Financial aid is money to pay for college from sources other than your savings or your family’s contribution. It can come in many forms and is available to students who demonstrate financial need or to those who just want to pay for college on their own.
For most college students, they would not be able to go to college without financial aid. And for many parents, financial aid is the lifesaver that helps give their kids a proper education.
» Read more: Facts About Financial Aid
The U.S. federal government provides a limited amount of financial aid every year. The exact amount is set by legislation and the primary qualification is for a student to demonstrate actual financial need. Unfortunately, a lot of eligible students don’t actually get any help paying for tuition.
With school costs constantly rising at record speeds, there is never enough for everyone regardless of how much extra financial aid is voted into the system every year. Since not everyone who needs the money can have the amount promised, it all comes down to who asks first and follows all of the directions.
Yesterday I was in an online conversation where a student started out asking, “Can you help me rank these schools in terms of financial aid…” The first response the student received was, “It is impossible – and totally meaningless – to “rank [schools] in terms of aid…”
This is absolutely and totally wrong! I don’t know why it shocks me when I see responses like this. Maybe I just don’t want to believe that the old wive’s tales and bad information are as pervasive as they are.
» Read more: Compare Financial Aid – Don’t Be Blind About Colleges