College costs lightened by financial aid

MELISSA DJPlETRA.'1/TONlO STAFF WRJTER

Cabrini has been awarded the W.W. Smith Charitable Trust Award, which is an endowed scholarship. Donors gave Cabrini $65,000 to award to students who live in the Delaware Valley. There is no specific grade point average prerequisite, but students do have to be in good standing with the college.

The Financial Aid Office chooses students who show financial need, and it generally grants approximately $2,000 to each student per year. Many times when • someone donates money to Cabrini, he or she donates it with certain criteria for students. For example, the contributor will restrict the money to education majors with GPA of 3.0 or above.

Tory Stozek, a financial aid counselor, said "When a donor gives money, the college will invest that principal amount. Any interest earned on that money is then available to the college to give to the students. The reason is that if you give from just the principal, you won't have that money to give in the future."

Every form of aid to ft.ill-time students is given based on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. This application contains detailed questions about the student, his or her income information and his or her assets, and also about his or her parents' estimated tax information, their assets and their household size.

By filling out the FAFSA, students may be eligible to receive aid from the federal government.

Every student who completes a FAFSA form is eligible for the Stafford Loan, which is a federal loan given to students based on need. Financial need is a factor in determining what type of Stafford Loan a student can receive. There are two types of Stafford Loans; subsidized and unsubsidized. With a subsidized loan, the government pays the interest on the loan while the student is still in school. With an unsubsidized loan, it is the student's responsibility to pay the interest.

The Perkins Loan, which is also a federal loan, is not available to everyone because it is given to students through the school. Students can also apply for this loan by filing a FAFSA form. It is given to students based on financial need and the availability of funds. Funding for this loan differs from year to year. In fact, previous students who are currently paying back their Perkins loan determine the amount of funds available to schools.

Cabrini also assists students by awarding scholarships and grants. There are three main merit-based awards, which are given to students by the Admissions Office when they are admitted to Cabrini: the Achievement Scholarship, the Achievement Grant and the Challenge Grant. These awards are based on high school GPA and the Scholastic Aptitude Test scores. In order to keep them, students must maintain a 3.0 for the Achievement Scholarship and a 2.0 for both the Challenge Grant and the Achievement Grant.