It could be another six weeks before some students receive their federal loans, causing concern for those who have yet to buy textbooks or are already late paying their first month’s rent.
The delay stems from a new direct-lending program, the lack of a university-wide e-mail system, outdated processing software, a declining economy and the largest enrollment the University of Nevada, Reno has ever seen.
Most students finally received their financial aid by the end of last week, but almost 1,000 are still waiting.
“We’re disbursing everything as fast as we can,” said Tim Wolfe, UNR’s director of financial aid and scholarships.
Some students say that’s not fast enough.
Gloria Maillard, 24, still hasn’t enrolled in two classes she needs to graduate in December. She borrowed money from her mom last weekend and plans to sign up for the courses today. The psychology major said she filled out all of her loan paperwork on time, but was told it just wasn’t processed yet and to expect her loan in a couple weeks.
In the meantime, Maillard maxed out her credit cards buying books and said she hopes no emergencies arise where she’ll need to use a credit card. She scraped together as much money as she could from the income of her two jobs to pay her first month’s rent.
“It’s really stressful,” Maillard said. “Financial aid is there for a reason, for those of us who can’t afford it right away and need a loan.”
If students contacted the financial aid office about not being able to pay bills, the university set up credit accounts at the bookstore or delayed due dates for fees so students would not be dropped from classes.
Read the full story at the Nevada Sagebrush.
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