01.27.10 | Paying for College: The Financial Aid Puzzle
The cost of a college education is rising every year. This year the average cost of a private four-year school was $26,273, up 4.4% from last year, and the average cost of a public school was $7,020, up 6.5% from last year. For most families, paying for college is a struggle. If you feel like you do not have all the pieces of the financial aid puzzle, you are not alone.
On January 1st the 2010-2011 FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) was released. The FAFSA is probably the most important part of the financial aid puzzle. If you are planning on attending college in the fall of 2010 you should be in the process of submitting this form. The FAFSA determines how much federal financial aid you are eligible to apply for. There are three basic types of federal student aid:
- Grants: Grant money is financial aid that does not have to be repaid. Most grant money is based on financial need.
- Work-study: Work-study money is earned through a job or near campus. Work-study money does not have to be repaid.
- Loans: Loan money, including subsidized Stafford loans and unsubsidized Stafford loans, is awarded by the government and must be repaid with interest.
Federal financial aid can be a huge help when paying for college, but since most federal financial aid is awarded based on need, not everyone who files a FAFSA will be awarded sufficient aid to cover their education. So what happens when your federal Stafford loans and grants are not enough? Luckily, there are other pieces of the financial aid puzzle that can help you pay for college.
PLUS Loans are federal student loan options that are not based on financial need, but rather on credit. There are two types of PLUS loans; Parent PLUS loans and Graduate PLUS loans. If you are an undergraduate student, your parents can apply for a PLUS loan to help supplement the cost of your education. If you are a graduate student you can apply for a PLUS loan for yourself. With the federal PLUS loan you can borrow up to 100% of unmet financial need. PLUS loan money can also help you pay for educational costs not covered by your tuition including housing and supplies.
Some students choose to add private student loans to their financial aid puzzle. Private Student Loans are an alternative student loan option. Although you should always apply for federal financial aid before pursuing this option, private student loans have a few advantages. Private student loans are awarded based on credit rather than on need. You can use private student loans for any education related cost including textbooks, housing and transportation. If you are looking for a private student loan, the new private student loan comparison tool on PrivateStudentLoans.com can help you determine which lender and loan best meets your needs.
Because private student loans are based on credit, most students need a parent, family member, or close friend to cosign the loan. A cosigner is an individual who agrees to pay any debts if the primary account holder is unable to do so. This ensures to the lender that the loan will be paid back even if the student borrower does not have the funds to make payments.
The final, and quite possibly the best, piece of the puzzle is scholarships. Scholarships are favorable because unlike loans they do not have to be repaid. Hundreds of thousands of organizations around the country award scholarships to students based on their backgrounds, interests and accomplishments. StudentScholarshipSearch.com is a website that helps you find and apply for scholarships that you qualify for.
Every student’s financial aid puzzle is put together differently. Many students take advantage of all of these financial aid options while some students only need to use one or two. Some student might qualify for more financial aid while other students might be awarded more scholarship money. Whatever your financial situation is, remember that all of these options exist to help you complete your education.
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It helps .
February 28th, 2010 | #
this was a lot of help.
February 27th, 2010 | #
Great!
February 26th, 2010 | #
thank you! a lot of help!
February 26th, 2010 | #
Thanks for the info…it's getting harder to find funding and our state may not be helping much this year.
February 26th, 2010 | #
this was very helpful so thank you
February 26th, 2010 | #
its really easy to understand
February 26th, 2010 | #
Thanks so much for the info on financial aid. Was a great help!
February 24th, 2010 | #
This is a great way to release stress from money problems!
February 24th, 2010 | #
I agree
February 23rd, 2010 | #
this has helped me so much in realizing how applying for scholarships are so important as well as financial aid, I want to be a doctor so I know my college and medical school loans are going to be really big .
February 24th, 2010 | #
This is a great informational article, I've learned more about financial aid in this article alone than I've found anywhere else.
February 24th, 2010 | #
It is a lovely article but I wish it was more informative on singing loans alone without parents. My parents have horrible credit, bankruptcy and refuse to sign loans.
February 23rd, 2010 | #
thanks
February 23rd, 2010 | #
great article
February 23rd, 2010 | #
yes i agree. this was very helpful!
thank you!
