Amidst the current economic peril America is facing, many families that plan to send their teenagers to a good college are probably worried about where and how they will find the financial means to do so. With the current costs of tuition and room and board over the roof, and rising (for example, UC’s have raised their tuition by ten percent this year), finding the money to finance a college education is becoming more and more challenging. Have no fear though! Despite these obstacles, a determined student can easily find the money necessary to pay for their college education by following these steps. By pursuing scholarships, federal aid, and more creative ways to save money, any student in good standing can find the means to finance their college education. This article will cover how students should go about obtaining financial aid to help pay for college.

Your first step in receiving good financial aid will be to fill out the FAFSA form. Filling out the FAFSA is the most important step in receiving sufficient financial aid, as many schools and government student aid programs (even some scholarships!) base what they will offer you on what they read in this form. Even if you don’t think you will qualify for anything, you might end up being surprised, so make sure to fill out this form! If you don’t, you are guaranteed not to get any federal aid, so you might as well give it a try.

Once you have completed and submitted the FAFSA, you will hear back on what your school/government will offer you in financial aid, and how much you are expected to contribute on your own. At this point you should have an idea of whether you should be good applying for a few scholarships, or if you will have to go as far as applying for loans.
After receiving the FAFSA offer, now it is time to figure out how you are going to find money to cover the rest of the costs of college that your school and the government aren’t covering. Your first step in finding sufficient money for college will be to pursue scholarships, as free money is the best! The best scholarships to pursue are local ones and ones related to your major; in other words, pursue scholarships that will be less competitive due to the fact that less people can apply to them. Apply to scholarships that are only offered in your city (by local groups, businesses, etc.), scholarships that your school (or a private organization) offer specifically to your major, or, if you are a minority, scholarships that only that specific minority are eligible to apply for. Avoid applying to scholarships, such as national scholarships, as countless students apply to these making them extremely competitive. By applying to less competitive scholarships, you will greatly increase your chances of receiving one or more. Make sure that you also apply to as many scholarships as possible, in order to increase your chances of winning at least one.

After finding out how many scholarships you have received, now you need to figure out how you are going to cover the rest of your unmet financial need. The next common step is to apply for student loans. You should first apply for any federal student loans that you are eligible for, as these usually have the best rates, compared to private loans.

After you have exhausted scholarship, federal aid, and your own resources for financial college, you still have a few other options for covering the rest of your financial aid. Your first step, if you are a student, is to get a job. By getting a part time job during the school year and finding well-paying internships during the summers, you can easily save up an extra $5,000 to $10,000 (or even more, depending on how much you work) per year to help cover your college costs. By becoming an RA at your dorm, your school will often cover the entire costs of your college housing, which can easily amount to over $10,000 per year.

By following the information above, any student in good standing should easily be able to find enough financial resources to cover the costs of their college education. It will not be easy, but if you put in the effort, you should be able to find sufficient money for college.

For more advice on how to save thousands of dollars in financial aid for college, visit money for college students!

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