Student loses her job...and still has to pay for the dorm she no longer lives in

Like many Americans, college students across the country are facing employment uncertainty because of the coronavirus pandemic.

As part of a new Campus Reform video series, Digital Reporter Eduardo Neret spoke with one of those students who has temporarily lost her job, Montana Campus Correspondent Emily Kokot, a student at Rocky Mountain College. While Kokot said she didn’t make a lot of money in her federal work-study job, the income went a long way in paying for her expenses.

"I lost my job and I'm still having to pay for the dorm I'm not living in"

“The pay wasn’t great,” Kokot explained. “I didn’t get a whole lot of money from it. My last paycheck was about a hundred dollars, and as a poor college student that really does go a long way. That amount really helped pay for the cost of food.”

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Kokot also explained how her job helped pay for her books each semester, which she says are expensive and rarely can be purchased used.

“That paycheck also helped with books,” she said. “Last year...I took an economics class that required me to buy a book that was $250. And I used it once and couldn’t sell it back.”

Adding insult to injury, Kokot said that she's also not likely to see a refund for the unused portion of her room and board costs. She says RMC gave students the choice of whether to move out of the dorms for the remainder of the semester and because of that option, it is not issuing refunds. Kokot decided to move back home.

"I lost my job and I'm still having to pay for the dorm I'm not living in," Kokot said.

Follow the author of this article on Facebook: @eduneret and Twitter: @eduneret