February 23rd, 2010 | #
this article assisted me with knowing the importance of all three forms of financial aid.
February 23rd, 2010 | #
thank you, this was very helpful. many of my questions were answered.
February 22nd, 2010 | #
Thanks! This has taught me about the three types of financial aid and can be very beneficial to me.
February 22nd, 2010 | #
Good info
February 22nd, 2010 | #
this helped thanks
February 22nd, 2010 | #
good info.
February 22nd, 2010 | #
Filed FAFSA so waiting for the $
February 22nd, 2010 | #
This helped me find money for school that I didn't even know that I qullifide for.
February 22nd, 2010 | #
very helpful and easy to understand.
February 21st, 2010 | #
Completed the FASFA but don't think I qualify for any grant money. Guess we will have to borrow like my sister did.
February 21st, 2010 | #
FAFSA helped e out
February 21st, 2010 | #
This helped a lot! Thanks
February 20th, 2010 | #
these are the best ways to always look for college info. thanks
February 20th, 2010 | #
I’m glad I took the time to read all this information, because now I have better knowledge of what to do.
February 20th, 2010 | #
it was a greate info it to a little lon but it work
February 19th, 2010 | #
the fafsa was way easy to fill out and really helped me
February 19th, 2010 | #
helpful information … thanks
February 19th, 2010 | #
great info..
February 19th, 2010 | #
Thanks for the info it was very informative.
February 18th, 2010 | #
i just finished filing my FAFSA and i hope to get something back but i know it wont be much. Thank god for student private loans.
February 17th, 2010 | #
This article helped me understand the whole process and made it easy for me to fill out the forms.
February 16th, 2010 | #
Thanks for the info!
February 16th, 2010 | #
Great article. Thanks
February 15th, 2010 | #
thanks
February 15th, 2010 | #
helpful
February 15th, 2010 | #
thank you
February 15th, 2010 | #
this article assisted me with knowing the importance of all three forms of financial aid.
February 15th, 2010 | #
Thanks. Very helpful!
February 15th, 2010 | #
This article had some very interesting information & was useful.
Thank you-
February 14th, 2010 | #
Thanks a ton for the info~!
February 14th, 2010 | #
thanks
February 14th, 2010 | #
thank you so much for the information.
February 13th, 2010 | #
That picture in the corner is so cute!
February 13th, 2010 | #
It was good.
February 12th, 2010 | #
very helpful!
February 11th, 2010 | #
Great information to share!
February 11th, 2010 | #
yea i’m glad I got mine in already!! Very helpful info.
February 11th, 2010 | #
This year’s FAFSA was so much easier than last year. Nice article, it should be very helpful for those just starting to look at colleges.
February 11th, 2010 | #
Filing out the FAFSA sressed me out. But at least I know that it will help some with my education.
February 11th, 2010 | #
I have had alot great help with filling out the FAFSA. I think getting pell grants are the best way to go for me and scholarships.
February 11th, 2010 | #
I have work study and honestly it doesn’t make too much of a difference for me because with my student worker job, if I didn’t have work study the college would be paying me exactly the same wage, but it is an important thing for student worker jobs that require work study so at least I know I’m eligible if I’m ever looking for a new one.
February 10th, 2010 | #
wow…money for college could really stress you out…
February 10th, 2010 | #
This was a great help for me especially since i am a first time college student. It help me a lot by letting me learn the differences between all the kinds of financial help there is.Thank you…
February 10th, 2010 | #
this is very helpful info
February 10th, 2010 | #
Worrying about college is stressful but knowing I’m not alone is helpful
February 10th, 2010 | #
this is very useful
February 10th, 2010 | #
This information is sooo helpful. Thank you
February 10th, 2010 | #
Thank you for putting this information out there! This page is full of helpful information!
February 9th, 2010 | #
Thank you for putting this information out there! Hopefully it will help us all pay for college
February 9th, 2010 | #
I agree, I’ve been worrying about how I am going to pay for college as well. Hopefully this information will help!
February 9th, 2010 | #
very stressful situation with finicial aid, this definitely helped!
