Financial
Aid
Finding Money for
College
PSPN
Many high school graduates unfortunately abandon the thought of pursuing a
college education because of the tremendous expense involved. Tuition cost
continue to skyrocket each year, but there is help available for any student
that wants to pursue higher education. This page has been structured to point
parents and students in the right direction to find the resources available to
receive financial aid, in addition to sites offering sound advice for
educational financial planning. Students should also consult their local
guidance counselors for financial aid information. Although we hear that many
schools offer little or no real assistance in pursuing financial aid, it's still
worth the effort to pursue assistance from your local guidance counselor
especially concerning state specific grants and financial aid programs.
ETS.org:
College Costs - A Field Guide
How to Apply for
Financial Aid
Applying for financial aid can be a pretty
intimidating process. There are forms to fill out, procedures to follow, and
deadlines to meet. On top of that, you're probably worrying that you'll make
a costly mistake.
Don't worry! The important thing is
to read and follow all directions carefully, meet your deadlines, and ask
questions when you aren't sure of something. In the meantime, we hope our
College Costs Field Guide will help make the process easier.
Federal Financial
Aid Programs
The federal government is the
largest provider of financial aid. In fact, the federal government provided
75 percent of all available student aid in 1994-95, according to the College
Board. So it makes sense to know as much as possible about federal financial
aid programs and to apply for federal aid before seeking out more exotic
financial aid sources.
The largest and most familiar
federal student aid programs are:
You might also want to learn more about:
This site is a tremendous resource for
parents seeking information about college cost and financial aid. We
strongly encourage you to visit the site at
http://www.ets.org/fpoints/index.html
Time.com: Finding Financial Aid (excerpt)
Three strategies for getting the best
possible deal.
BY PENELOPE WANG
(excerpt) Perhaps the only challenge more daunting than getting into the
college of your choice is figuring out how to pay the bills. Just consider:
four years of tuition, room and board at the average public college cost
about $45,000, according to the latest College Board figures. Four years at
a private college can easily exceed $100,000 — not even including cash for
the occasional late-night pizza.
There's no reason to panic if you don't have that five- or six-figure sum on
hand. Fortunately, plenty of financial aid is available; a whopping $64
billion in federal, state and private aid was given out in the 1998-99
school year. To get your fair share, though, you have to know how to play
the financial-aid game, which has changed dramatically over the past 10
years. (More)
Wired Scholar.com
- a financial aid site run by Sallie Mae, the education loan
provider.
Scholarships.com
- Includes a database of over 600,000 Scholarships, Grants, Fellowships, and
Internships.
US Department
of Education: Finding Financial Aid
US Department
of Education: Finding Grants and Contracts
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