Category Archives: financial aid

college guidance, college planning, financial aid, parenting, Uncategorized

Being realistic about college debt

2 Comments

It’s been in the news lately and it came up in a #CollegeBound chat yesterday: graduating with too much student loan debt. I wanted to lend my voice to the topic today and give parents something to think about and use in the future.

As I have said previously, I have a unique perspective in the college admissions process. As a parent, I’ve experienced all the frustration first-hand: the decisions about choices, the dilemma over financing, and the anxiety related to waiting for the final decisions. Something I haven’t talked about is how to handle making the final college choice when the acceptance letters and financial aid packages arrive. This can make a difference in the amount of debt your child graduates with and how it affects their life after college. Especially if you are unable to contribute to financing that education.

Case in point: my daughter’s decision to attend her “plan B or 2nd choice” college. After being accepted to her 1st choice/reach school, we waited for the financial aid award to arrive. In the meantime, awards from the other colleges she had applied to filtered in. She was offered a full-ride scholarship at one school, 80% of her financial need was met at two of the other colleges with grants and scholarships, and some small grants and loans from the rest of her college choices. Her 1st choice college met 0% of her financial need. Her heart was broken.

Here is where parenting comes into play. She wanted to attend her 1st choice college–her heart was set on it. She had been dreaming of it her whole life and any other option was out of the question. But, in order to attend, it would require financing the expensive education with loans (student and parent). While every fiber in me wanted to say YES, my common sense knew it would be a financial disaster. I sat her down, explained why she couldn’t go to her dream college, and she listened (while crying, of course). It might have broken both our hearts at the time, but it was the BEST decision for her in the long run.

To make a long story short, she fell in love with her Plan B college. It was smaller and offered a much better environment for her academically and socially. Most importantly, the college WANTED HER; as evidenced by their willingness to give her financial aid. They valued her contribution to the student body and from the moment she set foot on campus, she felt wanted. But the real payoff came when she graduated with only a small amount of college debt, being able to easily pay back the consolidated loans. Had she attended her 1st choice college, she would have graduated with close to $100,000 in debt, burdening her for years.

The bottom line:

  • Make wise financial choices about student loan debt.
  • Evaluate the financial aid packages and always consider the BEST offer.
  • Even if it’s disappointing for your child, you MUST be a parent and explain the consequences of graduating with too much college debt.
  • Disappointments are much easier to deal with than being saddled with debt after graduation.

If you liked this article, you might also like:

Choices. Choices. Choices.

Checking the “no financial aid needed” box

admissions, college guidance, financial aid

Checking the "no financial aid needed" box

2 Comments

Last week, while participating in a #CampusChat on Twitter a question was asked by a parent about college financial aid. Since none of us participating were sure of the correct answer, I wanted to provide the parent with the correct answer and get some clarification myself on the subject.

Question: If you check the box that says, “no financial aid needed” on the college application, does it improve your chances for acceptance?

I immediately sought the answer from the two admissions representatives I have connections with on Twitter: Chip Timmons (@ChipTimmons)  of Wabash College  and Gil Rogers (@GilRogers) of the University of New Haven.

Chip responded by saying, “If the student is on the margin it may help provided they are prepared academically (i.e demanding curriculum, strong in high school). My guess is more schools are going to take that into consideration in the coming years as it gets tougher to fill classes”.

Gil responded by saying, “Not at the University of New Haven. With that said, at some schools it may if the student is on the wait list and the school is trying to control discounting.”

If you weigh both these responses, it appears that it’s not a determining factor unless other considerations are in place. The best advice would be to check with the colleges your teen is interested in and ask them if they use it as a factor. However, I wouldn’t plan on it being the card in your pocket to assure acceptance. And honestly, if you have a college-bound teen with an impressive high school record, you should make an attempt to get some merit aid; even if you can afford the entire tuition. It just makes sense to fill out the FAFSA and take your shot at grabbing a piece of the financial aid pie.

