The agency that determines financial aid awards for Illinois students has so far turned away 27,000 of them due to a rise in demand and a shortage of funds, the Associated Press reports. The number of students could swell to 200,000 in a few months.
The agency, called the Illinois Student Assistant Commission, will have $400 million to disperse to college students for the 2010-2011 school year, but those funds ran dry about a month ago.
The AP has more on schools affected by the shortage:
Among four-year schools, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale has the largest number of returning and prospective students who've been turned down at 667, according to ISAC. That followed by Northern Illinois University's 628 and the University of Illinois-Chicago's 520.Some schools -- like the University of Illinois' flagship campus in Urbana-Champaign, where 207 eligible students have been denied MAP funding -- have money to help make up the difference. The U of I says it plans to spend more than $40 million on supplemental financial aid next year.
Last year, the agency was able to award 183,000 grants, totaling to $430 million.
Have you been affected by the surge in demand for financial aid?