My coworkers wrote this story today about food stamp usage increasing on college campuses. Students can get up to $162 per month. According to the story, the number of Sunshine State students receiving stamps was up 44 percent in July compared with the same time in 2007. Aw. At least the coeds are able to buy more ramen noodles. Between tuition increases, gas inflation and food prices, I can only imagine how tough it is on the modern college student. Furthermore, lots of students are already saddled with student loans. And let’s not talk about the credit cards that get hawked on campus to the poor students.
From the article:
To qualify, a single student must have a monthly income of less than $1,107 and meet one of the following criteria:
• Be the caretaker of a child under 6.
• Participate in a federally financed work-study program.
• Work at least 20 hours a week.
I most certainly would have qualified in my day. I wonder would I have applied?
Do you know any students using food stamps? Would you use food stamps if you were a struggling college student? Should the students just get a second job?
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{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }
At first, I would have said “No,” I have pride Not to mention, foodstamps are for people that really need them, right? But life is all about surviving these days and if it would help me cut down loans and help me save enough capital to start my boutique/bookstore/coffee house later in life, I guess I’d sign up.
It never even occurred to me to use food stamps. What a great idea! I certainly would have qualified in college.
Speaking of student loans. My husband just went through his debt and realized that he owes over $20,000 in student loans. And all this is just for graduate school, he already paid off his loans from his undergrad! The worst of it is this: he is a teacher. His graduate degree is in special education. He teaches in a low-income school district. We recently looked into our state’s program for student loan forgiveness for teachers. He needs to be working in a low-income district for at least 5 years to qualify. The kicker is, the difference in pay between a low-income district and a middle-to-high income district is such that it would more than cover what the state program would forgive. The program only offers $17,000 in loan forgiveness, but the difference in pay over 5 years would amount to well over $20,000! And…. he got his degree from a state school!!!
The bottom line is, the cost of college has gotten out of control. There are very few professions that pay enough to compensate for the cost of tuition and housing.
I don’t know any college students using food stamps, but I know some that could use it.
It must be a stressful position to be in. As bad as this may sound if I were a struggling college students I still wouldn’t apply for the stamps…
I would’ve qualified, but wouldn’t apply. Once I got a paid internship, I felt like I was rolling in the dough. I didn’t even know that I was living below the poverty line – true bliss!
As a two-time college graduate that used food stamps, I must say that people need to put their pride aside. I had 2 part-time jobs a semester, did hair on the side for extra money and still had food stamps. I received $141 a month. My roommate and I had $282 free money a month to spend on food for the both of us. That left money in our pockets to pay tuition, rent, utilities and buy our expensive books. Food stamps were the thing to have at my school. Everyone who could get them got them and those that couldn’t get them were envious. If there is an opportunity to get free money to assist you in achieving your ultimate goal, why refuse it? It’s not like you’ve got paper stamps or standing in line for government cheese and butter like the old days. They give you a debit card and teach you how to use it. It’s just like swiping a visa check card. People need to either get over the negative images associated with food stamps or continue to fork over money for your pride.
This drives me crazy. College is a choice. This is why I am not getting pregnant right now! Well, that and I enjoy working.
I believe college and kids are a choice, and we make choices.
I have seen friends get married, start having babies and then use WIC and food stamps, and say “well my husband will someday be rich because he is going to be a dentist because he graduates, so it’s our right, especially because California takes out so much of our taxes.”
throw up. I just don’t think that’s what its for. College is a choice.
Sorry…wrong blog to get political on Namesake…but the foodstamp thing is an issue to me. Take out a loan if your hubs is going to be a dentist – and California might not tax us so much if you didn’t take advantage of welfare.
Natalie, you are correct when you say college is a choice. Everything in this life is a choice. Welfare abuse is as bad as it is because the people don’t make the right choices. This program was created to help all people. I just don’t understand your logic. Why take out a loan, if the government is willing to help you get on your feet?
I never thought about getting food stamps as a college student. Wow. I certainly qualified as I had no income and did not receive goverment grants to pay expenses.
