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Show !THURSDAY, JANUARY 13, 2000 · UN IVERSITY JOURNAL FOCUS: RETURNING Better late than What causes anxiety \Nith a ne\N semest e r? "Money-I have none.: ~yje Jensen, freshman music major from West Jor;dan, Utah. "Getting back into the school mode and not being a slacker." Bert Wadsworth, freshman criminal justice major from Panaca. Nev. "There are so many new people . coming in, you want to meet them all." Dezree Ellsworth, junior physical education major from Manila, Utah. PAGE 11 "Mostly trying to fit in and trying to get back into the flow of things." Gail Fisher, junior theatre arts and English double major from St. George, Utah. ManySUU students stretched the semester break to the limit Sunday night. Erin Cole, a freshman biology major from Salisbury, Maryland, prepares to scale the stairs of Juniper Hall to return to the rigors of school. "The money thing. There are so many unforseen costs. You think you have a budget going and before you know it, it's blown to bits. For us working stiffs, it's hard to put bread on the table, 'cause I have mouths to feed." Frank Gilmore, sophomore communcation major from South Jordan, Utah. Cost of college on the rise (continued from page 10) • Entertainment: $25 per month • Transportation, including car maintenance: (resident) $50 per semester, (non resident) $100 per semester. Granted,· many students don't pay out of state tuition for four years and some things may cost any given student more or less, depending on his or her personal situation. But according to Adriane G. Berg, who wrote an article on college money management on moneycentral.msn.com, students with little to no budgeting skills can easily spend a great deal more. "College can be a great money management experience for both student and parents,· she wrote. "It may be the first time that kids are truly on their own and handling money without parental supervision.• Therefore. it's easy for students to spend away, hiking up the college financial experience. Most students don't realize that the cost of higher education at SUU is near the national average due to the relatively slow rate it slips away. Students are all too familiar with the "check here, credit card there· that accompanies the beginning of the semester. However. students do find ways of paying whether it be from parents, personal funds. work, or financial aid. But the phrase "financial aid" ,is becoming more synonymous with "student loans,· which equals debt. More than 58 percent of the undergraduate students planning to graduate from SUU in May will be in debt, according to the 1999-2000 suu Institutional Research and Assessment Common Data Set Report. The average debt an SU U college graduate will face is $10,712 at this institution alone. Taken from the number of degree seeking undergraduate students, 3,011 full-time undergraduate students applied for all types of financial aid, including declared freshrnen,. and of that number, 2,233 finished the process and were determined to receive financial need in 1999. Out of the number of students in need, 2,155 received some type of financial aid. From those students, 1,603 students received some type of need-based grant and 1,423 students received any need-based self-help aid. The average financial aid package of those who received any financial aid, excluding certain types of loans, was $5,1 48 for full -time undergraduates at SUU. The students who received ne.edbased gift awards on average was $2,324. While the average need-based self-help award, excluding certain loans, is $3,779. Also according to the 1999 financial aid report, the average need-based loan ~t SUU is $3,966, excluding some types of loans. The amount that SUU students pay for their education is not much different than the rest of public college and university students across the United States. Though costly, and even with tuition and fees continually on the rise, ambitious humans still pay for higher education, whether now or later. 'Please wait here... ' Lines are common at the Registrar's Office during the first week of spring semester. Many SUU students find themselves waiting in line after line. Oh, the stresses to face Students face many different challenges returning to school for spring semester. One of those challenges is overcoming problems with housing and roommates. Added to the cost of tuition and other school expenses, renting an apartment can cause extra stress to college students. Kristine Wilson, manager of Willowbrook apartments, said she feels that the biggest concern among students right now is the financial aspect of renting an apartment and paying for school. She also said that out of about 500 students living in the apartments, there are about 22 who are trying to get out of paying their contracts for several different reasons. "It's all part of growing up, becoming an adult and knowing what they signed,• Wilson said. According to Wilson, four other students had legitimate reasons for getting out of their contracts and those reasons are unique to spring semester. The four students had medical reasons accompanied by doctors notes requesting that the contracts be voided due to the student being either physically or mentally unable to live away from home. Another problem some students face when coming back to spring semester is getting used to new roommates. After fall semester, students often change apartments because they want to live with other people, they did not get along with their past roommates or they found a place where they really want to live. Along with this shift of students there are also new students who are just trying to fit in with the crowd and blend into their new apartment and surroundings. Many new students find moving in the middle of the school year difficult. Beth Burgess, a junior communication major from Fresno, Calif., just moved into Stonebrook apartments. She said, "Moving on your own and growing. up sucks.· It can be especially challenging for students like Burgess who are trying to get residency in Utah or who are forced to pay out of state tuition. ·we had a big stack of bills when I came home from break,• said Andrea Swenson, a freshman general education major. Andrew Mills, a sophomore history major from !3alt Lake City, Utah, moved into Willowbroo!< apartments for this semester and finds it challenging to find new people and friends. Gary Dunford, director of clinical counseling in the Wellness Center in the Sharwan Smith Center, said, "I suppose it's hard to come back, but I think routine is comfortable, too.· . \ • |