10
W
things i wish i knew
FRESHMAN
When I was a college
By Katrina Palanca
ith senior year in full swing, I can?t help but
feel a little nostalgic. I remember moving into the dorms at the University of Portland, meeting my country girl roommate, and waving goodbye to my teary-eyed mother as she slipped into the complimentary shuttle and headed for the airport. " I spent my freshman year in Portland as an Environmental Ethics and Policy major. After a year of gray skies and lip-cracking cold, I returned home for a summer visit. A major disagreement with my parents turned a temporary visit into a permanent stay. Determined to earn a degree without my parents? help, I enrolled at the University of Guam. " Even though I had sophomore credits to my name, I felt like a freshman. I didn?t know where anything was. I needed to re-declare a major. I felt like no one wanted to help me. " Next semester, I will be graduating with a degree in Communications—a far cry from what was once the medical track. In addition to ?nding my niche, I learned how to jump through the rings of ?re known as UOG protocol. Here are 10 things I wish I knew when I was a freshman:
" This is where it gets confusing. " Under “What Happens Next,” the site says, “Your FAFSA information was made available to the school (s) you listed on your FAFSA. Your school(s) will contact you if they need more information or to discuss your ?nancial aid award. " No, UOG won?t contact you. The end of October will come around, and you?ll be wondering where your money is. So what really happens next? In a week, you should receive the results of the FAFSA by email. Go back to the FAFSA website and print your Student Aid Report. Now go to http://studentloans.gov-- yes, a different website—and complete the Entrance Counseling and Master Promissory Note sections. Entrance counseling takes the form of a quiz. The government wants to know that you understand what you?re getting into by accepting their loans. They also need you to promise that you?re going to pay them back. The Master Promissory note is essentially an “IOU.” " Print out the Entrance Counseling and Master Promissory Note sections. You should have three forms in your hand. Take all of this to the Financial Aid Of?ce and ?ll out the Financial Aid Of?ce Information Sheet. Turn in the package, and you?re good to go.
THE FINANCIAL AID PROCESS IS ROUGH.
It?s my last year at UOG, and I still can?t get it right. Don?t worry. If you follow my guidelines, you?re only going to make one trip to the Financial Aid Of?ce. One. The ?rst thing you need to do is visit http:// fafsa.ed.gov and ?ll out the FAFSA for school year 2013-2014. You only have to do this once a year. The application can take up to a week to process, but it usually only takes a couple of days.
COVER YOUR BASES.
There are three things you want to do as soon as possible: get a student ID, set up your computer with WiFi, and get a library sticker. Bring a printed class schedule and get your student ID at the Enrollment Management and Student Services (EMSS) Dean?s Of?ce. It?s the small of?ce next to the men?s restroom at the Student Center. Bring the ID and the class schedule to the front desk of the library and ask for a sticker. It?ll say Fall 2013. You need that sticker to