Transition from high school to college can be a colossal challenge. Sink or swim. For many students it is an exodus from their parents’ house into a strange new world. It is a very exciting time, searching for one’s self, meeting new people and pursuing the dream profession.

It is also stressful and costs a bunch of money.
For many SWC students the dream of a college education is out of reach without financial aid.  But being awarded financial aid does not mean students can set aside financial concerns. Slow payouts leave thousands students cash poor at the beginning of the semester. An onslaught of new school year bills often leaves students underwater. Many clamor for quicker financial aid disbursement.

Ah, but not so fast.

Colleges must be financial sound and Southwestern College must carefully manage student aid funds. Colleges must protect against students that would sign up for massive amounts of credit units only to drop after receiving aid. To maintain financial system integrity, colleges disperse only a percentage of the total aid awarded until the students demonstrate the resolve to stay enrolled.

San Diego City College and Southwestern College have disparate systems. City issues the initial disbursement as a credit card, which many students would like to see adopted here. That would be unwise.

The City College credit card seems attractive at first glance. Students receive the card a week before school starts. City College students got their cards with up to $800 on Aug. 13, classes started on Aug. 20. There is a catch. It is not really a credit card, but a bookstore account. While it does fund a parking pass, books and school supplies, it forces students to buy books and supplies from the campus bookstore at an inflated cost. Students are not able to shop around for the best deals and have less spending power.

City College closes bookstore accounts on Sept. 1, cutting the remainder of initial disbursement on Sept. 17. That’s the first time a well-prepared student at City College gets a check.

Southwestern College does get a late start, but offers advantages. This year well-prepared students got their initial disbursements on Aug. 27, nine days after classes started and two weeks behind City College. The downside, students cannot buy books until a week after class starts. This lapse can cause SWC students to fall behind.

City College has a financial aid website section superior to SWC’s. Updates are current and rich with information, covering new laws, standards and school polices on financial aid. It already has the spring disbursement dates set, which helps students to plan.

Overall though, SWC’s method is better. A check is better than voucher that forces students to spend their limited dollars at overpriced campus bookstore.

There are a few things SWC could learn from City. Students are given a pin number that allows them to give financial aid information over the phone, relieving long lines at the office. This would save time and money. A better website would also cut down on cost and time. With these few tweaks, SWC could have a superior student aid department.