If you’re an admissions officer or college admissions expert, please leave your comments here and share your experience with us. We value your input.

college costs, college planning, financial aid

A Review: Shrinking the Cost of College

3 Comments

Today I will be reviewing Lynn O’Shaughnessy’s new book: Shrinking the Cost of College–152 ways to cut the cost of a bachelors degree.

Lynn O’Shaughnessy,  is an author, a college blogger and speaker. She writes about college strategies for TheCollegeSolutionBlog and CBSMoneyWatch. She gives presentations about college strategies for schools, companies and financial advisory firms.  Lynn also wrote The College Solution, which is an Amazon.com bestseller.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Using facts and figures, Lynn explains clearly and simply where college money comes from and how to maximize your efforts to get the most money for a college education.

In the introduction of her book, Lynn states:

Billions of dollars of aid are available to students who attend college. About two out of three full-time college students receive grants, otherwise known as scholarships, to attend school. At private colleges, a whopping 82% receive scholarships…Most people look in the wrong place for help when they begin contemplating the looming college tab.

Her book systematically explains how the system works and how every parent can arm their arsenal of knowledge to help find and maximize the money that is out there. At the end of each chapter is a “To Do List” to point you in the right direction and help you gather all the information necessary to make the best financial decisions. Each chapter provides tips and “bottom line” information making it easy to apply and carry out each step in the process.

Lynn explains state grants, government grants, and private college scholarships. Her explanation of financial aid and how it works makes it easy to understand the most complicated of formulas. She explains where to find the data and how to analyze it to find the colleges that will provide the maximum financial aid to your college-bound teen. As a parent, this one tip alone will make the college application process less stressful and help to ease the college sticker price fears.

And finally, she explains the financial aid award letter and what to do when the letter arrives; walking you through how to analyze the award and how to handle an appeal for more money.

Here are just 10 tips from the book that will help you shrink the cost of college:

  1. Learn which 60 schools offer the best financial aid packages.
  2. Discover where you will find the biggest source of scholarship cash.
  3. Find out why 82% of students at private schools receive merit scholarships and how your child can.
  4. Learn why college sticker prices are meaningless and what that means for you.
  5. Understand how teens can win academic scholarships despite mediocre SAT/ACT scores.
  6. Get the list of 800+ colleges that don’t care about test scores.
  7. Discover how to attend out-of-state public universities for in-state prices.
  8. The most expensive colleges can be cheaper than your own state universities.
  9. You can make $200,000 and still qualify for significant need-based aid at pricey colleges.
  10. Students can win college money by using geography.

Every parent should grab a copy of this Ebook to add to their arsenal of college information. You can also chat with Lynn live on Twitter during an upcoming #CollegeChat June 1 at 6PM PST.

college costs, college planning, financial aid, scholarships, Uncategorized

$2000 "No Essay" College Scholarship

As I stated last week, I love to find scholarships that DON’T require an essay. This week’s scholarship is sponsored by College Prowler.com and it’s a NO ESSAY scholarship. That’s right! All you have to do to be entered in the MONTHLY drawing is complete a short survey on their website and be a current college student or planning to enroll in college within the next 12 months.

The monthly contest begins on the first day of the month, and ends on the last day of every month. You may have one entry per month. It’s SUPER EASY and ANYONE CAN WIN!

Send your college-bound teen to CollegeProwler.com each month for a chance to win a $2000 scholarship. You might as well leverage ALL your opportunities for that FREE money!

college costs, college planning, financial aid, scholarships

Paying for College? Your Financial Options

paying-for-collegeCollege isn’t cheap.  My College Guide has been saying that for years – 20 years to be exact!  But don’t let a tiny matter like cost take your college bound hopeful off the college track!  You should know that, when it comes to paying for college: you’ve got options.

Federal Loans – The Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, could send free college aid your family’s way!  No matter what your financial situation may be, you and your teen should fill out the form, online or mail-in.  Circumstances change – and colleges often require a completed FAFSA in order to consider your son or daughter for college-specific loans and scholarships!

