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Sources of information on
financial aid:
This page contains a general discussion of
financial aid. For additional, specific, coverage of
scholarships, grants, loans, and work study, follow the links
above or at bottom of this page.
Although our primary focus is on Internet
resources, you may also want to utilize the printed
publications that can be found in libraries and bookstores.
Many of these now come with CD-ROM which allows you to
use the Web browser on a computer to view much, or all, of the
same material that is printed on paper, and perhaps use search
capabilities to do it faster. If you are still in high
school, ask your guidance counselor what information they
have on financial aid for college. And, of course, if you
have identified certain colleges or universities to which you wish
to apply, you can contact their admissions office or financial
aid administrator and ask for information. Yet another
source is the Federal Student Aid Information Center,
1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243); you can also request a copy of The
Student Guide, a comprehensive reference to all of the Federal
Student Financial Aid programs. Veterans should visit
the Department of
Veterans Affairs Web site for information in Education
Benefits.
Basic
types of financial aid:
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need-based |
not need-based |
merit based |
pay back required |
| Scholarships1 |
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| Grants |
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| Loans |
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| Work Study |
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Note: fellowships,
another category, are primarily for graduate students. |
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*There may be some exceptions, such as a
grant requiring payback. Be sure you thoroughly
understand the terms related to the aid you are receiving.
1 May be based or need, merit, or both.
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Internet
Resources
Much information is available on the Internet
concerning financial aid, and you can start right here with
CollegiateWorld in your search for this information. We have
links to Web sites that have substantial information on financial
aid. But, once you have narrowed your college choice to one
or a few schools, you should visit their Web site also. College
and university web sites generally include information on
financial aid. In some cases, it is listed as a separate
topic right on the home page. In other cases, you will find
it on a subsequent page, perhaps several steps removed from the
home page. And it may be not be treated as a separate Web
page, but part of another topic such as admissions.
Why visit a college/university Web site if lots of
other Web sites have information on financial aid? One
reason is that they may have information on state-sponsored
financial aid programs that are unique to the state in which the
school is located. Also, the school may have certain
scholarship and other aid programs which are unique to that
institution. On the other hand, federal programs,
which play the leading role on the financial aid stage, and a vast
array of scholarships that are not tied to a specific school or
have simply chosen to promote themselves through independent
scholarship databases, are thoroughly dealt with in many of the
independent Web sites to which we have links.
 AbsolutelyScholarships
has over 200,000 scholarships for you to search.
Collegeboard,
the company that administers the SAT and Advanced Placement
Program, also has a database of funds from more than 2,000
scholarships, internships, and loan programs
Finding
Out About Financial Aid: The Web page by the U.S. Dept.
of Education's Office of Postsecondary Education. You'll
find a lot of information here about federal financial aid
programs, and some help on getting information about state
financial assistance programs for students.
Educaid,
A First Union Company: Educaid offers loans
for nearly all levels of education. It also provides
comprehensive information about education loans and other aspects
of financial aid for high school students, guidance counselors,
and college financial aid administrators.
FAFSA
on the Web: a Web site of the U.S.Dept of Education.
You can apply online if your Web browser supports encrypted
transactions; they even help you determine this. The FAFSA is used
to determine your eligibility for these Federal
Student Aid Programs:
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Federal Pell Grants
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Federal Stafford Loans:
1. Federal Family Education (FFEL) Loans (Subsidized
and Unsubsidized)
2. Federal Direct Stafford Loans (Subsidized
and Unsubsidized)
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Federal PLUS (Parent Loan for Undergraduate
Student) Loans
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Campus-Based Programs are administered
by participating schools. There are three of these programs.
1. Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants
(FSEOG)
2. Federal Work Study (FWS)
3. Federal Perkins Loans
Note: A subsidized loan is one that the government
pays the interest on while you are in school, during grace
periods, and during any deferment periods.
FastWEB:
This Web site has a searchable scholarship database to help you
locate sources of financial aid, plus links to Web pages for
financial aid calculators, an EFC (Expected Family Contribution)
Estimator, financial aid office pages of universities, a
bibliography of financial aid resource materials, a glossary of
financial aid terminology, and financial aid FAQ (Frequently Asked
Questions). And, be sure to read their Ten Great Financial
Aid Tips.
FinAid
is another Internet resource for all types of financial aid -
loans, scholarships, military aid, and grants.
Scholarships.com
will compare your profile to their database of approximately
600,000 college scholarships, worth more than 1.4 billion dollars,
from over 8,000 sources. The scholarships that match your profile
are presented to you immediately online! Go directly to
their search
service.
Wiredscholar
connects you to over 600,000 sources of financial aid—one of
the Internet's largest databases. And, they can help with
loans.
>For more detailed coverage of scholarships,
grants, loans, and work study, follow links below or at top of
page.
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