February 9th, 2010 | #
thank you
February 9th, 2010 | #
The whole ‘money’ issue is just plain scary! I am glad I read this info, even though it’s really not pleasant to think about…..
February 9th, 2010 | #
these options are a great way to help pay, I’m hoping FAFSA comes through for me
February 8th, 2010 | #
This was extremely informative! Thanks!
February 8th, 2010 | #
Thank You for the information….It was a big help, because I did not like the idea of having to pay back college loans
February 8th, 2010 | #
Thank You for this information….It was a great help, because I did not like the idea of paying back loans
February 8th, 2010 | #
GREAT INFO…. THANKS
February 8th, 2010 | #
VERY HELPFUL…THANKS.
February 8th, 2010 | #
Thanks for the insightful information!!
February 8th, 2010 | #
Wow. This information was really helpful! Thank you sooo much!!!
February 8th, 2010 | #
Times are hard thank goodness for chances to win a scholarship
February 8th, 2010 | #
Thanks that really helped i was just asking about loans
February 7th, 2010 | #
great background info
February 7th, 2010 | #
Wow, this will really help. I need all the financial aid I can get.
February 6th, 2010 | #
Such a necessity.
February 6th, 2010 | #
I wished i could be one of you!
February 6th, 2010 | #
Helpful info..thanks
February 6th, 2010 | #
Very good info and soo much you can do to pay for college
February 5th, 2010 | #
Thanks, this information helped me understand how to pay for college.
February 5th, 2010 | #
Thank you for this information! This will help me finacially for college.
February 5th, 2010 | #
thanks. good information that i will be able to use in the future.
February 4th, 2010 | #
thanks you alot this really helped
February 4th, 2010 | #
Yes I have been worrying a lot about how to pay for college and it is very expensive. so thanks for the heads up about FASFA.
February 4th, 2010 | #
Thanks for the info. It helped.
February 4th, 2010 | #
As a return college student I found this information helpful. Most of the time when you are applying for financial aid you really don’t know all of your options.the choses that are available. as a student your main goal is to improve your life and be an asset not a liability. you don’t want to feel in making this decision this would be a bad decision, but a good decision.
February 3rd, 2010 | #
this information is very useful, i just had a senior meeting yesterday talking about all this… thank you!
February 3rd, 2010 | #
very helpful
February 3rd, 2010 | #
This will help a lot, thanks
February 3rd, 2010 | #
Tghis process is daunting. A full time job, but I feel it will be worth it once all the final numbers are in.
February 3rd, 2010 | #
There are many opportunities for financial aid. This information really helps.
February 3rd, 2010 | #
This information was very helpfulI am glad to know I have more options.
February 3rd, 2010 | #
thanks! all of this infomation is essential to help reduce college tuition
February 2nd, 2010 | #
This was very helpful; my school’s guidance department does not offer too much information in regards to financial aid
February 2nd, 2010 | #
This is very helpful; my school’s guidance department does not offer too much information in regards to financial aid
February 2nd, 2010 | #
I just completed the FAFSA but literally read this before i completed it. this actually is very helpful and taught me a couple of things that i never knew.
February 2nd, 2010 | #
Thanks! We can all use this kind of info. College is expensive!
February 2nd, 2010 | #
This is comforting information even though human nature causes us to still worry but at least we have an assurance of how to get help…THANX
February 2nd, 2010 | #
I have applied for so many scholarships that I lost count. Unlike a lot of students my college doesn’t offer me FAFSA. And it’s starting to get hard coming up with ways to pay for college, books, etc. I really, really hope that I get at least one scholarship from Scholarshipoints.com
February 2nd, 2010 | #
Best Friends don’t get you through college. FAFSA does.
February 2nd, 2010 | #
FAFSA is my bestfriend at this point.
February 2nd, 2010 | #
Thanks. I have been stressing out about finances and how to pay for college. This is helpful.
February 2nd, 2010 | #
Thanks for the information. You can never know too much about paying for college. It is expensive!
February 2nd, 2010 | #
Thanks for the information. You can never know too much about paying for college. It can be confusing!
February 2nd, 2010 | #
Wonderful, helpful information. Thank you!
