Getting Money for College Tips on Getting Money for College Judy Quest College Counselor Duchesne Academy Omaha, Nebraska Welcome to this presentation. I appreciate your time. My goal is to help you feel more comfortable in the complicated world of college financing. I am constantly working with Duchesne students to help them be good consumers. This is one of the most expensive things one buys in a lifetime, so it is important to have the best information. On some of the pages, you will see pictures or logos. These are links to sources of information or other organizations. I think you will find the links very helpful. Click to move to the next page.

Gift money Scholarships Grants can be awarded for academic merit, leadership and service, sports, etc. May be renewable or one time only Grants based on the family’s financial need Many schools only award money for financially needy students The second source of money is gift money. Most of this money comes from colleges. There are two ways that colleges give money. One is through merit based scholarships. One thing scholarships are based on is academics. The good news is that there are many other ways your daughter can earn scholarship money, like service work, special talents, leadership and sports. In junior and senior seminar classes we work on resumes that highlight all aspects of a student’s talents. The other way colleges give money is through needs based grants. Most schools offer grants as part of the package to all students who show need but the most competitive schools in the country offer money only based on need. This means that they do not offer merit based scholarships.

15% All Other (Rotary, Target, etc.) Sources of Gift Money 25% Government Funding through Free Application for Federal Student Assistance (FAFSA) low income 60% Schools 15% All Other (Rotary, Target, etc.) The majority of gift money comes from the schools themselves, It is of the utmost importance that students look very carefully at the schools they are considering for the way to apply for scholarships at an individual school. Some schools take all of the information from the application, some want a general scholarship application and many have specific scholarships that need to be applied for individually. Students need to be aware of the deadlines for scholarship application. Missing deadlines can mean a tremendous amount of gift money lost to a student. Even if a school is not top priority all scholarship opportunities need to be considered in case the school becomes one of the choices later on.

Scholarships from Schools Go to the College Counseling page on the Duchesne website. Click on Scholarships by Schools. In order to help you get the best information about school-based scholarships we have put a link below. Clicking on it will take you a list of the top thirty or so schools most often applied to by Duchesne students. Clicking on the logo for a school will take you to the scholarship information page on the school’s website.

Knowing Application Deadlines is Essential Some of these are as early as November 1 for scholarship applications A student could be admitted to a school after this date but no scholarships will be considered I cannot emphasize enough that scholarship deadlines must be met. Students must apply to the school before they can apply for scholarships, but often scholarship deadlines are months prior to the deadline date for applications. Some of these can be as early as November 1st. In order to be sure no deadlines are missed, I strongly suggest that students have all their college applications completed by November 1st.

Financial Aid Packages from Colleges Are made up of : scholarships, grants, loans and work-study Vary greatly: the bottom line can be the same but the proportion of the package that is gift money can be vastly different So: if money is a big issue apply to more colleges Financial Aid packages are made up of scholarships, grants, loans and work study. These packages are to help families make up the difference between the cost to attend the school and the family’s contribution. Every school gives the government a “cost to attend” amount. Until recently most schools tried to meet the “demonstrated need” after the “family contribution” was determined by the FAFSA (free application for federal student aid). This is not the case anymore but many schools still do try to make it possible for a student to attend. The difference in financial aid packages can vary tremendously from school to school in the proportion of gift aid and loan. In other words two schools could come up with a package that would allow a student to attend but one would involve a big loan and the other gift money.

Independent Scholarships Besides scholarships awarded by colleges, there are many, many independent scholarships that can be used at any school Click below for a list of independent scholarships maintained by the college counseling office Your daughter can also sign up for national scholarship search services Click on the diploma to see the Fastweb site Independent Scholarships Many of these scholarships are for relatively small amounts – often $1000 or $2000. Even though this seems like a small amount compared to the total cost of college, I tell the students to think about how long it would take them to make that kind of money at a “kid job.” The applications for these scholarships are usually pretty simple. Many require a short essay which could be used for more than one application. Some of them are awarded for service, sports, or extracurricular activities. The link below will take you to a spreadsheet describing over one hundred scholarships and the requirements for applying. For most of them, there is a link to the scholarship website. I think it is well worth your time to check this list every month or two. Mrs. Sigler also sends students scholarship suggestions based on a questionnaire that they fill out for her in junior seminar. It is also easy and helpful to sign up for a national scholarship search service. I like FastWeb. The students sign up for FastWeb in junior seminar. Most information about scholarship possibilities is sent via e-mail so it is imperative that students watch their e-mails for these opportunities.

Loans Loans must be paid back I recommend that students try to limit their debt to $20,000 total A wonderful place to find out about all types of loans and funding options for college is Education Quest. All of their services are free Located in Rockbrook Village 11031 Elm Street 402-391-4033 There are two kinds of money available for college – loans and gift money. Loans must be paid back, but I don’t think taking out loans for college is necessarily a bad thing. It is an investment in oneself. The problem comes when the level of debt gets to the point that it limits a person’s life after undergraduate years. If a student can get to the point where she only has to take out $5000 per year I think that is manageable. Of course this is totally a family decision. It is so important that a student be aware of the types of loans and repayment plans. The link on this page is to Education Quest. This organization is an excellent source of free information on loans and many other college funding questions you might have.

The FAFSA In order to apply for government money the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) must be filled out yearly Click below to go to the Student Aid website. It has great information and tools for you to use in determining your contribution to your daughter’s education and how you can fund it This is best done online for quickest turnaround. It can be filed as early as Jan. 1 of the year the student will enter college. Most schools request it be filed by Feb. 1 for scholarship consideration. The results of the FAFSA are sent free of charge to all of the schools being considered. Some schools require the FAFSA if a student is applying for scholarships of any kind even if a family will not qualify for need based financial aid. Many families ask if it is worth it for them to fill out the FAFSA if they have a decent income. You can easily find out the answer to that question by going to the website of Education Quest and filling out their financial aid forecaster. This can be done as early as junior year with the numbers on a tax return.

CSS/Financial Aid Profile Some colleges also require the CSS Profile An online application is available on the College Board website Some colleges require the CSS Profile. This is in addition to the FAFSA. You can apply for this online and it can be filed as early as September of senior year Sign up on the collegeboard website

Other Resources for Information About Financing College Education Quest College Funding videos Located in Rockbrook Village 11031 Elm Street 402-391-4033 Vintage Financial Group College Funding Video 14217 Dayton Circle, Suite 3 Omaha, NE 68137 Phone: 402-932-7233 In looking for the very best advice and information about college financing I have found the free services of Education Quest to be of great value. They can answer questions on the latest laws, help a family file a FAFSA or provide scholarship search services through their website. It is never a good idea to pay for scholarship search services. These services are just as good if they are free because of the information now available on the internet. Some families also find it useful to use a knowledgeable financial planner. One that specializes in planning for college is Vintage Financial Group but most financial planners have this service as well.