Me? Impatient?!

Maybe just a little bit (note sarcasm here). I cannot tell you how many times a day I think about calling Financial Aid to see if they've starting reviewing my financial aid application yet. But I don't. Really, I don't want to be one of those students. You know the ones I mean. The people (students) that think they are the only ones that are important. Somehow, out of all the students whose financial aid applications have not yet been reviewed and approved, those students think their applications should be bumped to the top of the list and be reviewed first. Their financial aid is more important than that of any other student. Honestly, I know I'm not that special and that my application is no more important than the application on top of the stack. On the other hand, I am selfish and impatient. These are two of the character defects I recognize in myself most often. I am no more important than anyone else and deserve no special treatment. And I really think I don't want special treatment. I just think the system should be revamped.

I can't remember exactly how much of the situation I have already explained here, so, here it goes. After I had already registered for both Summer I and Summer II semesters, I received a notification that my pace percentage was too low. The summer semesters were "warning" semesters and I would be ineligible for financial aid in the Fall semester if my pace was not 67% or above by the end of summer. Had I known this was the case before I registered for summer, I would have only taken classes in Summer I. Since that semester ended in July, there would have been ample time for my financial aid application for 2013-2014 to be reviewed and my award offered and accepted prior to the beginning of the fall semester. Why did I register for both summer semesters at the same time? Because financial aid is awarded for both summer semesters at the same time, which makes sense.

Here's how I think it should work. When a student has a warning semester for inadequate pace percentage, the Financial Aid office should go ahead and review the application, then put it on hold until the warning semester is completed. If the student's pace percentage is now at an acceptable level, offer him or her the approved amount. The student can then accept whatever portion of the award he or she so chooses and be on track for the beginning of the semester. But that's just my opinion. I understand that some students still won't meet pace, which makes reviewing those applications a complete waste of time. With the economy as it is, not all students (obviously!) have the financial resources to purchase the required textbooks and supplies on their own. I am fortunate that God has blessed me as He has. I will be able to purchase my books Friday - in two days - but will not have much extra money for things like gas for the car, food, etc. I'm not complaining, but I'm sure there are students in similar situations that won't be able to get their books until their financial aid is approved and, maybe, disbursed.

I know God is in charge of my financial aid. In the grand scheme of things, this is a minor problem, even though it seems so important to me right now. He's also in charge of my textbooks. (You remember that discussion from the last couple days, right?) After Paul checked at Textbook Brokers for me, I learned today that they have neither of the books I need in stock. Since the university bookstore is so much more expensive, I will be ordering my books from amazon.com. No problem. I registered for the student account thingy, so I get free two day shipping for now. Then I realized, there is a bit of a problem. Payday is Friday, which is followed by Saturday and Sunday, which are not business days. Okay, maybe I can pay for extra shipping to get at least the book I need to read first on Monday. There's the problem. Monday is Labor Day, so it isn't a business day, either. The next business day will be Tuesday. I work from 8 am to 2:30 pm, then get something to eat and go to class. No time to read and actually comprehend a chapter before class at 4:00. I have decided that it's not a huge deal. Dr. R said we will discuss the chapter before taking the multiple choice quiz. I am not completely ignorant of human growth and development. I had to take it for my Bachelor's in Psychology. Unfortunately, I completed that degree in 1994. During the class, I should be able to absorb enough to at least answer some of the 25 questions right. And the quizzes aren't a huge part of our final grade. Not being prepared for one quiz won't kill me. No reason for me to really stress about it. Besides, God's got this!