First come, first serve financial aid.

It’s no secret that the economy is going through some slow times. And, as the current financial situation effects many businesses, it’s also impacting the number and amount of scholarships, loans, and federal financial aid.

While this may sound ominous, there is still plenty of money to be earned. You just need to increase your diligence, preparedness, and attitude. Here are some suggestions to stay on top of the financial aid and scholarship game.

1. Fill out your FAFSA.

This year, more families than ever will be applying for federally funded financial aid. The problem, as always, is that there is a fixed amount of funds available. The sooner you apply, the greater your chances of securing some money. Apply even if you don’t think you’ll qualify. The earliest you can file your FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) is January 1. You can file online, and I highly recommend you file the first of the year. To hit the ground running, fill out a sample form on the FAFSA website, gather all tax information, and set up a free account on www.fafsa.ed.gov. On January 1, you’ll be ready to file.

2. Get your college applications and financial forms in early.

Just as the government has a set amount of funds available for students, colleges are limited in the amount of scholarship money they can award each academic year. Typically, schools award money on a first come, first serve basis, and the number and amount of awards decrease as time progresses. What does this mean? More money is available at the beginning of the application cycle. Students that apply early in the application process are more likely to be granted a better financial aid package or get scholarships from the college. And, the amount of the scholarship is typically higher the earlier you apply. In addition to your basic admission application, be sure to complete any extra materials associated with scholarships, grants, or being considered for the college’s award money and return these forms as soon as possible. Sometimes, you are automatically considered for awards based on your college application, other times it is a separate process altogether. Check with your potential colleges to find out their procedures.

3. Apply for every scholarship you can.

In years past, students could afford to be picky. Scholarships with essay requirements were commonly ignored, scholarships less than $500 often we’re rejected, and there was basic apathy among high school students regarding scholarships. The fact is, you can’t afford to be picky. You must apply for any scholarship you have a chance at winning. In hockey, they say you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. The same is true with scholarships. You lose 100% of the scholarships you don’t apply for. This year, take your scholarship search seriously. Visit your career center or guidance counselor and request a scholarship list immediately. If your school does not have one, conduct an online search. Visit my previous posts for specific scholarship search strategies.

The strategies outlined above may seem simple, and they are. However, knowing something and executing are two different things. When you actually do the things above, you increase your chances of securing money for college.

Good luck. If you need help, just remember to repeat the mantra: early bird catches the worm.

Interesting way to pay for college...

It's no secret that paying for college has become more of a struggle recently. Parents aren't able to contribute as much, loan companies are reducing their support, and jobs are becoming more scarce. 

Interestingly, these tough times force people to become more creative in the way they attempt to finance their schooling, or pay for things in general. More and more, I'm hearing people talk about "human capital contracts."  And, while the phrase doesn't exactly make me feel warm and fuzzy, it's definitely an idea worth discussing. 

A human capital contract is an agreement entered into by an investor and college student. The investor pays college expenses, as an investment, in return for a percentage of the college student's future earnings over a fixed amount of time.

The benefits:

-Financial risk is transferred from the student to the investor

- The student avoids student-loan debt that can delay many life events like marriage, buying a home.

-The payment percentage is directly proportional to the amount the student makes in his or her job. (A teacher, for instance would have smaller payments while a lawyer or doctor would have higher payments.)

The downfalls:

-The contracts create an incentive for students to hide their income. (Remember, payments are based on earnings: the more you make, the more you pay.)

-No fixed payment is required. Therefore, a student could play Wii all day and not pay anything.

-"Adverse Selection": this system seems to penalize students that plan on entering into high paying careers. 

Plans like these are taking root in other countries, including Germany. Is it a viable option for students in the United States? Maybe. 

For more information about human capital contracts, read this report by the Grand Forks Herald.

Obama is President. What does that mean for college costs?

This morning, we woke up to a new President-elect. Barack Obama.

Our new President has a lot of work ahead of him, and one major issue (the one I'm sure you're very concerned with) is paying for college. Recently, President-elect Obama sat down with Sway from MTV and talked about college costs and student loans. Below is the discussion. If you want to read the entire article, click here.

In the meantime, have a great day!

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If he's elected Tuesday, Senator Obama said he'd work to create new programs — and overhaul existing ones — to help students pay for their college education, which he said was vital not only for young people, but for the overall future of the economy.

