You know, trying to get all your financial issues taken care of before attending classes is a real burden and twice as much if you're attending an online school.
Online schools require relentless faxing and emailing of information and will ask ten times as much for your signed tax refund form than they ask other questions.
I'm supposed to start classes in April through Colorado Technical University Online and yet, they can't take care of financial aid like they should.
Just on my part already, they keep wanting my information that I already gave to them through FAFSA. Constant badgering by financial aid administrators (FAA's) may cause a student to have quite the distaste for the school, not to mention the FAA because of asking for some documents that they already have. This could certainly get the student irritated and walk out of the office. (Watch out, if you are a FAA, because they could get mad enough to throw a chair at you, resulting in criminal charges by the school!)
Maybe saving up some money beforehand, just in case your financial aid advisor comes up short on funds that they search for (Pell Grant, SEOG, loans, etc.), would be best to solve that problem so you can't be prevented from attending classes due to non-sufficient financial aid.
Funding can be a real pain in the ass. There is always the option of taking out unsubsidized loans. You'll have to make the payments while you are in school, but sometimes it's easier to pay in installments instead of trying to come up with the money all at once.
Good luck!
I have been through financial aid heck. The federal loan thing doesnt distinquish between grad loans and undergrad Title IV funds. I feel betrayed. I had it messed up and they keep doing stuff while telling me another thing.
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