A Helpful Strategy When Seeking Financial Aid For School


50% of getting a college education is being able to jump through the hoops.  One of those hoops is the hoop of finding  financial aid for school. 

Here is a list of potential ‘where to go’ and ‘who to see’ resources that may assist you in finding and securing financial aid for school.

Be Prepared Before You Apply For For Financial Aid For School

Give some thought to these key questions before you do anything else.

First, know yourself.  What is your major?  Why?

What career do you have in mind?  Why?

What kind of money do you seek?  And what are you eligible for ?

Ask anyone and everyone

Look everywhere

The Three Major Funding Sources For Financial Aid For School Are:

  1. Financial Aid:  Taxpayer-supported stipends based on need
  2. Grants:  Federal, state, and college gifts based on need
  3. Scholarships:  College, corporate and private gifts based on academic status/excellence and standing

Where To Look For Financial Aid For School

  1. In your college.  If you are a transfer student at a community college, seeking financial aid for school elsewhere, start your search locally, at the college you are attending.  Every campus has a financial aid office (or area) which offers financial aid applications, a scholarship bulletin board, and grant information.
  2. Newspaper classifieds sections, backs of trade magazines (in your field), and the yellow pages (major corporations often give big dollars).
  3. Check other likely places: ask your employer, the place where you volunteer, your Mom or Dad’s employer, organizations (Lion’s club, Elks, Eastern Star) and church(es).
  4. Investigate corporations.  Many give large scholarships.  (For example, Coca-Cola gave thousands to one of the students at my college one year, and another big biz gave a Psych major $10,000 to transfer to a state university.)

Be Methodical In Your Approach To Finding Financial Aid For School

  • Learn what forms you need:  For financial aid, for example, you need a number of forms which can be found at www.fafsa.ed.gov; for grants and scholarships, request a copy of the guidelines and the application.  Call or email the sponsor if you have questions.
  • Follow instructions
  • Proofread carefully
  • Leave nothing blank
  • Be legible
  • Get application materials in early

Avoid Scams When Applying For Financial Aid For School

When doing your research, be mindful of and avoid  any of the following:

  • Anyone/any site who/that asks for your credit card/bank numbers/social security number2
  • Anyone/site guaranteeing a scholarship
  • Anyone who “selects” you as a “winner”
  • Anyone who offers unsolicited free stuff
  • Any “Foundation” without a name  (Check out the source)
  • Anyone who tells you you can’t get this info “anywhere else”
  • Any place that says it is “holding” a scholarship for you and need money from you first
  • Anyone who asks for any money
  • Anyone who offers to do all the work for you, for as you see here, while I have done scads of work for you, you still have a lot of work to do to get that money!