"Look, this is something I can relate to," he said, answering a question from Joy0294 of San Antonio, Texas. "I went to college having to take out student loans. I went to law school having to take out loans. Michelle took out student loans. When we got married, I think together, our total loan payments every month [were] more than our mortgage when we bought a house, and that lasted for about 10 years."

Obama said that the average student applies for between $25,000 and $30,000 in student loans, and "that's a huge burden, especially at a time when wages and incomes aren't going up." Obama said he'd like to increase the Federal Pell Grant Program for starters, but also "eliminate banks as middle men from the Direct Loan Program; they're taking out billions of dollars in profits. I want to take that money, apply that to increasing the number of loans that are out there and reducing the rate. And then, what I want to do is provide a $4,000 tuition credit to every student every year, in exchange for national service."

The credit would be available to students who volunteered with the Peace Corps, worked in their communities in some fashion or joined the military. "We're going to make sure they can afford their college tuition," Obama said. "In certain areas, like teaching, where we really need teachers, especially in math and science and nursing, where we really need nurses, we will potentially provide them even more than that, to get the high-quality teachers and nurses we need."

Those who already started incurring student loan debts won't be left out in the cold, either. Senator Obama said he'd work to find ways to consolidate some student loans. But, he admitted, "there's only so much we're going to be able to do going backwards."

Answering a question from Seb88 of Buffalo, New York, he said that we need to "focus on going forward. There are a lot of students out there who have already paid off their loans, and they may not be happy with it. They wouldn't mind getting some of their money back too.

"By the way, this isn't just four-year colleges and universities," he continued. "My attitude is, if young people are going for two years at the community-college level, for some technical training of some sort, or if they are returning to school after having worked for a while, all that is part of creating a knowledge-based workforce that's going to be the key to our competitiveness long-term. We're looking at potentially being able to consolidate some of these loans, and, if they are part of a broader pool, we may be able to lower interest rates on the debt they already owe. But the key is, going forward, making sure young people will be able to afford to go to college."

Check this website out!

If you want to quickly compare the merit scholarships offered by various colleges, you need to check out this website: www.guaranteed-scholarships.com. Although this site is just a list, it can be a useful tool for comparison purposes.

It's important to know that most schools offer automatic scholarships based on academic performance and ACT or SAT scores. If you know what you need ahead of time, you can prepare and score accordingly. Higher grades or test scores almost guarantee more money. Take a look at this example:

Visit Hamline University's website HERE.  You'll notice that a mere three point difference (25 to 28) ACT will earn you $2,000 more each year. That's $8,000 more over the course of four years. If you knew this before you took your ACT, wouldn't you try harder to get a higher score? 

Take a look at guaranteed-scholarships.com. Find out what you need to do to get more money for college. 

Have a great day!

College loan forgiveness?

If you've been keeping up on current events, you know there have been a lot of bail-outs lately. However, I'm not quite sure this is a good thing. I mean, what kind of example is Wall Street, the Government, and our leaders sending to the rest of us?  

Contrary to the example our leaders have set, as college students, we have to be more wise with our money. How?

1. Take a serious look at our current situation. Evaluate.

How much money, exactly, do we need to save, borrow, and earn to pay for college? The amount we borrow should be considered extremely carefully, as we'll have to pay this back over the long haul. We should keep borrowing to a minimum, and spend our time working more in the summer, trying to find scholarships or grants, and cutting spending to save money and put the saved amount toward school.

2. Cut Spending.

You may never have cut a coupon in your life, but trust me, they're worth it! Look for deals on groceries, books, supplies, furniture before you jump in and buy. Also, cutting back on going out one or two nights a week is not going to kill you. Have a roommate cooking night or movie night, you might just like the bonding. (You'll for sure like the extra money you keep in your pocket.)

3. Develop a plan for the future.

Did you know that about 70% of college students and their parents borrow large sums of money for college without estimating their future earnings? It seems kind of ridiculous when you think about it.  If you have tens of thousands of dollars in debt and you make only $30,000 a year, you're not going to pay that loan off any time soon (you have other expenses once you leave college, trust me). Before you take loans out on your future, consider the job you'll get once you graduate. How long, realistically, before you pay that loan off? If you want to be out of student debt in a certain amount of time, you need to plan ahead. Sometimes, that means you need to borrow less.

