For students who are attending a college or university, the state of their financial aid should be something that they are aware of.

According to Waynesburg University President Douglas Lee, it is vital for students who are in college, as well as future college students, to have a plan.

“It is very important,” said Lee. “You never plan to fail but you do fail to plan, and students should have an idea coming in of what their expectation of costs are going to be and what the outcomes will be after they receive their education.”

If students need assistance with financial aid, there are several services that are designated for such purposes.

A large contributor for student help is The Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency.

“[PHEAA] is formed for the purpose of providing financial assistance to Pennsylvania students attending Pennsylvania colleges,” said Lee. “It provides, in a big way, the opportunity for students to choose where to go and which school.”

President Lee also said that “the beauty of PHEAA” is that the scholarship dollars they offer are not directed at one school in particular.

While having a plan coming into college is important, it is equally important to have one after you leave.

According to Matthew Stokan, director of Financial Aid, there are several different payment plans for recent college graduates.

“There is a ton,” said Stokan. “The standard payment plan is you pay off your student loans over a 10-year period, but there is extended payment plans, public service loan forgiveness and income sensitive repayments.”

The advice that the Financial Aid office gives to students is to contact the servicer. They will have various options available and can provide the best option, according to Stokan.

When it comes to having a plan figured out, students should also be aware of what is going on economically.

The recent government shutdown posed a threat to the security of financial aid, but in this particular instance it was not affected.

“The good news is, it did not affect financial aid at all,” said Stokan. “There was no reduction in aid and there was no delay in students receiving their loans or grants.”

In addition, with the government shutdown, the new Pennsylvania state budget proposal has been issued.

The new budget will give PHEAA a $500,000 decrease from the current fiscal year.

“With respect to education, I continue to be concerned about PHEAA receiving adequate funding,” said Lee. “In this year’s budget PHEAA received a $500,000 decrease while, at the same time, the augmentation that is being requested of PHEAA is $87 million.”

This can be considered a setback for financial aid and higher education.

It is not certain that the plan will change anytime soon.

“I don’t have any information to tell me that it will [change],” said Lee. “I haven’t heard anything of that nature, that there is push to give PHEAA more state dollars.”

For college students now, it becomes a waiting game to see how the financial aid situation turns out.

“It looks like the way the budget is working, it is a wait and see,” said Lee. “I’m not certain whether students will receive less in PHEAA dollars next year. Obviously, the hope is they won’t, but it remains to be seen.”