http://rockcenter.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/07/19/12842350-investigation-reveals-claims-of-unmanageable-debt-by-for-profit-college-students?lite
By Alison O'Brien
Rock Center
When Ashley Wood was looking for colleges, she knew she needed a school that would allow her to work during the day and take classes at night. She clicked on an ad for the Art Institute of Las Vegas and asked for more information. Within hours, she got a call from an admissions counselor.
“Everything they told me was, sounded incredible. They told me it was the top-notch school, that it had the best accreditation and that I would fit perfectly there. They really persuaded my mom and I that it was the perfect school for me,” said Wood in an interview airing Thursday, July 19 at 10 p.m.ET/9 p.m. CT on NBC’s Rock Center with Brian Williams.
The next day, she visited the campus. She was admitted and attended her first class that night. Wood, who studied graphic design, said that admissions counselors never asked her for a high school diploma or for a portfolio of her work. She says the school’s staff helped her apply for financial aid, something she needed to attend school. She initially ended up with $68,000 in student loans. Before she would finish her studies, Wood would take out two additional loans for Art Institute programs abroad. Each loan was $14,000 and covered her tuition, travel and living expenses abroad. Wood says she chose to study abroad and felt no pressure from the school to do so.
After graduating, Wood did find a job as a graphic design artist, but paying off her loans has been more difficult than she imagined. Six years after enrolling, the now 23-year-old Wood has $145,000 in student loan debt with interest rates as high as 12 percent.
“I honestly believe I would have to pay $2,000, $3,000 a month to get ahead on this loan. If I pay them what they’re asking, my loan literally will never be paid off,” she said.
Wood’s story of being saddled with student debt is not unique. Nationwide, student loan debt has ballooned to more than $1 trillion. It’s a problem so big that it’s drawing scrutiny at colleges across the country, but nowhere has it been as intense as at schools like the one Wood attended, for-profit colleges.
For-profit colleges appeal to people because they offer classes both during the day and at night, online and on-campus. They offer specialized fields of study like culinary arts or fashion design as well as doctorate programs in law and psychology. Commercials for the schools tout their successful graduates from business leaders to Pulitzer Prize winners and Top Chef contestants.
For-profit colleges are a $30 billion a year industry with as much as 90 percent of its revenue coming from student loans and grants, according to the Government Accountability Office (GAO). They are often backed or owned by publicly traded companies like Goldman Sachs, which owns 40 percent of Education Management Corporation (EDMC), Washington Post Company, owner of Kaplan University, and Apollo Group, owner of the University of Phoenix which has sponsored NBC's Education Nation.
Controversy has ensued over whether the missions of for-profit schools are to educate or to turn a profit for their shareholders. The schools say both; critics disagree.
“The for-profit schools, because of their business model, target low-income people, because the lower your income, the more Pell Grants you get and the more student loan you’re eligible for,” said Senator Tom Harkin, D-Ia., chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. “So it’s in your business interest to go after those poor students.”
Senator Harkin, who has spent three years investigating the industry, argues that despite the successes the schools may have had, students at for-profit schools take out more student loans, default more often and have a higher rate of unemployment than students at traditional colleges. A December 2011 report by the GAO confirmed his findings.
Though some colleges dispute the numbers, the Department of Education says that students at for-profit colleges represent about 10 percent of the nation’s college enrollment. They take out about a quarter of all student loans and grants and of all the students across the country who default on their loans, nearly half come from for-profit colleges. And when students default, it is taxpayers who pick up the tab.
Some for-profit executives, as well as an industry trade group, acknowledge that their students are more likely to default, but they say it’s because their schools serve a low-income population that is underserved by traditional colleges. They also say that many students over-borrow by taking out loans to cover things beyond their tuition. For example, students will take loans out to cover their living expenses. That is money that the schools never see.
In an interview with Rock Center, Bonnie Campbell, a spokesperson for EDMC, the second-largest company in the for-profit industry and owner of the Art Institute Wood attended, defended the company and the industry against criticism regarding its student population. Campbell is a former attorney general for the state of Iowa and a former member of the state’s board of regents that oversees its education system.
