College

Inga - posted on 01/23/2009

Get in touch with your HS guidance office, I just got information on an upcoming FAFSA meeting in February at ours. The counselors will guide you with local options as well.

Good luck!

Lori - posted on 01/17/2009

First, I applaud you for WANTING to pay for your son's college education - that's more than alot of kids get!



You know what I've found out? Worrying about it doean't make it better, or make it go away. Form a plan to deal - I know, I know, far easier said than done!!! It sounds like you are just beginning to gather information about these expense. I can tell you that there is ALOT of help available - from financial aid, to scholarships, to working internships. Has he applied to the community colleges near you yet? If not, encourage him to step up and get that application process under way - he'll find (as will you) that there will be people along the way in the administration and admissions departments to help him (and you!) with this!!



My daughter will be going to school in the fall of '09 as well. Financial aid is not an option for her, but she is applying for every scholarship known to man to try to get those expenses down!! Good luck to you - and your son!

Sherie - posted on 01/17/2009

Make the process a team effort. Many parents are unable to fund a college on their own, but a great resource is the student. I paid for my tuition myself, and will probably be paying student loans for a long time. Your son is fortunate to have your support, but remember that he can participate as well. He can work part time and summers to help pay what you and the grants and scholarships will not cover. Your income will play a large role in how much funding he will receive from other sources. Unfortunately, the more you make, the less funding he will qualify for. He is smart to attend community college first. He can get many of the same courses for much less money. Some four year schools will even do transfer contracts through the community colleges, ensuring a slot when it is time to transfer. Congratulations on having a son who has chosen to continue his education!

Jackie - posted on 01/15/2009

I do not mean to put a damper on the scholarship ideas... but my daughter has always been an A student and she applied for about eight scholarships. She was granted one. It was a text book grant for $120... it paid for one book.
I am sorry to be such a 'downer'---but I hate for you to get your hopes up and then be disappointed. I am not sure what the success rate on the loan situation is... Good Luck!

Pati - posted on 01/13/2009

I am a little stressed on that one myself, but we applied for federal and state through online forms, now we are waiting for the acceptance letters before we can apply for any college grant or scholarships. There are also grants that your kid can earn, my daughter just filled out a survey for a chance to win 1,000. Search online for student financial aid.

Francyn - posted on 01/01/2009

I have one in college and one on the way. I'm very well versed in college scholarships and loans. First thing to do - as of TODAY (1/1/09) is to fill out the fafsa.ed.gov. Your son can get a loan in his name, and you can get a student loan in your name. His doesn't need to be paid back until after he finishes school. Yours begins after it has been dispersed but the payments are much lower than paying tuition straight out and the interest is low. Also visit www.fastweb.com to look at scholarships he can apply for. SOme of them are really stupid (take a picture of your tennis shoe), but some are worth while. Local groups like Kiwanis, Lions etc also have scholarships. Essays are often required. I used to work for our local chamber and we offered scholarships but no students were willing to write a 1 page essay to apply, so we discontinued the program.

Alice - posted on 12/18/2008

Check out the financial aid department at the college. They should have several options available.

Loma - posted on 12/17/2008

The first thing you need to do is make sure he is signed up for selective service...he can not obtain any kind of financial aid other wise. The next thing you need to do is go to http://www.fafsa.ed.gov and follow the instruction of signing him up for financial aid. He can not qualify for anything without doing that. I am a single mother who is presently in school her self and unemployed and I have been actively seeking employment for the past year and I am terrified about not having the money to pay for his college education...so I understand where you are coming from...luckily I have a friend who does financial aid counseling for a living and she has helped alot, with programs like pell grant I know that my son has an opportunity to attend community college. It is available for anyone, the only draw backs are that if you make too much money it could disqualify him from a lot of the government programs. Talk to a guidance counselor from his high school or call your local financial aid office at the community college he is planning to attend either office should be more than willing to give you all the information and help you need. Lastly, make sure he has taken the ACT...the higher he scores the better chance of scholarships. Good luck and Hang in there.

Kim - posted on 12/07/2008

Hey Diane, I have 3 children.....25, 17 & 15. We were really surprised to find out once our girls started applying to schools just how much they could get in scholarships and grants....then what's more is most schools also offer work study (the kids work for the school and a portion of their earnings goes toward their tuition).....one guidance counselor once told me money should be the last consideration because there really is a lot of funding options out there.

Best wishes!!!!!