Now, you may already be in a situation where you've borrowed a ton of money and are regretting it. To you, I recommend you read this article: click here. This article explores the different programs and situations that help graduated students get out of debt. In some cases, loan forgiveness. 

Remember, paying for college requires a strategy. I hope these three common sense tips get you started. Have a great day!

New product: I am SO EXCITED!

I believe that everyone who wants to go to college should be able to go. Right now, many people do not attend college because they can't afford it.  Those that do go pile up debt in student loans and through consumer credit cards and leave college with a big financial hole to crawl out of.

I think this is a shame.

The biggest problem, I believe, is that researching, applying, and learning about your college options is overwhelming. There is simply too much information to sift through, and much of the valuable content is overlooked or not found. Plus, who wants to spend hours on end weaving through financial aid forms?

To help finance college, save you thousands of dollars, and relieve you of the time you need to spend researching this stuff, I've created a helpful starter-guide. In this 36-page e-book, I've compiled the top 12 college cost-saving strategies, all in one place. 

Here's the Table of Contents: 

Strategy 1: Choose Wisely.

• Students and parents will learn how to choose a school they’ll love

• The best online college matching services

• Why your school choice has little to do with your ultimate career success.

• How choosing the right school will save you money.

Strategy 2: Four Years or Less.

• Why the “recommended” amount of credits isn’t enough.

• How to get college credit, before you goto college

• How to avoid taking Freshman Composition (and save $900 in the meantime)

• Why good grades save you money.

Strategy 3: Compare Financial Aid Packages

• View sample financial aid packages from different colleges

• Learn about expected family contribution and why it’s important.

• Why knowing the difference between “Aid as Gift” and “Aid as Loan” is essential.

• Access to easy comparison tools.

Strategy 4: “Negotiate” Financial Aid Packages

• Explanation of the financial aid package appeal process.

• Types of appeals

• When to appeal and what you need to bring to ensure success.

Strategy 5: Find and Apply for College Scholarships

• Why scholarships are the ideal way to fund college

• Where to start searching for scholarships in “real-life.”

• How to start your online scholarship search

Strategy 6: Early Bird Catches the Worm

• Why you should apply early in the admissions process, but not necessarily early admission.

• Why you should send in your FAFSA as soon as you can after January 1st.

• How to maximize your FAFSA application to receive optimal aid.

Strategy 7: Get to Work, Save Money

• Why it’s important that college students work.

• Why future employers view working students more favorably.

• Where to find jobs appropriate for college students

• The top jobs for entrepreneurially-minded college students.

• When to start looking for summer employment

Strategy 8: Save on Extra Spending

• Why free t-shirts on campus aren’t a good thing.

• How to save on typical student entertainment costs.

• The best ways to save on textbooks (and how you can avoid buying them altogether without sacrificing your grades).

• Save money when you live off-campus

• 12 ways to go green and save money

Strategy 9: Good Grades=Good Deals

• Scholarships, grants, and deals available to top high school achievers.

• How good grades in college can pay off in unexpected big ways.

• The extra perks of earning good grades from free food to free electronics.

Strategy 10: Securing a Loan

• What you should know before you take on a loan.

• Where to compare loan rates and information

• A list of INTEREST-FREE loans. (No, I’m not kidding.)

• How to use loans wisely.

Strategy 11 and 11.5: College Pre-Pay and Deferred Payment

• What’s a 529-plan?

• 529-plan pros and cons.

• Pre-paid credits vs. savings and investment plans

• Options for those of you with unreliable cash-flow.

Strategy 12: Tuition Registries

• How to use social-networking to fund your tuition.

• Tips to increase the odds people will invest in you.

• Micro-sponsorships vs. micro-loans.

Plus! 5-page Internet Resource Guide
This five-page list of websites is the result of countless hours researching, reading, and surfing the internet for the best information on everything related to saving money on college and paying tuition. The perfect starting place for those of you new to the college funding process.

I hope that this guide will help you pay for college and save thousands of dollars. If your dream is to go to college, make memories, and leave without a load of debt, I would be honored to help your dream come true. 

Visit my newly-updated website: www.collegeboundresource.com.

Have a great week!