She said, “Do you think it’s appropriate to take a huge block of low-income people and ignore them, say to them, ‘Your dream to get an education and a good job really isn’t important to anybody?’ It is.”
EDMC officials say the schools provide financial aid counseling to try to keep students from borrowing more money than they need for tuition and other school-related expenses, but it is the students who are ultimately responsible for determining the amount of funds they wish to borrow. The company says that regulations prohibit them from doing anything to control or prevent this over-borrowing. EDMC and others in the for-profit industry say they are advocating to change those regulations.
Campbell went on to say that 82 percent of EDMC graduates find jobs in their field and giving students a good education is in the company’s best interest.
“If you're not educating students properly, if you're not placing them in jobs, you won't make a profit,” Campbell said.
But some former recruiters for EDMC and its schools paint a picture of a school consumed less by student success and more by profit.
“The students are just a conduit for federal money,” said Suzanne Lawrence, a former recruiter for EDMC.
Lawrence recruited students for six months and said that her job was to sign up as many students as possible and send them directly to the financial aid office.
“They’re simply siphoning money from the taxpayers and from the federal government, siphoning them through these students and on the way ruining these students’ credit, ruining their lives and filtering that money straight into their stockholders’ pockets,” Lawrence said.
Kathleen Bittel, another former recruiter at EDMC, said she too was told to boost the bottom line by recruiting students, regardless of their qualifications. She says she felt like a telemarketer when she worked for the company.
“We called and called and called…phone numbers all day long, hoping for someone to pick up the phone and talk with us,” she said.
EDMC is currently the subject of an $11 billion false claims act lawsuit by the Department of Justice along with eleven states. The suit alleges that, from 2003 to 2009, EDMC paid its recruiters solely on a per student basis, which was in violation of the Safe Harbor regulation.
"Paying people a salary is legal", said Eric Jaso, a former deputy general counsel for the Department of Education who helped draft the Safe Harbor regulation that is the center of the lawsuit. "You can adjust a salary for different factors, quality of work. You can promote people. However, you cannot adjust that salary solely on the basis of how many people they recruit."
Paying recruiters solely on a per-student basis is an allegation EDMC strongly denies.
“At all times now and then, EDMC was in compliance,” Campbell said. She says that there are other quality factors that determine a recruiters pay – including professionalism and work ethic - and that the former recruiters we spoke with were not in a position to know how compensation was ultimately determined.
"Literally impossible to determine someone's compensation without a consideration of those factors," Campbell said. She added that the $11 billion figure, which the government says represents the amount of federal funds EDMC obtained from 2003 – 2009, is patently absurd and was put in the lawsuit for the headline.
Friday, July 20, 2012
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
America's Schools 1950's vs Today
Infographic: America’s Schools in the 1950s vs. Today
The surprising ways public education has changed over the last 62 years.
Take a look back in history with the TakePart infographic that compares public education in the 1950s to public education today.
Find out how much a teacher made in 1950 and which children's books were on the bestseller list. Check out what education milestone changed the course of history and what classroom technologies were considered innovative 62 years ago. A lot has changed since 1950, but America's public education system has a long way to go. One way each of us can make an impact is by donating to a classroom project through DonorsChoose.org.
It’s Okay for Sex Offenders to Live Near Schools, Says the ACLU.
The ACLU says a Rhode Island law keeping sex offenders from living near schools is ‘potentially more, rather than less, harmful to public safety.’
By Jenny Inglee
The ACLU is ticked off about a Rhode Island law that bars sex offenders from living within 300 feet of schools. They believe the statute, meant to keep rapists away from the schoolyard, is unconstitutional. On Monday, the human rights organization filed a lawsuit on behalf of the three men this law immediately affects.
Two of the men, Dennis Gesmondi and Dallas Huard, have developmental disabilities and reside in a facility that offers mental health and substance abuse treatment. They've been there for three or more years, says the ACLU, and fear they will struggle to find another facility where they can live. The other plaintiff is George Madancy, a vet with medical problems, who was convicted of possessing child pornography.
