,
$56 million in loans, and $1.3 million in
work-study programs. The state government
gives $31 million in grants and about $2.2
million comes from institutional aid, Kulju
said.
Kulju
pointed out that federal and state financial
aid does not go to the university, but comes
through the individual student. The university
does control the disbursement of institutional
aid, with which they have set up athletic
scholarships and the president scholars
program.
For
returning CSULB students interested in taking
advantage of the financial aid opportunities
available, the deadline to file for the
fall 2005 semester is August 1, 2005. More
information can be found at www.csulb.edu/depts/enrollment
or www.fafsa.edu.gov/.
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