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Getting Started

  • Start gathering information early.
  • Free information is readily available from:

High school counselors
College and career school financial aid offices (where you plan to attend)
Local and college libraries

Federal Student Aid (U.S. Department of Education)

Resources from nonprofit organizations such as:

Other internet sites (search terms student financial aid OR assistance)

  • Ask questions: counselors may know if you have exceptional circumstances that affect your eligibility.
  • Keep copies of all forms and correspondence: you must reapply for aid each year.

Parents of students: save money long before your child attends college.

Good overviews:

Beware of scholarship scams — don’t pay for free information!

Student Aid and Where it Comes From 

Basic assistance categories:

  • Financial need-based
    Remember that students and their parents are responsible for paying what they can– financial aid is a supplement, not a substitute, for family resources.
  • Non need-based
    Factors include academic excellence, ethnic background, or organization membership. Corporations may also offer assistance to employees and children.

Federal Student Aid:

  • Provides student aid under Loans, Grants and Work/study programs.
  • Available to all need-based applicants; some loans and competitive scholarships for non need-based.
  • Loans are the most common federal aid and must be repaid when you graduate or leave college:
  • Stafford Loans
  • Federal PLUS Loans – parental loans, not need-based.
  • Perkins Loans – for the undergraduates with the most need; through participating schools.

 Scholarships/grants are mostly need-based and require no repayment:

“Congressional” scholarships:

Some are named for Member of Congress or other prominent individual (such as the Fulbright)

Merit-based and highly competitive.

Members of Congress do not play a role in selecting recipients.

Congressional Black Caucus Foundation

Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute

Work study programs allow you to earn money while in school:

Federal Work Study Program: college campus jobs

For questions not covered by the Department of Education website, call the Federal Student Aid Information Center at 1-800-433-3243. States also offer residents a variety of scholarships, loans, and tuition exemptions.

  • Check with your state higher education agency and guarantee agency.
  • Consider prepaid tuition and college savings (“Section 529”) plans: College Savings Plans Network.
  • Search your Internet browser under terms such as student financial aid or assistance AND your state.

Colleges and universities provide some aid, most need-based. Check university websites and the institution’s financial aid office when you apply for admission.

Private foundations, corporations, and organizations offer scholarships or grants:

Targeted aid for special groups

Interested in public service?

Federal assistance programs seek to encourage people to work in geographic areas or professions where there’s a particular need (such as doctors in underserved areas); encourage underrepresented groups to enter a particular profession; and provide aid in exchange for services provided (such as military service).

Aid for private K-12 education: No direct federal assistance, check with schools themselves:

Repaying your loans

After college, make sure to begin forming a strategy for repaying your student loans.