The ACLU warns that each of these men risk homelessness if this law is enforced. The Providence Police Department notified the three men last month that if they didn't move within 30 days, they would risk arrest and being slammed with felony charges for violating the Rhode Island statute.
More: 'Teached' Film Series Cracks Open L.A.'s School-to-Prison Pipeline
Katherine Godin, the volunteer attorney for the ACLU who filed the lawsuit, told TakePart the main issue is that potential evictions "constitute an ex post facto law because all three of the gentlemen were convicted of their sex crime before this law went into effect." The ACLU also states in their press release that the lawsuit was filed because the law is vague, overbroad, and confusing in its way of determining how to measure the distance between a school and a residence.
The ACLU believes the issue is much bigger than whether these three men will have to move or not. Godin explains that many studies have shown that laws meant to prevent sex offenders from living near schools "are completely ineffective and sometimes more harmful because the effect is to create more homelessness for these gentlemen. Also, it's harder to keep track of them and to protect the community if you don't know where they're living."
"If you're looking at it in terms of who's offending and how they meet their victims," Godin says, "it's really not done through a school. It's not the guy watching the playground or just swiping a kid when he or she leaves the school. It's about creating a relationship with another adult, and then abusing that relationship to get to their children. So, in terms of public policy, it's really not protecting anyone."
Statistics show that 90 percent of child sex abuse victims know their predators. Godin says that in terms of what parents and teachers should do, it comes down to educating their kids about "good touch, bad touch" and letting their children know "they should not be in any way fearful of reporting anything that they find suspicious or inappropriate with another adult."
How do you feel about laws meant to keep sex offenders from living near your kids' school? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
Silent No More: Young Survivor Creates a Safe Haven for Sexually Abused Kids
'Teached' Film Series Cracks Open L.A.'s School-to-Prison Pipeline
Jenny is the Education Editor at TakePart. She has been writing for TakePart since 2009 and previously worked in film and television development. She has taught English in Vietnam and tutors homeless children in Los Angeles. Email Jenny | @jennyinglee | TakePart.com
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Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Beware Veterans!
A recent episode of the PBS show FRONTLINE investigates for-profit colleges that are now targeting veterans just to get their GI Bill funds. Beware of the sales pitch.
Recruiters' Sales Pitches to Vets
To get a sense of what it's like to be on the receiving end of a call from a for-profit admissions rep, listen to these late 2008/early 2009 call excerpts from Westwood College recruiters acquired by FRONTLINE. They offer examples the kinds of pitches that are made to active-duty and recently retired service members
Read more: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/educating-sergeant-pantzke/recruiters-sales-pitch/#ixzz1n8ZnkW8J
Recruiters' Sales Pitches to Vets
To get a sense of what it's like to be on the receiving end of a call from a for-profit admissions rep, listen to these late 2008/early 2009 call excerpts from Westwood College recruiters acquired by FRONTLINE. They offer examples the kinds of pitches that are made to active-duty and recently retired service members
Read more: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/educating-sergeant-pantzke/recruiters-sales-pitch/#ixzz1n8ZnkW8J
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Vanguard Scholarship
The Vanguard Minority Scholarship
The Vanguard Minority Scholarship Program provides merit-based scholarships of up to $10,000 to students entering their junior or senior year of college during the 2012 school year. The program's goal is to remove financial barriers for minority students who demonstrate academic excellence and leadership potential. Students must be pursuing studies in business, finance, economics, or accounting. Scholarship funds can be used for tuition, fees, books and supplies.
Since introducing this program in 2004, Vanguard has awarded approximately $350,000 to deserving college students.
Vanguard, headquartered in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, is one of the world's largest investment management companies and a leading provider of employer-sponsored retirement plans. Vanguard manages nearly $1.6 trillion in U.S. mutual fund assets (as of February 2011). Vanguard offers more than 170 funds to U.S. investors plus additional funds in non-U.S. markets.
For further information about career opportunities at Vanguard, students may visit vanguard.com/careers.