Work — Study Programs — Sometimes nicknamed “self help aid” work-study programs are often provided by the college your teen actually wants to attend.  There is a Federal Work-Study Program and state programs as well.  It’s one way that your teen can help pay their way through college – and gain a little life experience in the process.

Grants and Scholarships — Simply applying to college will make your child eligible for some scholarships sponsored through the school. Of course, many scholarships are merit based. But, even if your college bound teen isn’t at the top of their class and the last sport your child played was tennis on the Wii – with the right scholarship or grant, lack of athletic or academic achievement may not matter.  There are scholarships and grants out there to fit every student: no kidding.  Your son or daughter can find free money to match their ethnicity, intended college major, religion, SAT scores, hobbies, and then some.  Many colleges have their own specific scholarships and/or grants that cover a range of abilities and majors.  To get started, have your teen sit down with their high school guidance counselor or surf the web for free money that fits!

Student Loans – There are various loan options: state, federal, and even loans from your child’s choice college.  Loans do need to be paid back and there will be interest tacked on but repayments are very often deferred — at least until your child completes their college career.  It’s good to know that when all else fails – there is still an option!

My College Guide has provided free college info with a 100+ page annual magazine for high achieving high school sophomores for over twenty years.  We are rapidly expanding online – find us on Facebook and Twitter and say “hello!“

college costs, college planning, financial aid, scholarships

Scholarships: Military dependents

 

militaryAre you or your spouse in the military? Do you have a family member that was a veteran of a foreign war? If so, there are scholarships available in these specific categories.

State Provided Education Benefits

Educational benefits for families, particularly the children of deceased, MIA, POW, and disabled veterans, may be available in some states. Military.com has developed an on-line general summary of educational benefits for veterans, surviving spouses and their dependents.

Click here to learn more about State Education Benefits.

Private Scholarships and Grants

While looking for money for school many surviving spouses and their families overlook the over $300 million of military – and veteran – related scholarships and grants. These scholarships often go unclaimed.

Visit Military.com’s Scholarship Finder today and get started.

Local Scholarships

Also, don’t neglect to search in your military community. Many service aid organizations and associations, like the Navy Marine Corps Relief Society, offer scholarships, grants, and low interest loans to help cover education expenses.

 

college costs, college planning, financial aid

Top 10 College Money Sites

 

Every parent frets, stresses and loses sleep over financing their college-bound teen’s college education. The good news is there is help available out there to ease your mind and get you on the right track to preparing for that day when your teen heads off to college. Here’s a list of my Top 10 College Money sites:

 

1. Reduce My College Costs–Marc Hill, CCPS, RFC® and founder of Reduce My College Costs, LLC. is both a financial planner and a parent, who know what you are going through. That’s why he created his firm to be a little different. It is not a scholarship search firm and not a student loan lender. He is well-versed in the financial aid process, but he knows not everyone is eligible for financial aid. So he takes a broader approach-identifying a variety of solutions that will make college more affordable for people at all income and asset levels.

2. FinAid–gives an overview of all types of college funding from scholarships, to loans, to savings, to military aid, to loans with links and information on each of them.

3, Saving for College–A top notch site explaining in great detail all the in and outs of college savings with calculators and tax information.

 

4. UPromise–A college savings service that harnesses the purchasing power of parents, extended family, family, and students to make it easier to pay for college. Members direct their spending to Upromise partners-including more than 600 online stores, 8,000+ restaurants, thousands of grocery and drugstore items-and earn money for college.

5. CollegeAnswer–Sallie Mae’s money management site gives an overview on college financing focusing on loans. The site provides a great School Affordability Analyzer.

 

6. CNN Money/College–A great site for the latest college financing news, calculators and how to maximize your financial aid.

 

7. MSN Money/College–A guide to saving for college with The Basics, Fast Answers and a message board.

 

8. CollegeBoard–The College Board’s EFC calculator which will help you determine your Expected Family Contribution BEFORE your teen starts applying to colleges.

