Help: College questions, and anyone who went to college for Fashion? (2 seperate questions, so all are welcome) - Very long, but I really need help...

This is for my stepdaughter - she is a senior this year, and heres the deal....

Her mom is not pushing college. She is sabotaging her for many reasons, but mostly because she watches her little sister and she still needs her there to take care of her. Also, I think her mom (who really is a nice person) is afraid of losing her daughter, and feels if she just went to Nassau Community college and get some office job, then she'd always be dependent on her...

DH and I want her to do what she wants. She really, really wanst to go into fashion, but another problem is, Megan is disorganized and needs a firecracker under her a s s for everything. I have seen her want things and never pursue them, and then just be apathetic towards the whole thing. That may be ok with her sweet 16, which she never had, or a trip to Italy that she blew due to discipline issues, but I do NOT want to see this happening with college....

So, that being said, I am initiating this whole thing. I went to City college and it was literally half my lifetime ago (I went when I was 17, and I'm almost 34 )

DH is very similar to her, and needs a firecracker under his a s s as well, so I need some help getting this together....

Can you ladies advise me on advising her regarding financial aid, how to pursue it, when to pursue it, etc... I really have no clue. Obviously we cannot afford college, so everything will depend on loans. Forget scholarships - she cuts classes and barely gets by with her grades...
I know this is not a good way for her to think about college, but she really needs to go. I'm hoping she will care about her grades and her life if she is at least pursuing something she is interested in...

Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!

Also - is there anyone out there who know about, went to, has a friend, aunt, sister, brother, etc who went to FIT, Parsons, Prat, or any other design college?

Thank you so much for reading this. We are so concerned about getting this off the ground for her - and I know this is all going to fall on my lap. I need for this to happen for her. She needs this to happen!!!

Thank you ladies!!!

Re: Help: College questions, and anyone who went to college for Fashion? (2 seperate questions, so all are welcome) - Very long, but I really need help...

I'm currently attending F.I.T so if you have any questions, feel free to ask me.

Re: Help: College questions, and anyone who went to college for Fashion? (2 seperate questions, so all are welcome) - Very long, but I really need help...

well as for the fin aid i cant helo but if you get her to the college office they can help... also i have a friend attending nassau comunity college right now for fashion... its not a bad place to get started and for it being local this will help with the mother issue for the time being until shes ready to make the big step... well good luck to you!!

Re: Help: College questions, and anyone who went to college for Fashion? (2 seperate questions, so all are welcome) - Very long, but I really need help...

She should apply for the FAFSA. http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/
fafsa
She will need your estimated tax returns. Do this ASAP. The earlier you send in your fafsa with an application the better chances you have to receive need based aid. Ie. Pell grants, and federal aid money. I think you can get 18,500 in federal aid. Please don't get suckered into private loans if you can.

As for applying - just try. Go to the school website and request an application. Also, call the school and go for a tour with her. The earlier she applies the better her chances of getting in.

Ok just looked 11/15 is the early admission deadline -- see here.
http://fitnyc.edu/html/admissions/HowDoIApply/index.html

For financial aid - this is the school code for the fafsa

http://fitnyc.edu/html/admissions/HowDoIApplyForFinancialAid/index.html


Info on FIT grants, etc.

http://fitnyc.edu/aspx/Content.aspx?menu=Future:StudentServices:FinancialAid:TheFITFinancialAidPackage

Message edited 10/13/2007 11:18:50 PM.

Re: Help: College questions, and anyone who went to college for Fashion? (2 seperate questions, so all are welcome) - Very long, but I really need help...

why don't you start by having her call FIT and set up an appt with an advisor. i say start with FIT first because it is a cuny and cheaper than the others.

also, does she have a portfolio? i think she's going to need one for most design schools, especially if her grades aren't too good.

doesn't she have a guidance counselor at school? she should be seeing him/her.

although you want to help her and feel like she's not going to do it otherwise, i don't think it best for you to do all the legwork. college is hard and if she isn't motivated enough to get this going, she might not be ready for a 4 year school. sometimes, for some kids, going to nassau cc first helps them to get organized, motivated, narrow down a path, and build a portfolio. so i don't always think going to nassau first is a bad idea.

good luck to her!

Re: Help: College questions, and anyone who went to college for Fashion? (2 seperate questions, so all are welcome) - Very long, but I really need help...

I agree with a lot of what's already been said.

From what I understand FAFSA cannot be submitted until Jan. 1st. This is something you should definitely do.