Save money on college: 8 ways by SayCampusLife

It's no surprise that paying for college can be stressful, and confusing. Thankfully, the folks over at SayCampusLife put together a list of 8 Ways to Pay for Your College Education. I recommend you take a look here!

How's everyone's school year going so far? What are the challenges you're facing? Let me know by commenting, and I'll try to answer your questions in an upcoming blog. Have a great weekend!

Should parents pay for college?

I write this blog for both parents and students, but I realize that I haven't had many parent-focused posts lately. So, today I attempt to answer one of the most common questions I get as a scholarship advisor from parents: do I have to pay for my child's tuition? Is it a parental obligation?

The bad news is, the answer to this question varies depending on each family. The good news is, it's always your choice.

When I was applying for college, I knew that my parents were unable to contribute financially toward the price of my tuition. At the time, it was upsetting, especially when I looked around and many of my peers were not worried about paying for college at all because their parents were helping them out. I got over it, and now I'm happy that I funded my education on my own.

When it comes down to it, some parents are able to help pay for college (or pay entirely) and some aren’t. Funding college is a personal, family decision and you should feel no guilt either way. There are some things, however, that all parents can do to instill some financial saavy into their college bound students.

1. If you are funding your child’s tuition, don’t let them take it for granted. If your kids have a sense of entitlement (you know what I mean), it might be good to wake them up a bit, make them pay for a semester or two so they learn about the real world. They will appreciate your contributions when you do make them.  Another option is having your child be responsible for their books or their rent. Forcing them to fend for themselves a bit will help them grow, and through the process they will gain pride, confidence, and responsibility.  

2. Teach your child about finances before they leave for college. Campuses are marketing headquarters for credit card companies and private loan officers. Make sure that your child knows about compound interest and credit card debt. Make sure they research alternative methods of paying for college (scholarships and interest-free loans for instance).

3. According to a poll of human resource representatives, students that pay for their own college are viewed as “more mature and adult-like.” It turns out that the skills learned by having to pay for college are more lasting, and helpful on the job front, than those learned in the classroom. The lesson? If you are paying for part or all of your child’s education, DO NOT let them off the hook about looking for scholarships, getting a summer job, or finding an internship! Your paying does not give them an excuse to be lazy. To keep them competitive when they graduate, they should have some outside the classroom work experience.

When it comes down to it, we all want the best for our children. Whether you are able to pay for college or not, you can be sure to educate your student about finance and money—ensuring they will value their education and not take it (or you) for granted.

Cash-flow problems? Try deferred payment.

Although not technically a way to save money on college, a deferred payment or financing plan can alleviate the stress of paying a lump sum tuition payment each semester. I thought you should know that at some colleges, you have this option.

Some colleges offer financing options that allow you to pay tuition on a monthly or bimonthly basis. There are also many schools that offer deferred payment plans. Talk to your financial aid office and see if your college has these payment options. They are perfect if you have unreliable cash flow, you're having school credits paid for by an employer, or you cannot qualify for need-based financial aid.

New product!

I am so excited and stressed all at the same time. I am working hard on bringing you the best products that will help you with the scholarship application process, and I am close to making them available for immediate download so you can benefit from them immediately! 

Right now, I'm compiling the 12 best ways to save money on and pay for college without breaking the bank. I'm looking for a great title, so if you have any suggestions, contact me via www.collegeboundresource.com. This little package will include:

• Tips on appealing your financial aid package
• Where to start your scholarship search and why online isn't the best place.
• How to separate yourself from other applicants and save big in the process--why it's a lot easier than you might think.
• Where to get loans that don't charge interest
• And more!

Trust me, I wish I had this "starter package" when I was getting ready to head off to college, but now you don't need to worry like I did! Keep an eye out on my website for this product in the next couple of weeks. If you want, you can sign up for my e-zine and be notified the moment this product becomes available!

Paying for college issue for presidential candidates.

If you are watching the candidates for this year's presidential election, pay close attention to their views regarding higher education--it directly effects you! I don't care who you're voting for (you need to choose who you think is best), but it is important you get involved with the process and make your voices heard in November.  

Here is an article I found today regarding the candidates: article here.

McCain's educational plan here.

Obama's educational plan here.

Please take the time to compare and consider each plan--it's your future!