This scholarship program is administered by Scholarship Management Services, a division of Scholarship America. Scholarship Management Services is the nation's largest designer and manager of scholarship and tuition reimbursement programs for corporations, foundations, associations and individuals.
The program is closed at this time. You may return to this site in mid-August 2012 to access the program guidelines and application form for the 2013 program.
http://sms.scholarshipamerica.org/vanguard/guidelines.pdf
The Vanguard Minority Scholarship Program provides merit-based scholarships of up to $10,000 to students entering their junior or senior year of college during the 2012 school year. The program's goal is to remove financial barriers for minority students who demonstrate academic excellence and leadership potential. Students must be pursuing studies in business, finance, economics, or accounting. Scholarship funds can be used for tuition, fees, books and supplies.
Since introducing this program in 2004, Vanguard has awarded approximately $350,000 to deserving college students.
Vanguard, headquartered in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, is one of the world's largest investment management companies and a leading provider of employer-sponsored retirement plans. Vanguard manages nearly $1.6 trillion in U.S. mutual fund assets (as of February 2011). Vanguard offers more than 170 funds to U.S. investors plus additional funds in non-U.S. markets.
For further information about career opportunities at Vanguard, students may visit vanguard.com/careers.
This scholarship program is administered by Scholarship Management Services, a division of Scholarship America. Scholarship Management Services is the nation's largest designer and manager of scholarship and tuition reimbursement programs for corporations, foundations, associations and individuals.
The program is closed at this time. You may return to this site in mid-August 2012 to access the program guidelines and application form for the 2013 program.
http://sms.scholarshipamerica.org/vanguard/guidelines.pdf
It's FAFSA time..and time to apply for scholarships
When you file your taxes you should remember to file you 2012-13 FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Aid. This will cover classes from July 2012 thru June 2013.
Academic Scholarship Opportunities
As previously mentioned, academic scholarships all come with their own requirements regarding academic performance and extracurricular involvement. Merit scholarships can sometimes include a community service requirement, or demonstrated leadership potential. This may be based on your involvement in school sports or politics, for example. If you were the quarterback of the football team or captain of your basketball or gymnastics team as well as student class president, you may be more attractive to an organization that wants to bankroll the formal education of a future leader. In order to find the academic scholarship opportunities that are right for you, conduct a free college scholarship search on Scholarships.com. By completing a free profile, you will have access to scholarship information for a variety of awards for which your education and experience qualify you. Below is a list of just a few of the academic and other merit scholarships available in our database.
Bridgewater College President's Merit Award
Application Deadlines: Varies
Bridgewater College recognizes the academic achievements of high school seniors and transfer students through its ACE program. Each year, the College commits significant institutional resources for grants and scholarships to assist students. The Bridgewater College President's Merit Awards range from $11,000 up to full-tuition and are based on an applicant's academic performance in high school [...] More
EWNJ Graduate Merit Award Program
Application Deadlines: June 15, Annually
Executive Women of New Jersey Graduate Merit Award Program One of EWNJ's priorities is to provide encouragement and a strong foundation of leadership development for the next generation of female executives. To advance this goal, EWNJ established the Graduate Merit Award Program in 1986, a scholarship program to benefit women who reside in New Jersey and are pursuing graduate level degrees at [...] More
Furman University National Merit Scholarships
Application Deadlines: Varies
The National Merit Scholarships are renewable scholarships ranging from $1,000 to $2,000 depending on need, for National Merit finalists who indicate Furman as their first-choice college. For more information about scholarships at Furman University, please [...] More
Non-Academic College Scholarships
Scholarships Aren't Just for "A Students" Anymore
The traditional definition of scholarship generally includes such terms as "merit" and "need", but that definition doesn't tell the whole story. Often students are unaware of the many non-academic scholarships available and think they don't have much, if any, chance at winning scholarships if they haven't achieved excellent grades in high school. While I'm sure many scholarship providers do, in fact, prefer to invest in students who have already proven they thrive in an academic setting, that doesn't mean you have zero chance to find money for college without such qualifications. Sure, you probably stand a better chance at some free college cash if you do happen to belong to three or four clubs and boast a 4.0 cumulative GPA or ace the ACT or SAT, but these are not the only criteria by which scholarship money is awarded these days.
