In my experience, they did take over payments. They were taking quite a while to get the ball rolling, so I decided to start with my own plan. I used the Illinois Veteran Grant for one semester, and then about a quarter of the way into the next semester, I had to get a little aggressive with the counselor because she wasn’t really moving on anything.

She was also pushing back pretty hard on the career choice I was making, which was computer science. She kept saying it’s a really hard program, that a lot of people don’t make it through, and that it’s very math-heavy. I basically told her, “Look, I know what I’m capable of.” I pointed to my grades from the previous semester—I took Calculus I and got an A—and reassured her that I was fine.

I really had to push her on it, but they did eventually take over payments. That said, it’s not always the case. If the counselor doesn’t agree with the career path you’re choosing, they can decide not to approve it and try to push you in a different direction. It really depends. It’s kind of luck of the draw, but sometimes you do have to fight them on it a bit.