Tick-tock-tick — the sound of the clock speeding quickly ahead, as you stand in line at the financial aid office with only minutes to spare before class starts.
It’s a position many students find themselves in every year at the start of the semester, but most often it could be prevented. However, even with the best efforts by students, some still find themselves frustrated and angered by bureaucratic mistakes.
“Never wait till the last minute,” said junior communications major Kavia Smith. “Make sure you have all of your paperwork and info together before the semester starts.”
Those are words of the wise, from students who have been there before. But for new students, things may not seem quite so easy.
“I came from out of state, and I’m trying to figure out if I’m eligible for the Hope scholarship,” said transfer student Kirk Matthews. “It seems like a lot of hoops. I wish just one person knew everything.”
The director of Financial Aid, Richard Ritzman, said students often feel overwhelmed at first, but there are things they can do that will make the process less confusing.
“Just take five minutes to sit down and review your financial aid paperwork and see if there are any other documents that you need,” said Ritzman. “Most of the information is readily available on Tigerweb. You can check there and see if there is anything else you are supposed to do.”
However, that doesn’t always mean you shouldn’t check up on your status. Doctoral student Karen Ball said it is important to stay in touch with the Financial Aid and Bursar’s office if you have any questions or concerns.
“I guess identifying a contact person in each office and working with them specifically is very important,” said Ball. “You should also follow up on any messages they leave you as soon as possible.”
These messages are usually found on Tigerweb or they are mailed to the student individually. Students are urged to login often and take a look at what is required of them, so they don’t miss any deadlines that could cause troubles once school is underway.
“Eighty percent of all The University’s phone calls during the first week of school last fall came to the Financial Aid office because everyone was doing things at the last minute,” said Ritzman. “With financial aid the most important thing students can do is turn things in on time.”
Ritzman said those students who file their paperwork by the deadlines rarely have any troubles at the start of the year and therefore can avoid the long lines.
Smith said she’s never really had a problem because she’s always paid attention to the deadlines and requests for further information.
“If you wait to the last minute, you will have problems,” said Smith. “The staff is tired, things will be more complicated, and you will indeed be standing in lines.”
And for those who value their precious time, that’s the last place anyone would want to be. Ritzman said students have to understand that it takes time to submit paperwork, and they can’t rush the process.
“Students have the expectation of us getting things done immediately,” said Ritzman. “That’s hard to do when you receive over 20,000 applications for financial aid a year. Our biggest issue is students not giving us enough time to do what we need to do.”
Ritzman explained that when financial aid is processed, sometimes information has to be verified by the school in order for students to receive their money from the federal government. If students wait until the last minute, it increases the time it takes to get the aid verified and processed.
Now, if this doesn’t seem like a lot already, there’s also the Bursar’s office to deal with. It is here where the money is actually posted onto a student’s account and then any refunds mailed back to them. And it is also here where students seem to be running into the most trouble.
“The Bursar’s office sent me a bill even though I received financial aid,” said senior theater major Courtney Cray. “I went to the school for two weeks in a row and they said it was taken care of, yet I kept receiving a bill. Then when I went to register, I had a hold.”
Cray said the hold was placed on her account due to a small balance she had already paid. She said she’s not even sure if the Bursar’s office staff knows what they are doing sometimes.
“I’ve heard the cashiers say things like, hold onto your receipt, because I’m not sure if I processed this correctly. It might show up again,” said Cray. “I’m thinking to myself, audit!”
Senior public relations major JoBeth Harpole said she has also had similar problems with the Bursar’s office keeping track of things and letting the students know what’s going on.
“I recently moved just outside of Memphis into Mississippi,” said Harpole. “I was told at first I would still be in-state due to the new changes, but after waiting and waiting, my financial aid refund check never showed up.”
Harpole said she finally found out three weeks into summer school that the office was holding her check to cover her tuition which was based on the out-of-state amount for tuition.
“Now I still personally owe $600. If I had known this, I wouldn’t have even gone to summer school,” said Harpole.
The Bursar’s office said that while there are occasional problems, they do everything possible to ensure this does not happen.
“Although our staff receives intense customer service training and is well versed in our policies and procedures, there is always the possibility for human error in any office,” said Assistant Bursar Carol Warren. “Our systems keep a very detailed audit trail of registration and financial transactions.”
Warren suggested that it is important for students to keep up with any financial records or information that pertains to their education. She said a great way for students to keep up with their information and account balances is by using the EBursar program through The University of Memphis Web site.
“This site is full of dates, deadlines, fees, a tuition calculator and other pertinent information, as well as up-to-date access to their own accounts,” Warren said. “Students receive periodic statements and invoices online and are be notified of these by e-mail.”
For incoming freshmen, there are also a few things that should be known about how money from financial aid is applied to their account.
“It is a federal regulation that they (freshmen) not receive their aid (Stafford loans only) until 30 days after class begins. However, if they have done everything that the FA Office requires by the fee payment deadline and have enough aid to cover their charges, their tuition and fees will be deferred and they will not receive a late fee or be purged from class,” said Warren.
So with all of this in mind, one of the most important things students can know is that the college has no control over financial aid disbursements until they are made by the federal government. For this reason, it is imperative that students have all paperwork in on time.
“Federal guidelines are strict as to when students may receive any excess financial aid. We closely adhere to these regulations,” Warren said. “Students should sign up for direct deposit in order to insure timely receipt of refunds.”
But even when there are hassles, students like Kirk Matthews said maybe the confusion and mounds of paper work are all worth it in the long run.
“I guess when it comes down to it, it’s a small price to pay to get free money for school,” said Matthews.
