One prospective student, a senior in high school who wants to be an education major and attended Financial Aid Night on this past Tuesday, knew she wanted to go to Cabrini. Every time she took a tour somewhere else, she knew more and more that she wanted to be a Cabrini College student. But that decision would be contingent with the scholarships that she received.
Currently, 98 percent of Cabrini College full time students receive financial aid. In general, the total volume of education loans disbursed doubled from $55.7 billion to $113.4 billion between 2001-02 and 2011-12, according to the College Board.
This prospective student also has an older brother enrolled full time at Drexel University. He is a pre-junior in their five-year program., so the price of a college education was definitely a factor.
“If we had to pay full price, I don’t know if she’d be going here,” her mother said.
Like most students and parents preparing for college, the parents in attendance at the Financial Aid Night mainly wanted to know how to get the most amount of aid and end up in the least amount of debt. The easiest ways to do so are to apply for loans and scholarships. Saving money from summer jobs or graduation presents can also help students have less money they need to borrow.
Amani, another student in attendance with her mother, has already put her deposit down to come to Cabrini next year and intends to major in biology. She ran track in high school but did not receive any scholarships for this like her older sibling, who received a full ride to University of Maryland on a sports scholarship. The financial aid they received was very important to them; it was almost a deciding factor. Although Amani has a sibling in college, applying for scholarships is new for her family. Her sibling received a full ride, so although there will be two students in college, “it’s more like one student,” her mother said.
In the fall of 2011, Cabrini College lowered tuition by 12.5 percent while maintaining merit scholarship awards at current levels. The past November, Cabrini announced a tuition freeze, meaning that tuition and fees will remain at the current level at $29,000, through May 2014.
“This enlightened us,” Amani’s mother said. “It would affect our decision because we wouldn’t be able to afford it otherwise.”
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Fast Facts for Financial Aid
• 98% of Cabrini students receive some sort of financial aid.
• Financial Aid can be found in the Cavalier Express Center in Grace Hall, at (610) 902-8188 or at financialaid@cabrini.edu.
• The College’s tuition rate will stay at the same rate of $29,000 through May 2014.
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