Did you know there was a limit on how much you can borrow in student loans? Unfortunately, many people don't know these loan limits exist until it's too late.

Before we talk about how to avoid reaching this limit, let's start with making sure you understand what loan limits are.

Most people are familiar with credit card limits. When you reach your credit card limit (often known as maxing out your card), you are required to pay down your principle before you can use the card again. It's similar with students loans; once you've borrowed a certain amount, you can't borrow more until you pay some back. If you're relying too heavily on federal loans, this could leave you unable to afford your education and stuck with unmanageable amounts of debt.

Now, let's discuss the details and how to avoid this situation by practicing responsible borrowing.

Annual and Total Loan Limits: How Do I Know What They Are?

The federal government limits the total amount of subsidized and unsubsidized loans a student can borrow at one time – this is known as a total or aggregate loan limit. If you previously attended college and took out federal loans that you have not yet repaid, those loans will count toward your total loan limit. To check your prior federal student aid history and previous loans, visit the National Student Loan Data System at www.nslds.ed.gov.

There is also an annual loan limit on the amount of loans you can borrow in one academic year. Total and annual loan limits depend on your year in school and whether you are dependent or independent student. You can see the annual and total loan limits that apply to you at http://studentaid.ed.gov/types/loans/subsidized-unsubsidized#how-much-can-i-borrow. If you're a current student, you can also contact your Student Finance Counselor to learn more.

How to Avoid Reaching These Limits

When you discuss your financial aid package with your Student Finance Counselor, make sure you understand your loan limits and try not to rely solely on federal loans.

Here are just a few tips that can help you avoid reaching these limits.

• Find alternative ways to finance your education, such as scholarships and grants. There are many scholarships and grants out there, so don’t be afraid to apply. They can make a big difference in your financial plan!

• Ask your employer if they are willing to help sponsor your education. This is usually only an option if your desired degree will allow you to gain skills relevant to your work.

• Make regular cash payments. Even if these payments are as small as $20 per month, you can reduce the amount you need to borrow and the interest you’ll pay in the future.

• Only accept the aid that you truly need. You do not have to take the full amount of federal aid for which you are eligible, and you should not use these loans for expenses outside of your education.

• Stay committed to completing your education in a timely manner. Having to re-take a class will end up costing you extra.

When you create a plan for paying for your degree, think about your long-term financial future. Remember, having to make large monthly payments on your student loan debt will limit what you can spend in the future on large purchases, such as your house or your car, and even daily expenses. Making the right choices today will help you tomorrow.

The award-winning Learning Express Library is now live!

by Guest Blogger, Taylor Duncan, Assistant Director of Student Affairs: Libraries & Tutoring

Learning Express Library is an award-winning resource that provides a broad range of educational and career-oriented resources including individual learning centers with access to related tests, courses, eBooks and subject-specific content.

Courses and content available for improving proficiency in reading, writing and math as well as workplace skills including business writing, core computer skills, interviewing and more.

Access Learning Express Library

You may access this new resource online through Argosy University Online Library. This resource is listed on the “Find Books” and “Find Articles” pages.

Every user will sign up for individual accounts providing the ability to track your progress in LEL tests and courses and to print completion certificates. Follow the instructions below to create, and access, your account!

New Users:

1. Click the Register button under the New Users section at the bottom of the page.

2.  Create your username and password, verify your password, and then click the Register button.

NOTE: Usernames and passwords must be a minimum of 6 characters and should not include spaces. Please save your username and password as they will be required each time you log on to the site.

3. Choose one of the Learning Centers on the left to access our resources.

Returning Users:

1. Enter your username and password on the Returning User Login section at the bottom of the screen. 

2. Click the Login button. 

3. Choose one of the Learning Centers on the left to access our resources.

Contact the Online Library

For more information on Learning Express Library or any of the other online library resources, please contact the Argosy University Online Library at 888-559-7579 or auolibrary@argosy.edu.

A well-written memoir can have the power to draw society’s awareness, discussion and eventually understanding to sensitive topics. Although a memoir is a story of one, memoirs often highlight experiences that others have shared and have underlying themes to which others can relate.

In recognition of May being Mental Health Month, Argosy University, Online Programs presents the following memoirs written by those who have been affected by mental illness, in the hopes of bringing your attention to the topics of mental health and illness.

Darkness Visible by William Styron

Later in his life, Styron, author of the Pulitzer Prize winning The Confessions of Nat Turner and National Book Award winner Sophie’s Choice, fell into a deep depression and was hospitalized for several weeks. Styron applies his lyrical gifts in narrating his struggle with despair. Darkness Visible is a poetic account of a person overcoming depression.

An Unquiet Mind by Kay Redfield Jamison

Jamison is a psychologist who suffers from bipolar disorder. As both clinician and patient, Jamison offers a unique perspective, writing on how her manic and depressive episodes wrecked her life and how lithium brought her out of her mania but also dulled her imaginative energy. In addition to Unquiet Mind, Jamison has coauthored the clinical textbook Manic-Depressive Illness and authored Touched with Fire: Manic-Depressive Illness and the Artistic Temperament, exploring the relationship between mental illness and creativity, and Night Falls Fast: Understanding Suicide.

