Posts Tagged ‘financial aid’
Posted by admin on February 23rd, 2009
Sallie Mae, the largest provider of student loans in the country, announced today an offer that no family preparing for college admissions should miss.
A new website, www.salliemae.com/resources, aims to help alleviate fears and provide answers. “We have helped more than 21 million Americans achieve the dream of a college education, and we do not intend to let this economy keep us from helping you achieve yours.” They’re not only offering detailed responses to frequently asked questions, but on Wednesday (February 25), Sallie Mae has a toll-free hotline open from 6pm – midnight EST. In addition, you can submit questions directly to the site, get email updates when new answers are posted, and download a free podcast that explains how to complete the FAFSA (the federal financial aid application).
Finally, there are two 45-minute webinars that explain how to calculate and compare college costs, create a plan to pay for college, understand loan payments, and use free scholarship Web tools. The webinars will be held on February 24 at 6 pm and February 25 at 7 pm (both EST). Register by emailing schoolresource@salliemae.com. If you miss it, the webinar will be available on their website beginning February 26.
Posted by Jeff Davis on January 13th, 2009
Typically, the enrollment process for an online college program includes online registration, transcript processing, placement testing, program placement, and advisement. However, this can vary depending on which school is chosen. In my case, the enrollment process was a simpler process than this. There was really nothing difficult about it at all. Any questions that I had at that time were answered by the school Enrollment Counselor via telephone. In fact, this counselor actually walked me through the whole process as I did it online. So, I hope this demonstrates the difficulty level of one of the enrollment processes to others who are considering enrolling online. Quite simple indeed!
Once you have decided on the degree that you would like to earn, you should start by requesting information from online universities that offer that particular type of degree. Most online university websites have an application that allows you to request detailed information on enrolling in the college and on the requirements for the degree that you are seeking.
Most online universities will also assign you to an Enrollment Counselor, who will guide you through the process of enrolling in the college, filling out the necessary forms, and paying tuition. This counselor will also help to transfer in any credits from previous college courses that might apply to your degree. It might also be necessary to speak to a Financial Aid Counselor who can also help in finding scholarships, grants, and loans to pay for tuition.
Based on my experience, I believe that a prospective online student should begin their search for the right program at least a month or two before they are ready to start the program. This should provide ample time to complete the entire enrollment process. In some cases, the school may have an open admission policy in which case no ACT or SAT tests will be necessary for admittance and many schools will also waive the standard application fees. I know that with the University of Phoenix Online, the program allowed me plenty of flexibility in order to balance work, my family, and an education.
Posted by Jeff Davis on December 24th, 2008
It really is important to do your homework, especially when you are considering pursuing an online education where the final results will benefit you for the rest of your life! When choosing an online school, there are many things to consider such as whether the school is accredited or not, what programs and degrees are offered, and help with financial aid. Asking good questions can help guide you into making the right decision.
Before enrolling in an online degree program, I had requested information from 10 different online schools. Only 6 provided me with enough information from which I was able to make an educated decision (no pun intended). That helped to narrow down the online colleges field and so began my contact of the admissions office at these remaining schools which I deemed necessary in order to gather the final pertinent information needed for making my final decision on which online school and degree program is going to work best for me. Among the questions that I still needed answered were items like: the school and its history, financial aid, etc.
I feel that it is important to note that this decision was not one that I wanted to rush into since it would have long-term dire consequences in both my professional and personal life. To me, education is more than just getting a degree, but also about what the degree provides in terms of value such as the skills learned and the available career opportunities it provides.
Finally, let me say that nothing can really replace a good education. Education helps you in your overall development and broadens your outlook on life. As I look back on my research of information, the requests that I made, and the final choices that I made, it was arguably one of the hardest searches in my life but definitely the most rewarding.
Posted by Jeff Davis on December 18th, 2008
I believe that there are many reasons that people exert the effort to pursue an online degree and my reasons are probably no different. My main motivation behind looking for an online degree was probably the fact that I wanted to obtain a better job. A job with more prestige, more responsibility, and hopefully more money!
However, there were also other important factors involved. The right online degree would help me advance in my career so I was pretty choosy when looking over all of the different degrees offered and considering the many online schools which offered them. I wanted my online degree to be something that I could be proud of with a sense of accomplishment and I wanted it to be considered as respectable as a traditional college degree.