Naturally, there are the unusual scholarships like the famous scholarship for being left handed or the one where you make a suit or dress out of duct tape for your prom, but you probably already know of these, having read about them in almost every article written on scholarships over the last decade or so. In case you’re not familiar, though, the scholarship for lefties is only available to those planning to attend Juniata College in Huntington, Pennsylvania. The Duck Brand duct tape contest is actually a really cool scholarship contest that has no GPA requirements, offers a $2,500 grand prize and looks like a lot of fun—if you’re into wearing tape. But if you don’t like Pennsylvania or sticky residue, don’t despair! There are so many other non-academic scholarship awards out there and you or your child/student could very well qualify for several, or possibly even dozens, of them. Below are several types of scholarships that don’t necessarily favor the class brain.
Talent is the new brains
Can you draw? Dance? Sing? There are quite a few non-academic college scholarships available to the more creatively inclined that don’t necessarily require good grades. Some may have a minimum GPA, but often they are a very attainable 3.0 or thereabouts rather than the "4.0, top-of-your-class” variety. All manner of art scholarships exist, for nearly every art: drawing scholarships, singing auditions that could net a scholarship for the top performers, and even scholarships requesting a video as an entry.
Write your own ticket.
Essay scholarships could prove rewarding. You could pull down anywhere from $500 to $5,000 or more just for reading a book and writing an essay on it- some don’t even require reading the book! Most scholarships essay contests don’t have a GPA requirement, nor are they concerned with any of the other famous three-letter acronyms (ACT, SAT). As a matter of fact, the Scholarships.com Resolve To Evolve Scholarship doesn’t have any GPA, SAT or ACT requirements and you could win up to $3,000 with your scholarship essay . Even if you don’t take the top prize, you could win $2,000 or be one of five $1,000 winners! Conduct a free scholarship search at Scholarships.com to see if you qualify.
Apply for an "Area of Study" Scholarship
There are so many scholarships out there for students interested in pursuing a particular major, from Art to Technology. Sure, it wouldn’t hurt to have a perfect 4.0, but you still may have a chance at thousands of dollars in free financial assistance, or maybe even a full-ride. For example, Scholarships.com awards 13 different $1,000 Area of Study College Scholarships each year, with a 250-350 word essay as the only required material. Give it your best effort—make a case to the scholarship provider and show them why you are the best candidate and can do great things in your chosen field.
Employers may pay more than just your salary
Often, a scholarship will be available exclusively to employees or their children or specific companies like Kraft or even those in specific types of careers or industries, such as police officers or steel workers. Corporate scholarships often feature generous awards and requirements that can be met by normal human beings, so they can be well worth the effort of applying.
Location, Location, Location
Sometimes, your zip code or high school may qualify you for a non-academic scholarship. There are a number of local scholarships available exclusively to those living in specific areas or attending specific high schools. If there is one for your city, county, or school, it will be in your search results at Scholarships.com.
All of the above types of non-academic scholarships will appear in your search results when you conduct a free scholarship search online at Scholarships.com. We ask the most pertinent questions possible in a (roughly) ten-minute session so that you will see which scholarships are available to you. The more complete and accurate the information you supply, the more accurate and complete your search results. You may be pleasantly surprised to see how many scholarships you are eligible for, A student or not, and who knows? You may even end up winning a few.
Check Scholarships.com for more opportunities.
http://www.scholarships.com/scholarship-search.aspx
Academic Scholarship Opportunities
As previously mentioned, academic scholarships all come with their own requirements regarding academic performance and extracurricular involvement. Merit scholarships can sometimes include a community service requirement, or demonstrated leadership potential. This may be based on your involvement in school sports or politics, for example. If you were the quarterback of the football team or captain of your basketball or gymnastics team as well as student class president, you may be more attractive to an organization that wants to bankroll the formal education of a future leader. In order to find the academic scholarship opportunities that are right for you, conduct a free college scholarship search on Scholarships.com. By completing a free profile, you will have access to scholarship information for a variety of awards for which your education and experience qualify you. Below is a list of just a few of the academic and other merit scholarships available in our database.
