It is a well-known fact that a college education is expensive. It is common to hear conversations about the subject anytime on campus. When it comes to paying for summer classes, the situation is very much the same.
Many students would like to take summer courses to help reach their degree requirements, but have a hard time paying for them.
“If I can’t get financial aid to cover summer classes, I’m going to have to pay $3,000 out of pocket,” Hutton Sharp, a junior political science major, said. “I don’t know anyone who can afford to do that.”
Sharp is not the only student who is in this position when it comes to paying for summer classes. However, there is help for students taking classes during the summer.
“I work for Scholarship Services, and there is what we call a ‘summer request list’ for funds for the summer,” Tyler McCoy, a sophomore agriculture education major, said. “Students who are Texas residents and have over a 3.3 GPA can receive funds from our office.”
All students must do to potentially receive scholarship money for the summer is either call or visit Scholarship Services and ask to be put on the list. While there is scholarship money available, the funds are awarded to students on a need-based basis, according to Velma Murillo Perez, Director of Scholarship Services.
“There are only a few non-need based scholarships available,” Perez said. “There are other things we look at too, like the number of hours you take and GPA. There are also some spring funds leftover that can be used as well.”
There are also funds available for Graduate students, who must have a 3.5 GPA to be eligible to receive summer scholarships.
There are other ways students can pay for summer classes as well. Students who take more than three summer hours may qualify for financial aid for the summer. However, that can affect the amount of summer scholarships students can get.
“There are other scholarships students can get as well,” Perez stated. “There are some departmental scholarships that I know of, and Student Affairs awards some as well.”
Even though there are many scholarships awarded every summer, there are some students who are not able to pay for their summer classes.
“There is always room for improvement,” Perez said. “I wish we had more funds, but you have to work with what you have.”
