Is a TESC associate degree doable by financial aid?

[bubblepop]

I don't have a lot of pocket money, however my local CC distance courses fill up lightning fast, nor do they accept many CLEPs and don't exactly have a vast amount of classses to attain a degree within a decent amount of years. I'm interested in TESC, but don't want to fall into debt. I think I only have 3 credits to transfer and I expect to be eligible for the 5,500 pell grant. I was hoping I could take however many classes I could that the grant lets me and try to exam my way out of other credits, but I don't know the estimate of how many years that can take or how realistic, and I'm confused about guidelines. Is 24 the minimum of credits I have to take per year to qualify for a grant? Are book fees steep? Do I have to pay TESC's admission fee before I find out if I qualify for a grant? Should I just throw this idea out the window? Haha.

[cookderosa]

I don't have a lot of pocket money, however my local CC distance courses fill up lightning fast, nor do they accept many CLEPs and don't exactly have a vast amount of classses to attain a degree within a decent amount of years. I'm interested in TESC, but don't want to fall into debt. I think I only have 3 credits to transfer and I expect to be eligible for the 5,500 pell grant. I was hoping I could take however many classes I could that the grant lets me and try to exam my way out of other credits, but I don't know the estimate of how many years that can take or how realistic, and I'm confused about guidelines. Is 24 the minimum of credits I have to take per year to qualify for a grant? Are book fees steep? Do I have to pay TESC's admission fee before I find out if I qualify for a grant? Should I just throw this idea out the window? Haha.

You'll be able to do it no problem. The grant is about $5000. They'll divide it by 4 (4 terms per year) and you'll have to take 6 credits per quarter. That comes out to roughly $1250 per quarter grant award. Since TESC is running about $200 per credit, you'll be right on the edge that you'll have to either take out a student loan or pay the difference yourself. If you decide to take a student loan, it's another $5000 and you should haul a** to work on as many credits as possible inside that year. I' can walk you through more of it if you'd like. This is essentially what I did for mine. I paid my loan in full the day my first payment was due, I'm happy to chat about that too.

[bubblepop]

cookderosa, I'd really like to hear how your plan went! I figured I'd have to take out a loan too and it makes me kinda nervous (sometimes they appear like black holes). How long did it take you to finish? Can you choose when your term starts, or is it as soon as you're evaluated?