San José State students still struggle to pay for college and other expenses even with support from the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
FAFSA offers students financial support with grants, loans and work-study, according to the USA.gov webpage.
Work-study provides students with the opportunity to work a part-time job within the program, according to the Federal Student Aid website.
Civil engineering senior Sebastian Ortega said he struggles to pay for rent, groceries and textbooks even though he is a FAFSA recipient.
“I'm always gonna be hoping and expecting that they give me a little bit more,” Ortega said. “I've been able to make it work for the most part with the amount that they've given me, but it's definitely coming down to living very frugally.”
Ortega said he’s also received funding from programs including the Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) program to help him pay for groceries, but didn’t qualify for the program in the Spring 2024 semester.
EBT is an electronic system that delivers funds to its participants so they can use them to pay for groceries, according to the California Department of Social Services webpage.
“For groceries, I'm having to pay it out of pocket, which for sure impacted my finances and my budget,” Ortega said.
Stephen Wright,1979 alumnus, said he considered himself a low-income college student and worked part-time jobs while going to school.
Wright said he relied on work-study, stipends and a federal student loan to pay for college.
“I always had a roommate or roommates to split costs . . . and (I also had to) live off of spaghetti for two years and the same pair of jeans for two years,” Wright said.
Business analytics junior Luis Perez said the amount of financial aid he receives is not enough to pay for tuition.
Perez said he works at the front desk of an apartment complex and pays a portion of his tuition out of pocket.
“I definitely feel like I could get more help, but I'm not gonna complain about (the) little help I get,” Perez said.
Kednel Jean, the SJSU Cares director of case management, said SJSU Cares helps students fulfill their basic needs including food, housing and funding depending on their situation.
Jean said food insecurity is an ongoing problem for college students, but the amount of programs and resources have increased.
Food insecurity refers to having a limited or uncertain access to food, according to the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion webpage.
“It’s just a safety net so that they can eventually get back on their feet,” Jean said, speaking about SJSU Cares.
He said it’s important for people to start advocating for higher funding so students not only have enough money for an education but to also live comfortably.
“Think about (how) housing cost has gone up (and) food cost has gone up, but the amount of aid that's coming from the federal government and maybe to an extent the California system as far as Cal Grants maybe hasn't gone up in that way,” Jean said.
Ortega said Federal Student Aid could improve its program by reducing the amount of time it takes for students to receive their funds.
He said he’s had to contact the financial aid office each semester to confirm when funds would be deposited into his bank account.
“I've never had an issue where I never received it,” Ortega said. “It's just been a matter of me, for whatever reason, having to directly email them and ask them for it.”
Wright said he remembers being really concerned of whether the money would be disbursed to him in time to pay rent.
SJSU’s director of Financial Aid and Scholarship Office did not respond to questions regarding the history of students directly having to contact the office to receive funding.
Ortega said the only reason he chose to contact the financial aid office for his funds was because his classmates recommended him to do so.
Wright said it was critical for him to have money during his college experience so he could be a full-time student and participate in extracurricular activities.
“(Money) allowed me to get good experiences which ended up in a pretty successful career,” Wright said.
Wright said he is retired now, but he worked for the San José Mercury News for 25 years.
Perez said the way students’ incomes are calculated to determine how much funding they get can also be improved.
Students are asked to input both their tax and income information as well as their parents’ on the Federal Student Aid application if they are a dependent, according to the Federal Student Aid webpage
“They make it seem like I make too much or my parents make too much and I don't feel like we make too much,” Perez said.
Economics lecturer James O’Brien said the income entered on financial aid applications does not entirely reflect someone’s ability to pay for education.
O’Brien said when he was applying for financial aid in the early 90s, he was asked to include his parents’ incomes and assets despite not living with them.
“It's essentially a bit of a ‘one size fits all’ right where you enter your income and so anyone earning the same income is going to be treated the same way,” he said.
O’Brien said he had to take an extra step in applying for financial aid by making an appeal to get more aid in his situation.
He said the application process wasn’t smooth for everyone because there were barriers to getting the right information.
O’Brien said the process of applying for financial aid could be more clear and resources could be more readily available.
“That would open doors for many, many high school students that right now probably think college is not even really achievable because of the financial barriers,” O’Brien said.
Jean said SJSU Cares does not directly offer help towards applying for FAFSA, but is able to contact the financial aid office for the student if needed.
He said his goal is to make sure students’ basic needs are met so they can stay in school.
“The goal of education across the university (level) is to graduate students so students can fulfill their lives, fulfill their dreams and add to the society in whatever capacity,” Jean said.
