FAFSA! (sm)
Posted By: AnnieM!AnnieM! on 2007-11-27
In Reply to: Anyone out there with a college kid on a full scholarship, out of state, not playing sports???sm - Inquiring mom
Free Application for Federal Student Aid:
http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/
Filling the FAFSA form out is THE most important thing you can do for you and your student. EVERYONE with a college-bound student needs to fill out this form to receive any aid, and I believe many scholarships use the FAFSA as a guideline.
I went to a college info meeting at my son's school the beginning of his senior year. The guidance counselor stressed the importance of this form. He said for the students to apply to any school they desire, regardless of cost, because each one varies in their financial aid package. You may get more from Harvard than you would from your state univ.
My son, much to my chagrin, did not want to go to an in-state school, but did end up at an out-of-state state univ. because they offered him more than half the total cost of tuition/room/board. This aid consisted of considerable grants (no repayment), scholarships (no repayment, offered by the university), and federal loans (repayment needed, but one was subsidized so no interest accrues while he is still a student). The federal loans are in my son's name and six months after graduating he will have to begin repayment.
I had about one full year's worth of an average college tuition saved up for my son by the time he graduated from high school. I kept all of it in long-term CDs as college fast approached, and for his freshman year and I took out a federal PLUS loan, keeping that saved money earning interest for one more year before needing it. That PLUS loan is the only loan I will take out for his education, the rest is on him - as it should be. He is now in his junior year and there is more than half of that original savings left. Every year he gets more and more aid because I have less and less! Because of our financial status, my son was eligible to apply for a work/study job. He has had the same job since a Freshman, he gets a raise every year, and he even got a scholarship from that job! I have told my son his work/study money is his spending money while a school. It's been working out great and I've never sent him a cent.
Of note, my son did receive some sports scholarships, payable directly to the univ., which took away the same amount in financial aid that the school would have awarded, so sports scholarships did him no good. He made out the best with scholarships/grants awarded from his univ that we didn't even apply for, but were based on the FAFSA form. Our own state gives us a check every year for $300 due to financial need - we never applied for that, they got the info from the FAFSA form.
I refuse to borrow against my house, I refuse to take out more than one loan, and I refuse to co-sign a loan for my son (or anyone). I am a single mom with no other financial help other than my income, and you all know we don't make a heck of a lot as MTs! I told my son in his junior year of high school "I have X amount of money for college and it's all yours. The rest is up to you to pay." College tuition should never put the parent(s) in financial jeopardy. You just do what you safely can.
There are a bazillion scholarships/grants out there. Your daughter's guidance office should be of enormous help in sorting through them, helping fulfill the requirements, writing the essays, etc.
If not already, push your daughter to work as much as she can starting RIGHT NOW. She should be working her butt off in the summers working more than one job if need be. That will show you how bad she wants to go away - or not! She can bank that money in a safe, interest-bearing account like a CD. Even if she just earns $100 in interest in the next two years, there's a book, or a course fee, or two application fees to a college.
Good luck! You all can do it!
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Thanks for your posts...yes FAFSA gives some
assistance but not enough, she still needs like $5000 for each semester (this is an Ohio public university)....education sure has gotten expensive, but you have to have it!!! Good Luck DW, stay in school,,if you can find a cosigner, Sallie Mae has what they call a Tuition Answer Loan, (you still need a cosigner) but the check is sent directly to you and the process really isn't bad...but the PROBLEM is getting a cosigner!!!!
Don't forget to fill out FAFSA
Web site:
http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/
The info you fill out is used by the school, your state, and the US government to award financial aid in the form of grants, gov't loans (which would be in your daughter's name), and scholarships.
Filling out the FAFSA is how I'm spending my day today, once I stop procrastinating. It's a PITA but worth it.
Good Luck!
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