We're going to college, and we need cash. We have tuition and food,
housing, books... like I said, we need cash. We hear about these
billions of dollars of unclaimed scholarship money just floating
around, yet you can't seem to get your hands on any of it, nor on any
other form of financial aid. We're out here working like dogs, trying
to make time to study an keep from losing our insanity, until we
finally just give up. This sounds like a pretty big problem. What to do?First
of all, you should know that there aren't billions of dollars out there
just waiting to fall in your lap. In fact most counselors and financial
aid assitants wonder why this rather enormous figure is stated so
often, but its not the case. So don't feel bad or think you "suck"
because you haven't won some of this dough. However, there IS some
money to be made out there that many people either overlook or figure
it isnt worth pursuing. Trust me, its worth taking a look at and worth
pursuing. Usual Suspects Your first destination
should be the government. The FAFSA needs to be the first thing you do.
You may be eligible for grants or other special awards. Then go to your
school to see if they have any special scholarships that are only
available to students of that college or university. After that, sign
up to fastweb.com and scholarship.com and become familiar with those
two sites, they are two of the most used on the web. There's something for everyone! People
commonly think that only minorities and people with really low incomes
and awesome grades can get scholarships. This is just not so. There are
plenty of scholarships out there that are aimed at people in certain
national or local clubs, that serve different interests such as
drawing, writing, or a sport, and even some that are strictly for those
with work experience. Tons of scholarships for college students are
aimed at specific majors and corresponding social networks, for example
the Audio Engineering society and American Medical Association. Be
creative when searching. There are plenty of companies giving money
away in hopes of attaining a student base of prospective future
employees. If you're working on computers, for example, see what top
technological companies such as Qualcomm and IBM have to offer, if
you're working in finance and economics, checkout some big time (and
small time) Wall St. corporations, for instance. Also,
don't forget to checkout your own community. YMCA, churches, local
youth groups and sports teams, they all give out money to deserving
individuals, so do some homework on your hometown before moving on to
bigger venues. The essay contest These are
wonderful. Checkout what you like, what you know a lot about and are
passionate about, and write an essay to submit to a contest or
scholarship offer. Get friends in on it...help each other out and
promise to share earnings. Why isn't this EASY? Now,
I don't want to brag, but I won quite a few scholarships in my day.
However, I remember always getting questions about "how do you do it,"
"you're so lucky," and so on. Well, it really isn't that complicated--
its going to take some work and dedication. Start early, make a list of
scholarships, plan for scholarship-work time, and get busy. Don't feel
bad when you don't win, most students are happy to win a few because
that's usually what it takes. Just keep focused on what you're trying
to do, hope for the best, and do NOT stress out about it. Alternatives There
are a few alternatives. Never resort to credit cards. Ever. What you
want to look for are student loans because they have lower interest
rates and usually have friendlier grace periods and payback periods.
Don't worry about being in student loan debt upon
graduation...$10000-$15,000 is not bad at all (if being repaid in ten
years). Stafford loans are the most common. They offer around $2600 for
first-year, $3500 for second year and $5500 for third year students.
Perkins loans usually don't have to be repaid until nine months after
graduation and you have 10 years to pay. Checkout private loans, maybe
from loan-specialists companies and your own school. Checkout the
American Education Society which also provides private loans for people. Don't Stress It There is money to be made, just be focused, dont't get discouraged, and work hard at it. Well, what are you waiting for? Vincent St. James is a writer and researcher for thecollegeguys.com, where you can find more of his work related to finance, health,and movies.
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