Preparing for Fall, have a few q's

[DoingWhatItTakes]

Hi,
I'm flying down to Dominica on the 20th of Aug. Here are a few of my concerns:

I've gotten my Hepatitis B vaccination and will get my Hepatitis A on the Aug 6 (I have to travel and hour away to get it...yeah, I'm in the sticks)...one or both of these immunizations require two or more shots at intervals of a couple of months give or take. Will having only the first in those series of shots rather than the full set have any affect on my being able to get a visa?

Also, I've applied for the Stafford subsidized and unsubsidized loans and I don't see any problems getting those. I'm nervous about not getting the Signature Student Loan without a cosigner, but I went ahead and applied anyway. If I was denied the loan, would the school be flexible by giving me time to reapply with a credit worthy cosigner?

It's my understanding that I'm allowed two checked pieces of luggage and a carry-on. The checked pieces can weigh 70lbs combined, and the carry-on up to 35lbs. Does anyone know what the dimensions the checked pieces have to fall within?

I plan to stay in PBH the first night and go apartment hunting the following day. Do I need to make a reservation at the hotel?

Thanks in advance!

[Dru]

Hep B vaccine is not required by the visa laws of Dominica. It is required before expose to blood and body fluids in the cliincal or lab arena.

The baggage issue depends on which airline you have chosen to fly with. The last American Airline guidelines said two checked bags totally 70 pounds, but ATA's rule is 50 pounds in one bag. You will need to read the guidelines within the issued ticket. If you have an e-ticket, it will be somewhere in the email accompanying it. If you have a paper ticket, it will be on the back or folder of the ticket.

It was previously not necessary to make reservations at the PBH, but I'm not so sure now that RUH has taken over part of their facility. It might be wise to make the reservation. Make sure you only reserve their standard room, as the "superior" is not worth the extra money.

Don't know a thing about loans, so can't help you out there.

Best wishes as you prepare for your journey.

[MitchDC]

You can get your follow-up shots (or even all of your shots) at the health clinical on campus and since Hep immunization are not required for a visa, you won't have any problem. But do realize that one shot doesn't protect you.

When you applied for loans online it tells you immediately if you are approved or not. Did you not do that online? Yes, the school will be flexible as long as you show them you are trying to get a loan. They might also suggest other lenders.

Your plans are what everybody should do. In fact the room at Ross University Housing is free for the first night as is the ride home from the airport (a big improvements from when I was there when we had to pay for the tranport and the night). You don't have to make reservations, but you do need to tell the housing office the day and time your flight arrives so they have enough transports and rooms at RUH. There won't be any daylight time for anybody to look for housing the same day you arrive. The housing tour leaves the next morning after you are a bit rested.

-M

Hi,
I'm flying down to Dominica on the 20th of Aug. Here are a few of my concerns:

I've gotten my Hepatitis B vaccination and will get my Hepatitis A on the Aug 6 (I have to travel and hour away to get it...yeah, I'm in the sticks)...one or both of these immunizations require two or more shots at intervals of a couple of months give or take. Will having only the first in those series of shots rather than the full set have any affect on my being able to get a visa?

Also, I've applied for the Stafford subsidized and unsubsidized loans and I don't see any problems getting those. I'm nervous about not getting the Signature Student Loan without a cosigner, but I went ahead and applied anyway. If I was denied the loan, would the school be flexible by giving me time to reapply with a credit worthy cosigner?

It's my understanding that I'm allowed two checked pieces of luggage and a carry-on. The checked pieces can weigh 70lbs combined, and the carry-on up to 35lbs. Does anyone know what the dimensions the checked pieces have to fall within?

I plan to stay in PBH the first night and go apartment hunting the following day. Do I need to make a reservation at the hotel?

Thanks in advance!

[DoingWhatItTakes]

I did not get any notification of instant approval. Because I recently moved, my current address didn't match up with what shows up in my credit report and the email I received said that processing would take several days. I've heard nothing from the lender. I wrote to the financial aid dept. and told them everything I did and this is the response I received (a prompt response by the way):
Dear (omitting my name),
As far as your applications, they are both all set. The only thing
the Stafford MPN and the Alternative loan are pending is school
certification. We haven't certified the loans for September because it is
still early to do so. We will be certifying the loans in August. At this
point, we do not need anything from you. Thank you for all your time.

What do you make of this? Thanks!

[lois003]

you might want to contact them about the approval/ status of your loan directly, here is the contact info for Sallie Mae, for the Ross Representatives..(I am assuming, it was SAllie MAe)
1-800-890-9794

hope this helps...