Bridgewater College President's Merit Award
Application Deadlines: Varies
Bridgewater College recognizes the academic achievements of high school seniors and transfer students through its ACE program. Each year, the College commits significant institutional resources for grants and scholarships to assist students. The Bridgewater College President's Merit Awards range from $11,000 up to full-tuition and are based on an applicant's academic performance in high school [...] More
EWNJ Graduate Merit Award Program
Application Deadlines: June 15, Annually
Executive Women of New Jersey Graduate Merit Award Program One of EWNJ's priorities is to provide encouragement and a strong foundation of leadership development for the next generation of female executives. To advance this goal, EWNJ established the Graduate Merit Award Program in 1986, a scholarship program to benefit women who reside in New Jersey and are pursuing graduate level degrees at [...] More
Furman University National Merit Scholarships
Application Deadlines: Varies
The National Merit Scholarships are renewable scholarships ranging from $1,000 to $2,000 depending on need, for National Merit finalists who indicate Furman as their first-choice college. For more information about scholarships at Furman University, please [...] More
Non-Academic College Scholarships
Scholarships Aren't Just for "A Students" Anymore
The traditional definition of scholarship generally includes such terms as "merit" and "need", but that definition doesn't tell the whole story. Often students are unaware of the many non-academic scholarships available and think they don't have much, if any, chance at winning scholarships if they haven't achieved excellent grades in high school. While I'm sure many scholarship providers do, in fact, prefer to invest in students who have already proven they thrive in an academic setting, that doesn't mean you have zero chance to find money for college without such qualifications. Sure, you probably stand a better chance at some free college cash if you do happen to belong to three or four clubs and boast a 4.0 cumulative GPA or ace the ACT or SAT, but these are not the only criteria by which scholarship money is awarded these days.
Naturally, there are the unusual scholarships like the famous scholarship for being left handed or the one where you make a suit or dress out of duct tape for your prom, but you probably already know of these, having read about them in almost every article written on scholarships over the last decade or so. In case you’re not familiar, though, the scholarship for lefties is only available to those planning to attend Juniata College in Huntington, Pennsylvania. The Duck Brand duct tape contest is actually a really cool scholarship contest that has no GPA requirements, offers a $2,500 grand prize and looks like a lot of fun—if you’re into wearing tape. But if you don’t like Pennsylvania or sticky residue, don’t despair! There are so many other non-academic scholarship awards out there and you or your child/student could very well qualify for several, or possibly even dozens, of them. Below are several types of scholarships that don’t necessarily favor the class brain.
Talent is the new brains
Can you draw? Dance? Sing? There are quite a few non-academic college scholarships available to the more creatively inclined that don’t necessarily require good grades. Some may have a minimum GPA, but often they are a very attainable 3.0 or thereabouts rather than the "4.0, top-of-your-class” variety. All manner of art scholarships exist, for nearly every art: drawing scholarships, singing auditions that could net a scholarship for the top performers, and even scholarships requesting a video as an entry.
Write your own ticket.
Essay scholarships could prove rewarding. You could pull down anywhere from $500 to $5,000 or more just for reading a book and writing an essay on it- some don’t even require reading the book! Most scholarships essay contests don’t have a GPA requirement, nor are they concerned with any of the other famous three-letter acronyms (ACT, SAT). As a matter of fact, the Scholarships.com Resolve To Evolve Scholarship doesn’t have any GPA, SAT or ACT requirements and you could win up to $3,000 with your scholarship essay . Even if you don’t take the top prize, you could win $2,000 or be one of five $1,000 winners! Conduct a free scholarship search at Scholarships.com to see if you qualify.
Apply for an "Area of Study" Scholarship
There are so many scholarships out there for students interested in pursuing a particular major, from Art to Technology. Sure, it wouldn’t hurt to have a perfect 4.0, but you still may have a chance at thousands of dollars in free financial assistance, or maybe even a full-ride. For example, Scholarships.com awards 13 different $1,000 Area of Study College Scholarships each year, with a 250-350 word essay as the only required material. Give it your best effort—make a case to the scholarship provider and show them why you are the best candidate and can do great things in your chosen field.