The Noonday Demon: The Atlas of Depression by Andrew Solomon

In The Noonday Demon, winner of the National Book Award, Solomon writes about his debilitating depression in which any social encounter, such as a book-signing event, could become terrifying. Solomon writes about his search for the right combination of psychiatric medication to alleviate his depression and the financial costs of the medicine. Solomon also writes of his mother’s terminal illness and her decision to end her own life. The book also explores mental health policy in the United States and policy makers whose lives are affected by psychiatric disorders.

The Center Cannot Hold: My Journey Through Madness by Elyn Saks

Saks is a law professor with schizophrenia and is an expert on mental health and law. The Center Cannot Hold not only provides Saks' account of her struggles with her illness but also addresses mental health stigma in society.

Wasted: A Memoir of Anorexia and Bulimia by Marya Hornbacher

Published when Hornbacher was 23, Wasted was short-listed for the Pulitzer Price and gives an account of her struggle with an eating disorder. Her follow-up Madness: A Bipolar Life recounts her years after being diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen

Later made into a popular movie, Girl, Interrupted is about an 18-year-old’s psychiatric hospitalization for depression after a suicide attempt in 1967. Kaysen writes about her diagnosis of borderline personality disorder and her views on the conceptualization of mental health in the United States.

More Information on Mental Health Month

Mental Health Month: 7 Quick Ways to Ease Stress
Mental Health Month: Pathways to Wellness
May is National Health Month

Armed Forces Day is tomorrow, May 18, 2013, and we would like to thank and honor all military personnel, especially those who are our students. This holiday was first observed in 1950 and is now celebrated annually on the third Saturday of every May to recognize and honor the five military branches: the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force and Coast Guard.

At Argosy University, Online Programs, we want to recognize the commitment of those who serve. Here are three ways in which we currently serve those of our students who are affiliated with the military.

1. Experience in Working with Military Students

We ensure that all military students and spouses have a team of dedicated admissions, financial aid and advising representatives focused on meeting your needs as a military student. Argosy University is a member of the Servicemembers Opportunity Colleges (SOC). We have also been recognized by GI Jobs as a Military-Friendly School (http://www.militaryfriendlyschools.com/), an honor reserved for only 15% of schools nationwide.

2. University Credit for Your Military Experience

We'd like to recognize your extensive military training and experience. Once you submit the paperwork, we’ll review your experience and training to determine your eligibility for credit toward your academic program. This transfer of credit could help you to cut expenses and graduate in less time.

For more information, visit http://online.argosy.edu/military/.

3. Military Aid & Benefits

Complete information on our military aid and benefit programs can be found at http://online.argosy.edu/military/military_aid.aspx, and you can speak with a Military Admissions Representative by calling 1-877-800-8412. Before you do, here’s a quick overview!

For Active Duty Military Personnel: We are pleased to offer an Active Duty Scholarship to eligible service members. For undergraduate programs, the cost of tuition is $250 per credit hour when the scholarship is applied. For graduate level programs, Argosy University offers a military tuition scholarship of 20%.

For Spouse of Active Duty Military Personnel: We are proud to extend the military scholarship of 20% to spouses of Active Duty Reserve, and National Guard personnel that are enrolled in our graduate level programs. For undergraduate level programs, the cost of tuition is reduced to $250 per credit hour through the Spouse of Active Duty Scholarship.

For Veterans: For undergraduate and graduate programs, we offer eligible veterans the Veteran Scholarship of 20%. We also participate in the Post 9/11 GI Bill and Yellow Ribbon Program. Furthermore, veterans using the educational benefits provided under the Montgomery GI Bill will find that a significant portion of their tuition expenses will be covered or reimbursed.

The tuition deposit is also waived for Active Duty, Reserve, National Guard and Veteran personnel as well as for spouses of servicemembers.

Read more at http://online.argosy.edu/military/military_aid.aspx, or get information on the following programs.

Last week, in honor of Teacher Appreciation Week, we asked our students to tell us about their favorite faculty member for a chance to win a prize. 

We had a lot of great entries to pick from, and our winning entry came from student Leslie McCarty, honoring faculty member Dr. Adolfo Gorriaran.

Read Leslie’s winning entry below.

“Since becoming a student in the Master of Public Administration program, I have had other changes in my life. The most recent one was a change in jobs. I went from a position that required very little of my 'outside' time to a position that required almost any and every waking moment that I had available.

There were several days that I contemplated giving up, taking time off and just quitting. I knew this was not the wisest decision to make, yet frustrations from broken laptops, bad Wi-Fi connections, kids, dogs, job, life and, to top it all off, homework deadlines made me seriously consider what planet I had been sitting on when I made the decision to add graduate school to the list.

Over the course of my time at Argosy University, I have had many people support my efforts. Then, I encountered Dr. Adolfo Gorriaran. It was over a year ago, and I emailed him during the first week of class to let him know that I was already feeling overwhelmed and wanted to drop the class. His response was so encouraging and just what I needed to keep going.

I have had the pleasure of taking a few other classes with Dr. G. and I have learned a tremendous amount from his classes, all of which I am able to apply to real world situations. I am grateful that I stuck with the class, and the ones that followed. I have kept all the emails of support and read them when I need a little push.

Any teacher like that deserves to be acknowledged. Thank you Dr. G!”