This is for STUDENTS in high school or college ONLY!
We all know how hard it is to pay for school. With the costs of tuition, books, school fee's, housing, and on top of that, balancing our personal bills, food, and gas, well, it's a "HARD KNOCK LIFE" for a struggling student. Especially those that arn't receiving help from their families. My situation is more complicated. My Father's income EXCEEDED the "Expected Family Contribution" thus disqualifying me for ANY school aid. On top of that, he REFUSED to help me with a DIME in my education, after "convincing me" to amend my tax return so he can claim me as a dependent. I had to learn everything that HARD way, and I just want to offer some advice to those students out there who are surfing the web as we speak!
1. Apply for FAFSA (Free Application For Student Aid)
*Even if you did not file your previous years tax return, you can file for a non-filer's transcript
*Even if your parent(s) did not file their tax return for the previous year, you can still request your parent to file for a non-filer's transcript
*Even if your family's income exceeds the "Expected Family Contribution" you may still qualify for the BOGFW (Board of Governer Fee Waiver) which can help you out a lot covering the expenses of your classes!
*THERE IS NO HARM IN APPLYING, JUST DO IT!
2. Federal Stafford Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans
*ONLY apply for these if you are sure that you can re-pay it
*Community Collegs: most of the time, your six month grace period starts when you obtain your AA/AS or transfer to a CSU or UC
*CSU/UC: your 6 month grace period starts as soon as you graduate
*6 month grace period means you have a 6 months after you graduate to prepare yourself in re-paying your loans. You don't necessarily have to make payments every month of that 6 month grace period, but it will HELP ALOT! After the 6 months, you are required to make your monthly payments, and make sure you pay it so you do not go into default!!
*These loans are guaranteed throught the school, and do NOT require a credit check.
*Thats why I said MAKE SURE you really need this loan before applying for it, because it is guaranteed money through the school.
3. Private Loans
*If you need additional financial assistance apart from Stafford Loans and Financial Aid, you can always apply for a PRIVATE STUDENT LOAN through various lenders. Now, these loans are based on credit checks, so I advise that you have excellent credit, or use a co-signer!!
4. Scholarships
*BEFORE you try 2 and 3, you should try applying for scholarships. It's FREE MONEY!
*There are MANY scholarship websites and funds that you can look for that you qualify for. I'll provide a list of lenders and scholarship websites for your convenience at the end of this blog.
*Find a scholarship that matches YOU personally.
*Make sure you do NOT make the 7 scholarship mistakes. I advise you read them on any of the listed scholarship sites below! They really can help you in determing what your essay will be about!
*REMEMBER, that companies receive THOUSANDS of applicants, and yours will just be another one in the stack. Make sure you choose something interesting, or have a nice intro sentence that will catch your readers attention!
LOANS: (The ones I prefer)
1. US Bank
2. Sallie Mae
3. Bank of America
4. EdFund
5. contact your school for a list of possible lenders because I think it varies per school
SCHOLARSHIPS!
1. FastWeb.com
2. Zinch.com
3. SuperCollege.com
4. ScholarshipDetective.com
5. CollegeisPower.com
6. Cappex.com
7.GoCollege.com
& if you are affiliated with the military in ANY way, either being a veteran yourself, or a dependent of one, YOU CAN APPLY FOR VETERAN BENEFITS! G.I.Bill, or like me, Veteran Dependents Educational Assistance! They also have a college fee waiver themselves!
