Page 327 - Keys to College Success

KEY 11.5 Understand federal loan and grant programs.

GRANTS LOANS

■ Pell. Need-based, available to undergraduates with no other degrees. ■ Stafford. For students enrolled at least half-time. In 2010–2011,
In 2010–2011, approximately 9.1 million undergraduates received approximately 10.3 million students received Stafford Loans.
Pell Grants. ■ Perkins. For those with exceptional financial need.
■ Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity (FSEOG). ■ PLUS. Available to students claimed as dependents by their parents.
Need-based, only available at participating schools.
■ Work-study. Need-based, pays an hourly wage for selected jobs.
Sources: “Student Aid on the Web.” U.S. Department of Education, January 31, 2012. From http://studentaid.ed.gov/PORTALSWebApp/students/english/index.jsp;
and College Board Advocacy and Policy Center. Trends in Student Aid 2011. The College Board, New York, NY, 2011, p. 3.

Looking for aid
First you will need to find out what aid is available. Here are four actions to take in
your quest: 10
■ Ask, ask, ask. Visit the financial aid office regularly. Ask what you are eligible for.
Alert the office to any change in your financial situation. Search libraries and the
Web, including your school’s website, for information on everything that is possible.
■ Seek government aid. Fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
form electronically. The form can be found through your college’s financial aid
office, the FAFSA website (www.fafsa.ed.gov), or on the U.S. Department of Edu-
cation’s website (www.ed.gov/finaid.html). You will create a personal portfolio,
called MyFSA, where you will enter and store information including your FAFSA
form. The U.S. Department of Education has an online tool called FAFSA Fore-
caster to help you estimate how much aid you qualify for. You will need to reap-
ply every year for federal aid.
■ Seek private aid. Thoroughly investigate what you may be eligible for. Search libraries
and your school’s website, go through books that list scholarships and grants, talk
11 with a financial aid advisor on your campus, and check scholarship search sites such
as Scholarships.com and Fastweb.com. Know details that may help you identify
CHAPTER sources available to you (you or your family’s military status, ethnic background,
membership in organizations, religious affiliation, and so on). However, be wary
of private loans, which can have higher interest rates than federal loans, less flex-
ible terms of repayment, and tougher consequences for late payments or defaults.
■ Consider a range of options. Stay open to risks that are not your first choice but
may prove productive. For example, transferring to a less expensive school may
provide you with a comparable education while helping you to minimize debt.
Keep an open mind.

Applying for aid
First of all, apply. And apply by the deadline, or even better, early. The earlier you com-
plete the process, the greater your chances of being considered for financial aid, espe-
cially when you are competing for part of a limited pool of funds. Here are some
additional tips from financial aid experts Arlina DeNardo and Carolyn Lindley of
Northwestern University: 11
■ Know what applications you need to fill out. All colleges require FAFSA, but some
also require a form called the CSS/Financial Aid Profile (see Student.collegeboard.org).
■ Note the difference between merit-based and need-based aid. While some aid is
awarded based on financial need, other aid is merit based, linked to specifics such
as academic performance, a particular major, or ethnic origin.

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