“Dear Steve,

I was attending an on line university, had Pell grants and student loans, I dropped my last two classes, due to a unbelievable amount of stress I was under. Now, I am trying to enroll in a local university, I need my transcripts. The online college claims I owe them $3100, I do not understand how. My loans are through the government- not the college. How do I argue this and how do I get my transcripts?

Jennifer”

The Answer

Dear Jennifer,

I’m going to give you some homework to do. After you do it, come back and update me in the comments section.

Call the university and ask for a copy of your financial account so you can see what exactly they are claiming that you owe.

Next, see if your student loans show disbursement for this debt they say that you owe.

I have a sneaking suspicion that either they never applied for the loans or that they misapplied the funds. This is just going to take some sleuthing around to figure out.

Until this is resolved, you don’t get to get your transcripts.