[MitchDC]

So, I might be missing something but the message from the Financial Aid department is in rather plain English. It says you are all set and don't need to do anything other than pick up your refund check when you get to Dominica. Since you have applied so early the school can't certify your loan until shortly before school starts.

If you are worried you can check www.managemyloans.com (http://www.managemyloans.com) OR www.getloanstatus.com (http://www.getloanstatus.com) to see the status of your loans. However, they will say the same thing - your loans have not yet been certified by your school.

If you still want to know more, then call SallieMae directly.

-M

I did not get any notification of instant approval. Because I recently moved, my current address didn't match up with what shows up in my credit report and the email I received said that processing would take several days. I've heard nothing from the lender. I wrote to the financial aid dept. and told them everything I did and this is the response I received (a prompt response by the way):
Dear (omitting my name),
As far as your applications, they are both all set. The only thing
the Stafford MPN and the Alternative loan are pending is school
certification. We haven't certified the loans for September because it is
still early to do so. We will be certifying the loans in August. At this
point, we do not need anything from you. Thank you for all your time.

What do you make of this? Thanks!

[DoingWhatItTakes]

OK, I appreciate all the input. I also thought the response from the fin. aid office was straight-forward, that wasn't my problem. I was worried that the loan wouldn't get approved at the last moment and I'd be spending valuable time getting a new loan applic. together with my cosigner. Anyway, I've never taken out loans before and I think I've gotten to the point where I'm worrying needlessly. I'll definitely check with Sallie Mae tomorrow. Thank you all for answering my previous questions.

[Jess77]

I know how you feel. I had to make a choice about my luggage before I came here. I packed 2 luggages, 1 carry on, and 1 large backpack. The luggages are 55-60 lb each. I figured if they are not too heavy, they might be overlooked b/c they cannot check every luggage to see whether one person has 2 luggages that's overweight. and they both arrived when I got off the plane! good luck with package and everything else.

[JPFL81]

Actually, HepB IS required! I just got a call from Ross saying that my old Hep B vaccination from the 80s when I was younger will not suffice and I should get it done and send back in my health certificates they are sending me. Everything on those forms are required, but I guess they are pretty reasonable on the time allowed to get it back since I leave in 3 weeks and still have to wait to get my docs back and send them back again.

[doc20]

I am flying down on 20th too. I will land at 5 pm that evening.

[justdoit]

Actually, HepB IS required! I just got a call from Ross saying that my old Hep B vaccination from the 80s when I was younger will not suffice and I should get it done and send back in my health certificates they are sending me. Everything on those forms are required, but I guess they are pretty reasonable on the time allowed to get it back since I leave in 3 weeks and still have to wait to get my docs back and send them back again.

I had my Hep B vaccines done in the early 90's and mine are still good. Just get your titers checked....if there high enough you shouldn't need to get the vaccine again....I thought that was how it worked?



So MitchDC are you saying that you can wait to get both Hep vaccines once you get down there? I've heard both so I'm not sure which one is correct. They want to charge me $75.00 for a Hep A vaccine here in the states which is ridiculous....not covered by insurance (of course). I'll probably just go ahead and get it....do not want Hep A from dominican food handlers.

[Dru]

I know how you feel. I had to make a choice about my luggage before I came here. I packed 2 luggages, 1 carry on, and 1 large backpack. The luggages are 55-60 lb each. I figured if they are not too heavy, they might be overlooked b/c they cannot check every luggage to see whether one person has 2 luggages that's overweight. and they both arrived when I got off the plane! good luck with package and everything else.


Jess, you need to take all your junk out, prioritize, and repack. The REASON for the weight limitations is so that the air vessel can take off, fly, and land safely. They will NOT overlook overages. You will pay dearly by the pound. If you do happen to slip by, and the plane crashes because of your big fat bags...then how will you feel...oh, I forgot ...you'll be DEAD. The other problem with overpacking is that it's people with that same thought process that cause the luggage to back up in San Juan, and then students don't get their bags until several weeks later when less students are flying down.

A viable alternative may be to ship the things you simply can't be without, but in all honesty, I think you may be over-packing and taking everyting but the kitchen sink. You might want to go to KMart and buy their biggest and lightest bag and then you'll only be packing ONE 70 pound bag. The light weight nylon bags are usually less durable, but for the price of a disposible bag, you'll be able to take more things.

MOST IMPORTANTLY, CHECK WITH YOUR INDIVIDUAL AIRLINES...YOUR LIMITATION MAY BE AS LOW AS 50 POUNDS FOR THE CHECKED BAG(S).