 

9. Money Management 101–A blog created to help parents and students learn about money management.

 

10. StudentAid–A site for free information from the U.S. Department of Education and the home of the FAFSA4caster.

college costs, college guidance, college news, college planning, financial aid

In the News: College Week Live's Spring Fair

collegeweekliveThis week, parents and college-bound teens can attend College Week Live’s FREE virtual college fair online. On March 24-25 from 10AM-10PM you can:

  • Meet hundreds of colleges live & pick the perfect university
  • Get admissions questions answered in real time
  • Hear expert advice on test prep and application essays
  • Discover new ways to pay for college
  • Video Chat With Students on 75+ College Campuses

If your schedule doesn’t permit you to attend, you can still log on and view the archived videos at your convenience. Make sure you and your student sign up and mark your calendars for two days of comprehensive college information gathering virtual events.

college costs, college planning, financial aid, scholarships

Scholarships for Learning Disabled

2 Comments

 

learning disabilitiesIf you have a college-bound teen who is learning disabled, you will be happy to know that there are specific scholarships set aside for these type of students.

Start by looking at the Learning Disability Organizations in your home state. Those state specific college scholarships for ADHD will be less competitive than national scholarship programs as well, which makes them worth checking out even if the award amounts are small.

Another resource that students and parents seldom think about is scholarship programs that are only learned about through the Disabilities Department at the college that your teen will attend. It is vital that you check in with, and register with this department at the school, and inquire about available scholarship programs for learning disabled students when doing so.

Check into school specific college scholarships for ADHD available for learning disabled students as well. Many colleges offer at least one, if not several, ADHD scholarships for students who are learning disabled, and who will be attending that specific school, or even students enrolled in specific programs of studies – if they are learning disabled. Of course, ADHD Scholarships, although not specific, are considered learning disability scholarships as well.

Make absolutely certain that you check with vocational rehabilitation organizations or departments in your state and county as well. These organizations exist for the purpose of helping those who have been displaced or unable to work and get the educations that they need to find gainful employment – despite disabilities. Often, people mistakenly believe that these organizations only help adults who have already been in the workforce, but this isn’t true at all. They can also appraise graduating high school seniors and college students about scholarship and grant programs available for ADHD or learning disability scholarships.

Many organizations who would otherwise offer college ADHD scholarship programs for learning disabled students fail to do so because they assume that learning disabled students, such as those with ADHD will not be attending college. Today, nothing could be further from the truth, and in many cases, if you contact organizations or businesses that are related to ADHD in some way, you may find that they will help you to fund your teen’s education in some small way.

Here are just a few examples:

college costs, financial aid, parenting

In the News: Students struggle to repay student loans

 

I came across an article on WalletPop in their Money College section by a recent college graduate. Pop over there and read her student loan story and make sure you are sitting down when you do:

One student’s losing battle with private student loans

Those student loans are tempting. Here’s the rationalization that sucks in many college students:

  1. You don’t have to pay them back until you graduate.
  2. The interest rates are usually lower than regular loans.
  3. Once you graduate, there’s a grace period (allowing you time to get a job).
  4. Almost EVERY student has some sort of student loan debt.
  5. If you can’t pay it back, you can always file for bankruptcy.
  6. They let you consolidate so your payments will be affordable.

All of those statements have some truth in them to some degree. However, it is EXTREMELY important that every college-bound student understand these truths:

  1. The interest usually accrues while you are in college (unless it’s a subsidized loan).
  2. Private loan rates are higher than federal student loan rates.
  3. Going into massive debt for an education is a BAD idea.
  4. Many student loans are not forgivable in bankruptcy.
  5. That grace period creeps up on your FAST!
  6. You may not land a job that pays enough to make those monthly student loan payments.

Parents–please counsel your teens on the downfalls of having tremendous amounts of student loan debt. Encourage them to be financially responsible and prudent when borrowing money for college. Those loans can shackle them for many years after college graduation.