Any ART school (FIT etc) is going to require a VERY strong portfolio. Has she done anything fashion related? If not, my honest opinion would be that NCC for fashion would be a great start to build that portfolio and get her college feet wet. Then she can transfer into a FIT or Pratt. If you're dead-set against NCC....help her and get her going right now on creating some pieces for a portfolio. Most fashion design program will waive grades/SAT req's for a kick- a s s portfolio. HTH

FM me if you want to discuss this further, I'm a HS guidance counselor

Re: Help: College questions, and anyone who went to college for Fashion? (2 seperate questions, so all are welcome) - Very long, but I really need help...

I dont have any better advice than the great advice youve been given here, but I did go to F.I.T. for my Associates and Bachelor's.

I LOVED it, EXCELLENT school,with a top notch reputation in the fashion industry!

In addition to the great words of the other posters here, I might take her to F.I.T. one day. Make an apptmt, call ahead and speak to someone, tell them your situation, maybe they will see potential and guide you in the right direction since they know the way their school works.

Seeing the school, seeing the incredible talent of the students there (F.I.T. has a museum for student work AMAZING! as well as student work displayed ALL Over the school BREATHTAKING. I think BEING THERE, taking it all in (even the cool hair colors of some of the students ) just being in the atmosphere, seeing it LIVE, REAL STUFF, might get her motivated.. maybe stop and talk to a few students in the halls, if she's shy, YOU ask a few questions that you think she'd want to know (but make it look like YOU want to know )
see if there are any events (they have MANY fashion shows throughout the year open to the public,sometimes big designers are present.

Try to pinpoint her areas of interest and see what itinerary you can come up with as far as getting her there to visit.

I was also member of a few clubs, ALL of which were GREAT experiences, we attended many high end fashion shows for big designers, got to see things behind the scenes and many manufacturers and designers headquarters, etc. traveled for competitions (marketing related for my major).

such a great school.
she really has to have her heart in it though, so good luck with getting it going. shes lucky to have you Liza !!

hope that helped

Re: Help: College questions, and anyone who went to college for Fashion? (2 seperate questions, so all are welcome) - Very long, but I really need help...

Ladies - thanks for all the responses!

She has been taking a HS fashion class since 9th grade, and they work on putting the portfolio together, so that is in the making as we speak...

I'm concerned about any financial aid instutution looking at our income, because combined between DH and his ex-wife, it looks ok, but they aren't going to factor in other things that are keeping them from affording sending her....

I know she needs to be motivated and do this on her own, but she hasn;t really gotten her act together for anything, and if we wait until her own devices do it, it may not happen - she needs at least a game plan to follow and be held accounatble for...

Her GPA is basically a B average - not too bad - its her lack of doing HW and assignments that oull her down, but she does well on every test, which saves her a s s and shows how smart she is...

I do want to take a day off and bring her to some of the schools. We are going to wprk with her to develop a game plan, questions to ask HER advisor, and then sit her down and ask her what was said, and what the next steps are, what numbers she needs to call, paperwork to fill out, etc...

Thanks for responding ladies, I am worried sick about this...

Re: Help: College questions, and anyone who went to college for Fashion? (2 seperate questions, so all are welcome) - Very long, but I really need help...

one thing you may want to talk to in the financial aid people is how should your tax returns be filed. There may be a greater beneift for the step daughter in receiving funding if you and your husband file taxes married filing separately - your income really should not play a part in the calculations for the step-daughter because she was never adopted - you will also need the step-wives tax returns and if she is stuporn about not wanting her daughter to go places that can be hard to get

Re: Help: College questions, and anyone who went to college for Fashion? (2 seperate questions, so all are welcome) - Very long, but I really need help...

Posted by lipglossjunky73

Ladies - thanks for all the responses!

She has been taking a HS fashion class since 9th grade, and they work on putting the portfolio together, so that is in the making as we speak...

I'm concerned about any financial aid instutution looking at our income, because combined between DH and his ex-wife, it looks ok, but they aren't going to factor in other things that are keeping them from affording sending her....

I know she needs to be motivated and do this on her own, but she hasn;t really gotten her act together for anything, and if we wait until her own devices do it, it may not happen - she needs at least a game plan to follow and be held accounatble for...

Her GPA is basically a B average - not too bad - its her lack of doing HW and assignments that oull her down, but she does well on every test, which saves her a s s and shows how smart she is...

