Scholarships are a Little Tricky

After a students starts applying to college, many also start searching for scholarships as well. It makes perfect sense to try to find ways to cut your out-of-pocket cost regardless of the school you decide to attend. This USA Today article provides excellent information about explaining particulars with financial aid packages and scholarships.

For students who successfully secure scholarships that are not related to the institution you need to understand how accepting the scholarship could affect your financial aid package. Colleges regard outside scholarship as additional 'resources' or money, so they often will not apply your outside scholarship to meet any additional need you may have. Rather than add your outside scholarship with the institutional money they are offering, they will take away institutional dollars. In other words if the school had offered you $5 in aid, and your scholarship is worth $5 the school will likely let you spend your $5 and take their money back, so in the end you are still paying the same price.

This is not to discourage you from finding outside scholarships, you just need to be very strategic on which funds you accept, as well as prepared to still have to come out of pocket even when it seems that everything should be paid for.

How Does Your State Rate?

Find out how your state rates when it comes to higher education. This tool provides some insight on how conservative or liberal states are when it comes to financial aid.

Measuring UP

The One Constant in Education

College cost have a will continue to sore. That is a constant that we will all be guaranteed. The article Paying for Your Education...Forever, emphasizes how college cost continue to rise. College Strategies works on your behalf to find scholarships and help you prepare the scholarship applications as a means to improve your chances for receiving the scholarships. You should begin searching for scholarship even before you begin searching for your school.

Financial Aid 101

I thought this was a good article on Financial Aid 101. Eight Tips To Getting Financial Aid.

For students that are already accepted, remember most schools will need for you to file for financial aid before they will consider you for any institutional scholarships. Many consider only students who filed for financial aid before March 1.