I can tell you that one factor which I was not as concerned with was cost. Cost was not a major contributive factor for me in my pursuit of an online degree, especially since I knew that I could qualify for financial aid. More important than cost to me was the quality of the degree program and the educational institution from which it came.
Convenience is probably what originally drove me to seeking an online degree versus taking a more traditional approach. Since I am a busy working adult, I truly appreciated the ability to take courses from home. This allowed me to fit college into my hectic lifestyle with a more flexible advantage.
The first thing I looked for once I found an online degree program that I was interested in was making certain that the institution carried an official recognition. Making sure that the school was accredited almost guaranteed me that I would be getting the best education possible and the best value for my tuition.
Not everyone has career related reasons for wanting an online degree. An education is always beneficial, even if it is only meant to meet a personal goal in life. Getting your degree online can be a rewarding and memorable life experience, so be sure to take the time to research your online degree in order to be certain of getting exactly the college degree to help you meet your personal or career goals.
Posted by Jeff Davis on December 12th, 2008
Since I worked full-time and have a family, I really did not have the free time available that I would have liked to have had in order to pursue the various avenues regarding financing options for school. Therefore, for my financial aid options, I chose to go the route of student loans and to pay any out of pocket expenses that the student loans would not cover. This worked well for me but may not be the right fit for everyone. Overall, I think it really depends on each individual’s needs for financial aid and how that person wants to address them.
There are many ways to obtain financing for college and an online school is no different. Among these are: student loans, private loans, employer tuition assistance, and scholarships. From what I discovered, there are more financial aid options available than ever for students pursuing online programs. If you are unsure of how to get started with obtaining the correct information, then consider your university’s financial aid department. They will have plenty of information on the university’s financial aid policies.
However, one advantage that online schools have over more traditional schools is that they can save you money. If you attend college on a traditional campus, you will have more expenses involved than you originally anticipated. Think about it. You will have to pay for not only tuition, but also you may have housing, food, books, supplies, and gas for commuting. With an online school, these costs are greatly reduced because you are attending class from home. Therefore, your only costs should be tuition and books. You also have no commuting costs since you do not have to drive to class.
Overall, you need to understand all of your options when it comes to paying for college. I would recommend that you take the time to do some careful research and be sure to apply for everything you can including federal and state aid as well as private scholarships.
Posted by Jen Zeman on December 8th, 2008
When considering financing options for school, I compared loans from private financial institutions and the U.S. Department of Education. I decided on the Department of Education and completed a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at www.fafsa.ed.gov. I knew my husband and I made too much money to be eligible for grants, so I secured subsidized and unsubsidized loans. Loans through the Department of Education appealed to me more than a private financial institution loan because the Department of Education offered a better loan rate, better repayment options, and deferral of repayment until I graduated from school. The deferral option is great! Not immediately coming up with the additional funds to pay for school was one less thing to stress about.
The world of scholarships is vast and the amount of money available via scholarships is astronomical. The website www.scholarships.com indicates their database consists of over 2.7 million free scholarships and grants worth over $19 billion. The problem I found with scholarships is that it takes time, a lot of time, to search through them to find ones you are eligible to apply for. During the searches I did conduct, I wasn’t eligible for most of the scholarships offered. I simply didn’t have the time to continue, but if you do have the time, scholarships and grants can be extremely beneficial in reducing your total tuition bill. With enough persistence, you may even accumulate enough to pay all of your expenses! The financial aid office at the institution you will be attending can help you get started in the process. The financial aid office can help you apply for financial aid, advise you of funding available directly through the school, and assist you essentially through the entire process.
Posted by Sharon Cece on December 8th, 2008
The first thing I did after I was accepted to the Distance Learning program in 2004 was celebrate with a huge hot fudge sundae. The second thing I did was to sit down and research financial aid programs. There were two programs I focused on: financial aid specific to my college (academic in nature) as well as FAFSA, or Free Application for Federal Student Aid (financial in nature).
