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Financial Aid and Loan Information:
The Federal Government - The largest
provider of financial aid, the federal government, has a great deal of
information on student financial aid on it's website,
http://www.ed.gov/finaid.
FAFSA4caster (
http://www.fafsa4caster.ed.gov/
) - a companion piece to the official
FAFSA. The free FAFSA4caster tool will assist high school juniors and
their families in the following ways:
-
Instantly calculate an estimated EFC
-
Inform the student of potential Federal Pell Grant (Pell Grant)
eligibility
-
Reduce the time needed to complete the FAFSA when the student applies as
a senior
Texas Financial Aid Information Center - can assist with any type of
financial aid questions, whether it is a question about the FAFSA, the
Texas Grant, or federal education tax credits. The center takes calls
Monday through Thursday from 7 a.m. until 6:50 p.m. and Friday from 7 a.m.
until 4:50 p.m.. Spanish speaking representatives are available.
Call 1-877-782-7322.
Other financial aid websites:
Guide to Financial Aid
http://studentaid.ed.gov/PORTALSWebApp/students/english/index.jsp
FastWeb
Offers the Web's largest
free scholarships search.
Broke Scholar
BrokeScholar is a free search engine that lets you search through a
database of more than 900,000 college scholarships. After you complete the
on-line questionnaire, BrokeScholar shows you each scholarship's name, how
much money is available, and the application deadline. Click on the name
of any scholarship and BrokeScholar shows you more in-depth information
about that scholarship including applicable majors and schools, contact
information, and even a link to the scholarship provider's Web site
Free 4 U
Mega scholarship site with links to special interests and specific
majors.
Go
College
Scholarship search engine. site also has information on loans and
government programs.
Wired Scholar
Fill out an on-line questionnaire and let Wired Scholar find
scholarships from its database that match your characteristics.
101 Top
College, University and Scholarship Pages
Links to free scholarship
search services, college "matching" databases, and
SAT practice tests.
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Know How to Spot Scholarship Scams
The vast majority of private scholarships offered to
high school students are legitimate, but every year, experts say, a few
scams sneak into the pack. Tips on spotting scam scholarships are offered
on the website of the
National
Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators, operated by Mark
Kantrowitz of Carnegie Mellon University.
Here, from Kantrowitz's list, are some likely signals you're looking
at a scam:
- Application fees. You should not have to pay
money to get money. Even a fee as low as $10 should be a warning.
"Beware of 900-number services," Kantrowitz says, "which charge a fee of
several dollars a minute for the call."
- Guaranteed winnings. No legitimate
scholarship will tell you in advance that you have won it.
- Everybody is eligible. "Scholarships
sponsors," Kantrowitz says, "do not hand out awards to students simply
for breathing.
- No phone number. Most legitimate scholarship
programs will give you a phone number on their application forms. If
there is no number, be wary.
- Requests for personnel information. If an
application asks for your bank account number, credit card number or
Social Security number, run away from it fast.
- Phone notification. If you are told by phone
you have won a scholarship, and the caller doesn't offer to confirm in
writing, be careful. If the caller asks for money, hang up.
Source: USA Today, page 4D, Wednesday, November 12,
1997
Scholarship Scams
Site run by the Federal Trade Commission that helps students and
parents avoid unethical scholarship data base providers.
Six Signs That your Scholarship is Sunk
Advice on how to avoid scams from the Federal Trade Commission.
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