If the economy continues to tank more students will look to this as an option. I don’t blame them. If the assistance is there, use it.
Oh boy did I have typos in that entry…I think because I kept trying to say what I said delicately, but oooh, it’s a hot button.
At the daily paper I used to work at we sponsored sub for santa. We’d write up the “sob stories” in the paper so people could associate themselves with the people and donate. It was in a college town and it was unbelievable how many students applied to get donated presents because they were “two college students with kids living off of savings.” Seriously? People have real problems — there were single moms, military families, people with illnesses, divorce all sorts of things — and one of you can’t drop out of school for a while and take care of your kids?
I don’t know…maybe I’m just bitter because my own grad school plans had to be put on hold while my hubs is going to grad school. I feel like other people could use that aid better than I could. My measly journalist income qualifies us for government housing — we’re on the waiting list — but it’s 7 years long, so hopefully law school is a distant memory and the $100K debt is well into being paid off by then too!!
Sorry Natalie — off topic — but again, college is a choice. Save for a few months and go when you are ready. Or take out a loan. Or heck, use food stamps, but I just feel like we can’t expect the goverment to bail us out all the time.
Great debate! It all comes down to your philosophy about government assistance. As Americans we all get some type of assistance from tax write offs to pell grants, if we qualify. Big businesses can get “corporate welfare” with cash incentives from the local or state government to move to certain locations. However, there is a perceived stigma for people who use welfare/foodstamps. But with times being so shaky, people are willing to reach out more for help. How much help is too much help is the issue for many.
In today’s day and age college really isn’t a choice anymore, you a need a degree in order to get a half decent salary…and even then, a 4 year degree isn’t any guarantee.
I wouldn’t have qualified because my husband worked, but if I had I probably would have used them! I applied for every form of aid I could in college. I applied for scholarships, etc.
I also don’t think that college student should be forced to work more than part-time, since college is very demanding and they should be focused on that.
There are always going to be people who abuse the system….and it’s definitely wrong, but I don’t think in these situations people are abusing the system.
I knew students who used them, but they were all single parents. I think I would have been upset with a regular old student who did it just to get the hookup and spend the extra money partying.
I’m actually against food stamps. I believe in in-kind services as opposed to cash assistance.
That being said, college students have the opportunity to go to school part time and work full time to pay for college. Or get a job with a company that will help them pay for school. In most cases, they really have other options than using government aid.
Broward Community College graduates usually get food stamps after they get their degrees.
I have a friend who is a grad student and he just started receiving food stamps and it disgusts me. He is currently a teaching assistant which he is paid for and it makes me sick to know that he has no problem getting food stamps. Maybe I just have too much pride but I think it says a lot about the character of someone who is so quick to take handouts. We make roughly the same amount of money and I would NEVER apply for welfare.
I am a college student who is working two jobs, going to school full time and is seriously considering asking for food stamps since in spite of my 50 hour work weeks I still can barely afford rent in the cheapest of apartments.
Sometimes dropping down to part time in school and working more isn’t an option, when you go below 12 hours a semester you lose most of your financial aide, and the loan amounts you are eligable for are lowered.
There are a lot of kids like me out there, I get financial aide that doesn’t cover all of my tuition, take out all they’ll give me in loans which barely covers the rest of my tuition to a state school and my books. There simply isn’t any more help I can get and dropping hours at school isn’t an option or else I’ll lose half of my financial aide. Although I haven’t yet applied for food stamps I’m really considering it, and I don’t think that there is anything wrong with that.
And yes, college is a choice, however, I think that education in extremely important, having the education is what will keep you off of food stamps and other assistance later.
Looking for a part time jobs? or got unpaid interships? Why don’t you try a blood donation. I think this is a very big help for college students who needs an extra money and make up to $50/hour for blood donation. As we all know, Blood bank shortages kill tons of people all the time and it is the time to spread the word about blood donation and give blood, you will never know when YOU might need blood. This really helpful even it is just a part time job, the bottom line of this is to saved lives.
If you are thinking to be a blood donor and looking for specific blood banks and directory you can check it here at bloodbanker.com/banks.