Employers may pay more than just your salary
Often, a scholarship will be available exclusively to employees or their children or specific companies like Kraft or even those in specific types of careers or industries, such as police officers or steel workers. Corporate scholarships often feature generous awards and requirements that can be met by normal human beings, so they can be well worth the effort of applying.
Location, Location, Location
Sometimes, your zip code or high school may qualify you for a non-academic scholarship. There are a number of local scholarships available exclusively to those living in specific areas or attending specific high schools. If there is one for your city, county, or school, it will be in your search results at Scholarships.com.
All of the above types of non-academic scholarships will appear in your search results when you conduct a free scholarship search online at Scholarships.com. We ask the most pertinent questions possible in a (roughly) ten-minute session so that you will see which scholarships are available to you. The more complete and accurate the information you supply, the more accurate and complete your search results. You may be pleasantly surprised to see how many scholarships you are eligible for, A student or not, and who knows? You may even end up winning a few.
Check Scholarships.com for more opportunities.
http://www.scholarships.com/scholarship-search.aspx
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Paying for College: How to Minimize Debt From Student Loans
How to Minimize Debt From Student Loans
Let’s face facts: If you’re entering college today, you’re probably going to have to take some student loans. According to FinAid.org, a website that tracks student lending, more than two-thirds of bachelor’s degree holders left school with some debt in 2007-08 (the most recent year the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study was conducted). But is there anything you can do to minimize the debt you’ll have when you graduate?
Definitely! Here are five tips on reducing your student loan burden:
1) Start saving for college early. This is for parents more than students, because we’re talking really
Minimize Debt From Student Loans early – like right-when-the-kids-are-born early. A 529 plan – which helps families set aside money specifically for future college costs – is a great way to do this, but even a regular savings account can be a big help.
Parents, put money given to your kids as gifts into such a plan, and add to it yourself when possible. Students, when you start earning money with a part-time job, make sure some of it goes toward saving for college as well. Starting college with a nice chunk of money to cover tuition, housing, books and other expenses allows you to focus on what’s really important: getting good grades and completing your degree.
2) Avoid scams. Unfortunately, there are a lot of underhanded – and often illegal – financial aid scams out there. The old adage is important: If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Fraudulent financial aid offers are typically designed to take your money or your personal information (or both) and give you nothing in return. As a general rule, if you’re asked to pay money to apply for a grant or scholarship, it’s a scam. They’re supposed to be giving you money, not the other way around.
3) Get as much free money as possible. The best kind of financial aid is the kind you don’t have to pay back. College scholarships and Pell Grants are the most common forms of free assistance.
Merit-based scholarships are awarded for exceptional performance – high grades, notable athleticism, engaging in extracurricular activities, winning academic competitions and other important achievements. Some are given out based on other criteria, such as taking an unusual major or belonging to an underrepresented minority group. Any scholarships you have a chance of winning are worth applying for; every dollar you get is a dollar you don’t have to pay back when you’re done with college.
Undergraduate students who have not earned a bachelor’s or professional degree are eligible for Pell Grants. The U.S. Department of Education has set the maximum award for the 2011-2012 academic year at $5,500. However, the amount you actually receive depends on your financial need, your cost to attend school, whether you are a full-time or part-time student, and several other factors. You must submit a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to be considered for a Pell Grant.
4) Take low-interest federal loans first. Federal student loans (Stafford loans) are your go-to resource if you can’t cover your costs with grants and scholarships. They don’t require a credit check and generally offer much better terms than private loans.
Undergraduates can take subsidized Stafford loans at a low interest rate – currently set at 3.4%* – and the government pays that interest as long as you’re enrolled in school at least half-time. This means that you’ll owe the amount you borrowed when you graduate and nothing more. And when interest does start accruing it won’t be very much. Unsubsidized Stafford loans also have a relatively low interest rate (currently 6.8%*), but it does start accruing immediately after you take the loan.