February 2nd, 2010 | #
thanks, this imformation help me to get the idea for reduce money from college.
February 2nd, 2010 | #
Great Info! Thanks!
February 2nd, 2010 | #
great information!! thanks!!
February 2nd, 2010 | #
Thank you for this very useful information.
February 2nd, 2010 | #
I wish that I had not gone to private school and gotten loaded down with loans.
February 2nd, 2010 | #
Good information, funding college is truly a puzzle
February 2nd, 2010 | #
FAFSA loan’s has made easy for me an 50 yr old to go back to school
February 2nd, 2010 | #
THANK YOU FOR SUCH GREAT INFORMATION!
February 2nd, 2010 | #
Financial aid and scholarships… Way to go
February 1st, 2010 | #
Completing the FASFA is necessary and an easy task at that. THANKS for the info!
February 1st, 2010 | #
This is a lot of helpful information. I now know what is useful to me in my situation.
February 1st, 2010 | #
I’m just starting the process of researching financial aid and this article provided me with valuable information on options available to me.
February 1st, 2010 | #
I’m just starting the process of researching financial aid and this information helped me understand the options available to me.
February 1st, 2010 | #
MONEY is a big issue and all of us will take any help we can get :]
February 1st, 2010 | #
Great info. I learned some new and important thing.
February 1st, 2010 | #
What of people outside us who are non us citizens,how do they get a college grant?
February 1st, 2010 | #
This really helps because I was absolutely confused about how Im going to pay for college.
February 1st, 2010 | #
Yay! Thank you!
January 31st, 2010 | #
Thanks! This was very helpful! :0)
January 31st, 2010 | #
Great info
January 31st, 2010 | #
I love this info!I was so spent with the financail aid process and i was totally stresssing!
January 30th, 2010 | #
Great Info.! this is my main worry about college
January 30th, 2010 | #
A lot of info. I am still nervous about the whole thing:-( I need scholarships and grants….
January 30th, 2010 | #
A lot of info. I am still nerves, but this is great info.
January 30th, 2010 | #
grants and work-study is the way to go
January 30th, 2010 | #
FAFSA takes a little patience to do and you will want your parents next to you for some questions.
January 30th, 2010 | #
I really hope that I can get several scholarships because then I will not have to worry about debt and paying people back and I would really like to go to a private college so a scholarship would be reaalllly helpful to me!
January 29th, 2010 | #
thanks for the information, it is nice to know.
January 29th, 2010 | #
wow! useful information! Thanks!
January 29th, 2010 | #
it was very helpful information
January 29th, 2010 | #
very helpful information
January 29th, 2010 | #
very helpful info
January 29th, 2010 | #
great Info… I prefer scholarship
January 29th, 2010 | #
this is very useful
January 28th, 2010 | #
this information is very useful
January 28th, 2010 | #
Thank for the information I pass it on to my friends
January 28th, 2010 | #
Great info.
January 28th, 2010 | #
Wow, this information was very helpful! Thank you!
January 28th, 2010 | #
Thank you i appreciate the information that is provided for me to decide on how i should pay for college.
January 28th, 2010 | #
Thanks for the helpful information!
January 28th, 2010 | #
wow. thanks for the information, I am going to apply for financial aid
January 28th, 2010 | #
It all seems like by our kids get into college its going to cost a fortune.
January 28th, 2010 | #
what a lot to think about. It really is a puzzle which I think you can help me solve
January 28th, 2010 | #
that you alot this really helped
January 28th, 2010 | #
this info really helped me. thank you alot
January 28th, 2010 | #
I think this page is great direct information for those of us who are lost in the financial aspects of applying for college. Thanks!
January 27th, 2010 | #
Thanks fo da info bruh. Invaluable
January 27th, 2010 | #
Thank you for the information! it clearly helps me identify what is the free money, the money that i have to work for and the money that i should try to avoid if possible!
January 27th, 2010 | #
thank you so much for the information.
January 27th, 2010 | #
These options are a great way to reduce debt and rid the cost of an education.
January 27th, 2010 | #
Thank you for this information! I have been worrying about how to pay for college. It’s mentally draining thinking about it.
January 27th, 2010 | #