nkereina

The grad school I am applying to supplies a form for the recommender to fill out rather than writing a letter. The form requires the recommender to check off a box saying "agree" or "disagree" to five different statements regarding the person the form is for, and then fill in their name and affiliation, and send it back to me rather than direct to the school. Very simple. I sent this form to two former professors and my boss to fill out via email on Friday August 12th. It is something they can fill out in Word and return via email, or I gave my fax number if that was easier. One professor responded on August 16th saying he would get it out to me and let me know when. The other professor responded on August 17th and she said she'd get it out to me by the next day. My boss responded on the same day I sent it and said she'd do it ASAP. It is now August 30th and I have not received it back from any of them, nor heard anymore from any of them about it. I did not give them a due date to return it by, as my application deadline is not until December. When would it be appropriate for me to send each of them a follow up email for status? Is it too soon? At the end of this week, it will be 3 weeks since the requests were sent, and 2 weeks since my one former professor said she'd get it out to me by "tomorrow". What do you think?? Thanks!!

Hi all - first post here, so please forgive me if I'm in the wrong spot! I need some help understanding student loans better. My undergrad was paid for out a college fund so I never took out any loans during undergrad. I am now considering grad school, and my parents have graciously offered to help me pay for it so I don't have student loan debts after graduation. They have enough cash on hand to pay for my first two semesters, and by the time the bill comes for my last two semesters, they will have enough cash to pay for those. However, from the little I know, since I do not make much money at my job, I am under the impression that if I fill out FAFSA and apply for loans, I may be eligible for financial aid and/or grants and/or scholarships that would lower my cost that I would not have to pay back. Am I understanding this correctly? If so, that means my total cost would be less so I should go this route rather than have my parents pay cash straight up, yes? Taking out loans would also be beneficial to me because I am hoping take out slightly more for some living expense money since my hours at work will be cut when I begin school. My next question is if I take out loans, could my parents pay on my loans while I am still in school before the interest starts accruing? Are there penalties for this? Of course it would be silly to pay interest on loans when we have the cash for it, so I am trying to figure out the best pay off solution if I go the loan route. Thanks for any and all advice/suggestions!!