I do want to take a day off and bring her to some of the schools. We are going to wprk with her to develop a game plan, questions to ask HER advisor, and then sit her down and ask her what was said, and what the next steps are, what numbers she needs to call, paperwork to fill out, etc...

Thanks for responding ladies, I am worried sick about this...

Re: Help: College questions, and anyone who went to college for Fashion? (2 seperate questions, so all are welcome) - Very long, but I really need help...

FIT is a great school b/c it is a SUNY and way cheaper than the rest of the fashion schools.
regarding financial aid- you just need to have her fill out the FAFSA - google it, it is the federal form for financial aid.
That way you can see what she qualifies for in terms of aid and loans. you want to take loans from the government, not from a bank- the government gives you loans at a better rate.

If she doesn't want to go into fashion design, but something like fashion merchandising, I would suggest she get a business degree with a concentration in marketing. That way over summers she can get fashion internships to build up her experience. If it turns out she doesn't like the industry, her degree can be used in any other market.
A great school for business is Baruch- a CUNY school and also a very good deal.


edited to add that I am the product of a divorced home, step parents, etc- and when we filled out the financial aid forms we only filled in my mothers income, not my father's.. so that is the information you will need, her mother's tax info from the previous year.

Message edited 10/14/2007 10:41:58 AM.

Re: Help: College questions, and anyone who went to college for Fashion? (2 seperate questions, so all are welcome) - Very long, but I really need help...

No help in the fashion side of your question, but I suggest you ask a school advisor for an appt. Then she will know what this is all about.

In regards to the financial side of it, I could not get a grant (income too high!! ). Scholarships are very hard to get and you must be on top to it to apply.

I had NO CLUE what to do with financial aid when I went back to school. Honestly, I went to the financial aid office and asked for their help, what I needed to do, etc. They showed me everything. Sometimes it's OK to play dumb so you get your answers.

Re: Help: College questions, and anyone who went to college for Fashion? (2 seperate questions, so all are welcome) - Very long, but I really need help...

I majored in Fashion Design at the University of Cincinnati- I have to tell you- it was VERY demanding- There was one week where I honestly- no kidding- got 5 hours of sleep in 5 days- that's it. I don't know if that's how it is at FIT, Parsons, etc. - though I would assume it is. It will definitely be a commitment if she decides on fashion. Like another poster mentioned- fashion merchandising would also be a great choice.
I wish I could help out with the $ issues- but I couldn't figure anything out when I was in college either!

Re: Help: College questions, and anyone who went to college for Fashion? (2 seperate questions, so all are welcome) - Very long, but I really need help...

On Finanical aid, the first step is filing a FAFSA- both her mom and her dad have to do a seperate one since they are divorced and she will have to fill out her own. There are many free workshops out there to help with filing out the forms and answering questions. That is the first step- please FM I have tons more information to help you since most of this stuff is federal. Also look into grant money- I know in California we have state grants so perhaps NY has that type of program as well.

Also she should see or you guys call her HS counselor right away. We have a specific one that deals with scholarships- you don't have to have a perfect GPA to get one all the time. Tons of money goes unspent since kids don't investigate these. She should sign up for www.fastweb.com- they send daily scholarship information.

Please FM for more help- its a really complicated process. Definately call her counselor- that's what we are there for

Message edited 10/14/2007 12:22:48 PM.

Re: Help: College questions, and anyone who went to college for Fashion? (2 seperate questions, so all are welcome) - Very long, but I really need help...

I went to FIT for business (to be a buyer). I commuted. I hated the commute and transferred out. The school is great, BUT she will be dating guys from NYU, not FIT. I was a "party girl" and I ended up not going to class and stayng over friends dorms at NYU, or visitng friend who went to other schools. I too needed a fire under my azz and interned with my aunt (who was a buyer) for Federated dept stores after my first year at FIT. I HATED buying and merchandising. NOT AT ALL what I envisioned it would be.

If she lives there dorms are only available the first year, after that is it off campus housing witch is mega $$$$$. Parsons or SVA are also options but they too are in NYC.

SUNY Oneonta, Cincinatti and Rhode Island School of Design are all good ones. I got into Oneonta and Rhode Island but I HAD to go to FIT. I HAD to be in the city. Looking back I wished I went away to school, then commute from LI to FIT. This is JMHO. I really felt I missed out on something and spent EVERY weekend visiting my friends at their schools upstate, in PA and MA or I was parting at NYU, Columbia and SVA, KWIM?

Message edited 10/14/2007 3:51:14 PM.