Welcome everyone and thank you for visiting my campaign:
Life sometimes throws unexpected challenges our way, and right now, I am facing one of those hurdles. I now know that I didn’t understand completely what it meant to be a student in a Master’s program financially. I think part of the reason I applied was because of mom and her wish for my education not to stop because of her. I felt like the acceptances from two universities was God shining down that she was there with me. My mom, Christine Evelyn Dorothy Nolan, passed on February 1, 2023.
I enter graduate school at Brown University. I have no experience with graduate student funding and how it works. The Fall term was great with working and attending graduate school. The Spring term because of the long break that led up to the new year has been a dumpster fire, including losing my job, that was not connected to graduate school. You know it felt like Brown was one protected space from the impact of disasters. My professors have been amazing. However, I have been struggling with financial aid with having to use a Google form to request my financial aid to disperse funds and not knowing when to expect funds. When I was recently informally crowdfunding for rent and gas, a friend gave me the idea to ask about emergency funding and basic need resources. I scheduled a call with financial aid to be better prepared for the Summer and to see if I could get some type of funding in the meantime.
I simply thought the call would give me resources and what date in May to expect financial aid since Fall and Spring financial aid dispersed the beginning of the term, I expected the same. What happened:
I found out that I could reach out to Graduate Student Financial Aid to file for a Cost of Attendance Appeal. They also told me about the emergency gap fund for Master’s and Professional Students.
I found out that my financial aid funds will not disperse until after the 1st of July. I forgot to ask about the Google form because I was too shaken to actually form any words after that. This places living expenses, like rent, in the unknown. Without the expected aid, I need to urgently raise funds to cover my 2023 taxes for FAFSA that determines Summer financial aid and three months of living expenses.
I am extending my job search from paid internships to anything hiring urgently for part time employees. I am also opened this crowdfunding campaign that doesn’t just update the crowdfund that I had with my mom. It is time for me to move on from the pancreatic cancer crisis crowdfunding to the graduate school crisis crowdfunding. 🫤
Thank you for taking the time to read this and if you have nothing to give, you have already given emotional support. I know that times are hard for all of us in different ways and in different areas of our lives. Please do you what you feel led to do to support my future and the future of those that I will help in the course of my health policy career.
Thank you for your empathy and support.
Donate now and be the change in my life.
With heartfelt thanks,
Syreeta Nolan