My situation was the following: married, two children, one income. Since I had been away from FSU for a number of years (I had originally attended on campus from 1987-89), the FSU financial aid academic aid would not have been applicable to me until I received grades for my first semesters. Therefore, I directed my attention to the FAFSA, which I completed immediately and strongly encourage all students to do so. Since everything is done online, it is very easy to track your financial aid status once you complete all the required online forms and receive your PIN.
Based on the FAFSA report, I was eligible for the Undergraduate Stafford Loan. There are two kinds of Stafford Loans, Subsidized and Unsubsidized. Subsidized are based on financial need and interest does not accrue on the loan as long as you are in school at least half time until six months after graduation. Unsubsidized loans accrue interest from the time the loan is dispersed to the school.
Once I started to build a transcript of grades I was then able to pursue academic-based financial aid through my college. Thus, in addition to receiving the Federal Stafford Loan, I also received an academic grant through FSU. This helped quite a bit in paying for supplies and the added expenses germane to the distance learning student.
Though I did worry at first about paying for college, there are financing options available for most college students regardless of status. As well, there are scholarships available in addition to federal and state college assistance. Your academic advisors can point you in the right direction to get you started. More importantly, research is your best friend. Look into all financing options to make the best choices for you and your financial situation. It might also be prudent to consider one final piece of advice: always eat dessert before dealing with finances.
Posted by admin on October 10th, 2008
The Bush administration said on Friday it would take further steps to support the student loan market for the 2009-2010 school year.
In a joint statement, U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Education Secretary Margaret Spellings said they would soon announce steps to address challenges hampering student lenders and borrowers.
“Using our newly extended authorities, the administration is moving aggressively to support the continued availability of funding for federal student loans in the next school year with the goal of restoring the government guaranteed student loan market to normal operations,” they said in a statement.
Posted by Nicole Acosta on July 22nd, 2008
Recent events has caused me to blog about being ‘On Time’ with registration or be extra early. This July I went to register for classes for this upcoming Fall. It was a mad house; students trying to register for Summer II and Fall 2008. The adviser’s are not the friendliest of people; think about it, there they are sitting there listening to unprepared people that have no idea what courses they are wanting to take or are eligible.
I have one complaint about the way Adviser’s work. I know your tired and stressed by the over abundence of students signing up for classes, checking on test scores and asking for directions. You chose this job, and we come to YOU for aid and understanding of the program YOUR college has to offer. Don’t expect most students to know what it going on. Most students that are signing up for classes are high school graduates and have no idea what is going on; so in a way we are like toddlers learning how to walk and we are trying to get fimiliar with our steps. Don’t expect us to just get up and walk with confidence.
I find a great source of information is to ask friends who already attend the college. Go to your counselor; email your questions to the school. I receive better responses from emails, then having to deal with the staff in person. Emails are quick and to the point.
If you are applying for financial aid be sure to be at least 30-60 days out before payment is due for your classes. I’m currently battling with this at the moment. Payment IS due and my funds have not been processed through the financial aid department at the college. I applied 30 days out on the internet. Be sure that all information is correct, so as soon as you get an email from FAFSA print your documents and head to your college or phone them immediately if its a Online Only University. All corrections that need to be done, should be done immediately to avoid paying out of pocket for classes, because you do not have your funds yet.
So, work on trying to be the early bird when it comes to college. Be Prepared and Ask for Help.
Posted by Jen Zeman on July 20th, 2008
Financial aid is readily available for anyone wanting to go back to school, even if they are attending completely online. The fastest and best way to get all the information you need to get your financial aid started is by visiting the Department of Education’s website for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/. This application is a necessity to complete for any federal financial aid, whether it is a loan or grant. The website is easy to navigate, as is the application itself. If you have already applied at a specific school, the institution’s financial aid office should be one of the first places you visit. Your school’s financial aid office can offer further assistance in completing your FAFSA, as well as providing volumes of information on scholarships (in-state and national). Scholarships are an amazing way to fund your education, but it takes considerable time to search for scholarships you might be eligible for, and then actually fulfilling the application requirements for those eligible ones. If you have the time – go for it!
Don’t forsake going back to school because you don’t have the money on hand or don’t know where to start. College is affordable and within reach of nearly everyone. My bachelor’s degree and my forthcoming master’s degree are funded via federal student loans. The payments are not painful and the return on investment is certainly worth the expense.