Finally, parents who want to help a dependent child pay for school can look into getting a federal PLUS loan.
5) Only take private loans as a last resort. All private lenders are different, but they generally do not offer the favorable terms that federal student loans do. They almost always require a credit check and tend to have higher interest rates. Private lenders may also require you to start paying interest while you’re still in school, which can be a big hardship for a serious student.
If you do have to take a private loan, do a lot of comparison shopping. At certain times, some lenders will offer to waive the origination fee or lower interest rates to attract borrowers. As with any loan you take, take the time to carefully examine the terms before you sign.
Paying for College: How to Minimize Debt From Student Loans
Let’s face facts: If you’re entering college today, you’re probably going to have to take some student loans. According to FinAid.org, a website that tracks student lending, more than two-thirds of bachelor’s degree holders left school with some debt in 2007-08 (the most recent year the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study was conducted). But is there anything you can do to minimize the debt you’ll have when you graduate?
Definitely! Here are five tips on reducing your student loan burden:
1) Start saving for college early. This is for parents more than students, because we’re talking really
Minimize Debt From Student Loans early – like right-when-the-kids-are-born early. A 529 plan – which helps families set aside money specifically for future college costs – is a great way to do this, but even a regular savings account can be a big help.
Parents, put money given to your kids as gifts into such a plan, and add to it yourself when possible. Students, when you start earning money with a part-time job, make sure some of it goes toward saving for college as well. Starting college with a nice chunk of money to cover tuition, housing, books and other expenses allows you to focus on what’s really important: getting good grades and completing your degree.
2) Avoid scams. Unfortunately, there are a lot of underhanded – and often illegal – financial aid scams out there. The old adage is important: If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Fraudulent financial aid offers are typically designed to take your money or your personal information (or both) and give you nothing in return. As a general rule, if you’re asked to pay money to apply for a grant or scholarship, it’s a scam. They’re supposed to be giving you money, not the other way around.
3) Get as much free money as possible. The best kind of financial aid is the kind you don’t have to pay back. College scholarships and Pell Grants are the most common forms of free assistance.
Merit-based scholarships are awarded for exceptional performance – high grades, notable athleticism, engaging in extracurricular activities, winning academic competitions and other important achievements. Some are given out based on other criteria, such as taking an unusual major or belonging to an underrepresented minority group. Any scholarships you have a chance of winning are worth applying for; every dollar you get is a dollar you don’t have to pay back when you’re done with college.
Undergraduate students who have not earned a bachelor’s or professional degree are eligible for Pell Grants. The U.S. Department of Education has set the maximum award for the 2011-2012 academic year at $5,500. However, the amount you actually receive depends on your financial need, your cost to attend school, whether you are a full-time or part-time student, and several other factors. You must submit a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to be considered for a Pell Grant.
4) Take low-interest federal loans first. Federal student loans (Stafford loans) are your go-to resource if you can’t cover your costs with grants and scholarships. They don’t require a credit check and generally offer much better terms than private loans.
Undergraduates can take subsidized Stafford loans at a low interest rate – currently set at 3.4%* – and the government pays that interest as long as you’re enrolled in school at least half-time. This means that you’ll owe the amount you borrowed when you graduate and nothing more. And when interest does start accruing it won’t be very much. Unsubsidized Stafford loans also have a relatively low interest rate (currently 6.8%*), but it does start accruing immediately after you take the loan.
Finally, parents who want to help a dependent child pay for school can look into getting a federal PLUS loan.
5) Only take private loans as a last resort. All private lenders are different, but they generally do not offer the favorable terms that federal student loans do. They almost always require a credit check and tend to have higher interest rates. Private lenders may also require you to start paying interest while you’re still in school, which can be a big hardship for a serious student.
If you do have to take a private loan, do a lot of comparison shopping. At certain times, some lenders will offer to waive the origination fee or lower interest rates to attract borrowers. As with any loan you take, take the time to carefully examine the terms before you sign.
Paying for College: How to Minimize Debt From Student Loans
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